Old-Fashioned Gingerbread Cake

This recipe for old-fashioned gingerbread cake is dark, perfectly spiced and very moist. We wanted to create a cake that was authentic in taste, right down to the fresh ginger! We also chose to bake our cake in a vintage bundt pan (found on Etsy here) made by Kaiser and orginating from Germany. The combination of the old-fashioned gingerbread cake recipe and the vintage bundt pan was not a disappointment. The result was a truly classic dessert masterpiece!

To add a bit of color to the old-fashioned gingerbread cake we made a simple glaze of water, lemon juice and powdered sugar, tinted it yellow, and ran in over the grooves of the cake. Lemon sauce or lemon glaze is a complementary flavor to gingerbread, but not one often seen in most recipes these days.

If lemon is not your style, this cake is also delicious with heavy cream, whipped cream or just by itself!

Old-Fashioned Gingerbread Cake

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 tablespoon fresh ginger (grated)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 stick of unsalted butter
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1 1/2 cups molasses (Grandma’s Molasses brand works well.)

Directions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350°F.
  2. Combine the flour, baking soda, and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. Using a whisk, add in the spices and salt.
  3. Melt the butter in the boiling water and whisk it into the flour mixture. 
  4. Add the eggs and molasses and whisk until blended.
  5. Turn into a preapred bundt pan. Bake for 1 hour - 1 hour 15 minutes, until well done and a toothpick plunged in the center comes out clean.

Lemon Glaze (optional)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 3  tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • Water
  • Yellow food gel (optional)

Directions

  1. In a medium sized bowl, add your confectioner’s sugar and then stir in lemon juice. Add more sugar or lemon juice/water, if necessary so that the glaze is thick but still pourable. Tint with yellow food gel to desired shade. 

  2. Pour the glaze into the molded grooves of the bundt cake very slowly, allowing the glaze to run down the sides, while staying within the grooves, for the effect pictured.

    To see the rest of the images from our Retro 50’s Style Christmas party and to download the FREE printable party decorations click here!

    Merry Christmas, Enjoy your Old-Fashioned Gingerbread Cake!