Classic Gingerbread Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

This Classic Gingerbread Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is so flavourful, incredibly moist and so easy to make, you’ll likely find yourself making this more than once during the holiday season!

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I know what I’m about to say is bad (especially at this time of the year), but I have to say that I’m loving this non wintry weather we are currently enjoying in Canada’s national capital.  Today is December 5th, there is no snow on the ground, the sun is shining and we are expecting a high of 8 degrees Celsius!  Of course this cannot last long, so I’m thinking that I really must get out there and enjoy this beautiful day. But before I do that, I have tell you about this classic gingerbread cake with cream cheese frosting that I recently made.

This cake is amazing, I love everything about it. It’s easy to make, incredibly moist, and the combination of ginger, cinnamon and cloves makes it so flavourful. The gingerbread cake is delicious on its own but topping it with the lemony cream cheese icing and chopped crystallized ginger takes it to another level and makes this gingerbread cake extra special! I adapted the cake portion of this dessert from this Fine Cooking gingerbread recipe. Rather than using plain water as they do, I decided the spices in chai tea would be a perfect match for the spices in the cake, so I made a cup of tea and cooled it in the refrigerator before using it in the cake.  I also wanted to dress this cake up a bit so I decided a lemony cream cheese frosting would be perfect here. I also sprinkled some chopped crystalized ginger onto the frosted cake, it’s entirely optional but I found it delicious.

This classic gingerbread cake is the perfect treat for the holiday season. I know I’ll definitely be making it again before the season is over. Enjoy!

4.67 from 6 votes

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Classic Gingerbread Cake with Lemony Cream Cheese Frosting

This classic gingerbread cake with cream cheese frosting is so flavourful, incredibly moist and so easy to make, you'll likely find yourself making this more than once during the holiday season!

Course Dessert

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Servings 9

Author Sweet and Savoury Pursuits, cake portion adapted from Fine Cooking.

Ingredients

For the Classic Gingerbread Cake

• 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 cup plus 1 Tbs. unsalted butter softened at room temperature
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 cup dark molasses (to make it easier to get the molasses out of the measuring cup rub a drop of oil in your measuring cup before filing it with molasses, the molasses will slide right down the measuring cup)
• 3/4 cup cold chai tea

For the Lemony Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 1/2 oz package regular cream cheese softened, 4
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2 tsp. lemon juice
• 2 tsp. lemon zest
• 1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups icing sugar

Garnish:

• 2 tbsp. chopped crystallized ginger

Instructions

For the Classic Gingerbread Cake

1. Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
2. Slightly butter an 8x8-inch cake pan and line it with parchment paper leaving an overhang on two opposite sides, this will make it easier to lift the cake out. Butter the paper slightly.
3. In a glass measuring cup, combine 3/4 cup of boiling water with 1 chai tea bag, set to steep and cool in the refrigerator.
4. Into a medium bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.
5. In the bowl of your mixer, beat the butter until smooth.
6. Add the brown sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy.
7. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the egg. Beat until well combined.
8. Keep beating and slowly add in the molasses.
9. Add in half of the sifted dry ingredients and mix just until well combined.
10. Scrape down the sides of your bowl again and then add the remaining dry ingredients.
11. Slowly add the cooled chai tea and stir until well combined.
12. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.
13. Let cool for 10 min before lifting the paper and cake out of pan.
14. Let cool on rack (with paper).
15. Once cake has cooled remove paper and place on serving dish.

For the Lemony Cream Cheese Frosting:

1. In the bowl of your mixer, on medium-high speed, beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth.
2. Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract, beat for 1 more minute.
3. With the mixer on the lowest speed, add one cup of icing sugar at a time until you have the desired consistency, I used 2 1/2 cups of icing sugar.
4. Frost the cooled cake and if desired top with the chopped crystallized ginger.

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