Gingerbread Cake Recipe is so moist and delicious for a festive holiday treat. Make this super moist old fashioned cake today.

Slice of gingerbread cake on a plate topped with whipped cream
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There is just something about gingerbread that makes it feel like the holidays. We have a blast making gingerbread houses and love these soft gingerbread cookies and Ginger Molasses Cookies Recipe.

The flavors of ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg come together to make the best cake. Make sure to check out all of our Christmas Dessert Recipes for all of your holiday baking. Another favorite tradition to try is this Gingerbread House.

Why We Love Gingerbread Cake:

  • Best Holiday Cake – This cake is moist, tender and delicious. This gingerbread cake is the perfect holiday cake.
  • Easy to Prepare – The cake process takes less than 15 minutes to prepare which is the perfect last minute cake to prepare.
  • Frosting – This cake is so flavorful that it can be served with no frosting. We simple dust with powdered sugar. But it is optional to a whipped topping frosting.
  • Serving – This gingerbread cake is perfect for a snack, dessert or with your morning coffee.

What is the difference between Gingerbread and Ginger Cake?

The difference between old fashioned gingerbread recipe and ginger cake is the ingredients. Gingerbread Cake is flavored with warm spices such as ginger, cinnamon and cloves as well as molasses.

Ginger Cake main ingredient is the ginger spice. The ginger cake usually doesn’t have molasses in it.

Ingredients

Ingredients needed for gingerbread cake - flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, butter, molasses, sugar, egg, buttermilk, whipped cream, powdered sugar
  • All-purpose Flour
  • Baking Powder
  • Baking Soda
  • Salt
  • Ground Ginger
  • Ground Cinnamon
  • Ground Nutmeg
  • Ground Cloves
  • Unsalted Butter, softened
  • Molasses
  • Granulated Sugar
  • Large Egg, room temperature
  • Buttermilk. What is Buttermilk?
  • Whipped Cream for serving if desired
  • Powdered Sugar, for dusting if desired

For the full list of ingredients and recipe, scroll to the bottom for the recipe card.

Substitutions and Additions:

  • Nuts – You can easily add in nuts to this cake. It adds crunch and texture to this already delicious cake. Chopped walnuts, pecans, almonds or cashews. You can even top the cake with nuts and frosting.
  • Gluten FreeIf you are looking for a gluten free option, substitute the all purpose flour for gluten free flour. You can substitute 1:1 for the regular flour.
  • Stir in Dried Fruit – If you are looking for a twist on this holiday cake, mix in some dried fruit. We recommend apples, cranberries, raisins, oranges, and pineapple.
  • Brown SugarWe used white sugar, but you can also use dark brown sugar.

Step by Step Instructions:

  • Step 1 – First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Step 2 – Next, spray 13×9 baking pan with cooking spray and lightly dust with flour.
Combining the dry ingredients together in a bowl

Step 3 – In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.

Beating the butter, sugar, egg, and molasses together

Step 4 – In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in egg and molasses with a mixer.

Adding in the dry ingredients with the butter mixture and buttermilk

Step 5 – Add dry ingredients alternating with buttermilk, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bottom of the bowl.

Pouring gingerbread cake batter in the cake pan

Step 6 – Spread batter evenly into prepared pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Baking time may vary for this super moist gingerbread cake. Cook cake on a wire rack. Another option is to make a bundt cake.

Expert Tips:

  • Adding in Spices – If you want your gingerbread cake more on the spicy side, you can always add in more spices. The recipe is the recommended amount but feel free to add in more.
  • Baking Cake – Use toothpick inserted to check for doneness on the cake. If toothpick comes out clean, then cake is done. You do not want to overbake.
  • Molasses – You can use regular or mild molasses. It all depends how heavy want to molasses to come through in the cake.
  • Ingredients – We recommend using real butter and not margarine for this recipe. Also make sure the butter and eggs are at room temperature before combining with the other ingredients.

How to Make Frosting for Gingerbread Cake:

We typically just sprinkle powdered sugar on top and add a dollop of homemade whipped cream

However, if you want a more traditional topping such as frosting, try this Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe. It only has 4 simple ingredients making it super easy to make homemade frosting

Can this Cake Be Made into Cupcakes?

Yes, you can make this cake into cupcakes. Prepare your muffin pan with cupcake liners or spray pan with nonstick cooking spray. Fill the muffin cupcake liners about 2/3 way full of gingerbread cake batter.

Bake cupcakes for about 30 minutes to 35 minutes or until cupcakes are thoroughly cooked.

Slice of gingerbread cake on a plate topped with whipped cream

Why is my Gingerbread Cake Dry?

If your gingerbread cake comes out dry it could be that your oven is to hot. You can easily check the temperature with an oven thermometer to see what it is reading. The oven temperature right could also cause the gingerbread cake to sink.

Make sure also to combine ingredients as directed. Adding to much flour could cause the cake to be dry.

Slice of gingerbread cake on a plate topped with whipped cream

Can Gingerbread Cake be frozen?

Yes, you can freeze gingerbread cake. If stored properly they cake will last up to 2 months. Wrap gingerbread in a plastic wrap and place in a freezer safe container or zip lock bag.

This is the perfect cake to make ahead of time and save time with all the other holiday baking you need to do.

How to Store Gingerbread Cake:

We recommend storing cake at room temperature. Make sure to cover cake in plastic wrap and it will stay fresh for up to 5 days.

More Easy Cake Recipes:

We love hearing from you. If you make this easy gingerbread cake recipe, please leave a comment or a star review.

Gingerbread Cake

4.90 from 19 votes
Gingerbread cake recipe is so moist and delicious for a festive holiday treat. Make this super moist old fashioned cake today! 
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 12
Cuisine American
Course Dessert
Calories 278

Ingredients

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Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
  • Spray 13×9 baking dish with cooking spray and lightly dust with flour
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices
  • In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar
  • Beat in egg and molasses
  • Add dry mixture alternating with buttermilk, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl
  • Spread batter evenly into prepared baking dish
  • Bake for 40-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean
  • Cool to room temperature or serve warm with whip cream
  • Store leftovers in airtight container

Nutrition Facts

Calories 278kcal, Carbohydrates 47g, Protein 3g, Fat 9g, Saturated Fat 5g, Cholesterol 36mg, Sodium 293mg, Potassium 504mg, Fiber 1g, Sugar 30g, Vitamin A 289IU, Calcium 104mg, Iron 2mg

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About the Author

Hi, I’m Carrie. Welcome to Desserts on a Dime!

I’m on a mission to help you create delicious desserts on a budget and do not require a ton of time. Together, we are going to make something sweet that the entire family will love!

4.90 from 19 votes (10 ratings without comment)

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Comments

  1. Ro says:

    5 stars
    This recipe made a really good cake. One of our favorite treats is a square of warm gingerbread cake topped with a canned peach half upside down and a big dollop of vanilla and sugar flavored whipped cream. We had this for a treat last evening with some hot spicy tea.
    Sometimes when I make gingerbread cake a frost it with boiled frosting. It’s really good but you need to eat all of it same day. I’m going to keep this cake now and put different toppings on pieces over the next couple days or so.

  2. Larry Gaines says:

    5 stars
    I can eat Gingerbread every day

  3. Maribeth Thomas says:

    5 stars
    A delicious spin on the classic gingerbread man cookie! So good – especially when served warm!

  4. Debs says:

    5 stars
    Absolutely love gingerbread and love this bread. The whole family gobbled it up in 2 sittings. Wonderfully delicious!

  5. Jennifer Butcher says:

    The last gingerbread recipe I will ever need this will be a holiday tradition!

  6. Elaine Askins says:

    5 stars
    Oh My Thank You Thank You! I Love a nice warm gingerbread cake with a lemon sauce poured over it! Now I can make it from scratch instead of out of a box! So much better tasting!

  7. Wendy A Engelmann says:

    5 stars
    My husband loves gingerbread. He ate the WHOLE thing! Guess it was good.

  8. Ray says:

    5 stars
    I love this recipe. The 2nd time I made it I added chopped candied ginger to the cake. It was great!

  9. Jen M. says:

    5 stars
    This recipe reminded me of the gingerbread cake my German grandmother used to make and my Dad loved; I have her recipe somewhere. My favorite way to eat it is warm with vanilla ice cream, but I love it sprinkled with powdered sugar or when I make fresh whipped cream.

  10. Brandy says:

    5 stars
    This is great