Gingerbread Cake

Because if you love gingerbread as much as I do this time of year, I’m telling you, this gingerbread confection needs to be part of your life. It’s made with the archetype rich mix of molasses and warming spices that we all love in a good batch of gingerbread. And I’m partial to this particular gingerbread confection recipe considering it bakes up to be incredibly moist and fluffy. You can either serve it up solo, pebbles it with some powdered sugar, or go all out and top it with whipped surf or surf cheese frosting — all will be delicious. And of course, confection for breakfast the next morning is unchangingly an spanking-new idea too.

I’ve included a few uneaten customization ideas below, if you would like to mix in some orange zest, chocolate or bourbon for a slightly variegated twist on this recipe. But however you make it, you can count on the fact that this confection is going to make your home smell uneaten cozy and festive this time of year…and taste plane better.

GINGERBREAD CAKE INGREDIENTS

Here are a few short notes on the gingerbread cake materials that you will need to create this recipe:

• Flour: We'll use basic all-purpose flour to give the cake structure and a fluffy texture.
• Butter: To cream nicely with the sugar, the recipe calls for unsalted butter that is at room temperature. If you only have salted butter on hand, don't worry; just remove 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt from the recipe.
• Molasses: Unsulphured molasses is the traditional ingredient that gives gingerbread its particular rich and sweet taste.
• Egg: An egg will act as a binding agent, holding all of these components together and adding structure to the cake.
• Brown sugar: Brown sugar will be our major sweetener, adding a touch of molasses taste to the cake.
• Spices: For this cake, I used a traditional combination of ground ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. However, feel free to vary the kinds and quantities of warming spices in your gingerbread.
• Salt: A sprinkle of fine sea salt will help bring out the finest in these delectable tastes.
• Vanilla extract will also be used to enhance the taste of the spices and provide a touch of warmth to the cake.
• Baking soda: Baking soda will be our major leavening agent, giving the cake a light and fluffy texture.
• Yes, we will use 1 complete cup of boiling water to assist dissolve and blend the ingredients together, as well as to provide enough moisture to the cake.
• Toppings (optional): This cake tastes great on its own. If you want to go the additional mile, cover it with whipped cream, cream cheese frosting, or powdered sugar.

GINGERBREAD CAKE TIPS

Detailed instructions for how to make gingerbread cake are included in the recipe below, but here are a few additional tips to keep in mind:

• Use room temperature butter. As always, it’s important to use room temperature butter here so that it can properly cream with the sugar to make the cake nice and fluffy.
• Don’t worry about the runny batter. Heads up that the batter for this cake will be quite runny once the boiling water is mixed in. Don’t worry — the cake will bake up to be perfectly after some time in the oven.
• Grease your knife. This cake is definitely (and wonderfully) quite moist and can have the tendency to stick a bit when cutting. So if you want clean slices, I recommend lightly greasing the knife with a bit of butter.
• Adjust the spices to taste. Everyone has their own preferences when it comes to gingerbread spices, so feel free to adjust the amounts of ginger, cinnamon and cloves to taste.

Recipe Variations

Here are some additional variants you may try with this gingerbread cake recipe:

To give the batter a zesty touch, add the zest of one medium orange.
To give the batter a chocolaty touch, add 1 1/2 teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder.
For a boozy twist, replace 2 to 3 tablespoons of boiling water with rum, bourbon, or your favorite liquor.
Add nuts, chocolate chips, and sprinkles. Unfortunately, most of these add-ins would sink to the bottom of the batter if added to the cake, but you may sprinkle them on top of the whipped cream or icing!
Add caramel sauce: My favorite bourbon caramel sauce would be delicious poured over this cake.