Classic Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Classic Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Cozy flavourful spices make this moist spice cake a perfect recipe for fall (or the holiday season), it’s such a nostalgic cake! Smother it in a yummy brown sugar cinnamon cream cheese frosting, or serve it simple with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
What you’ll love about this cake:
Spice Cake = Fall Dessert Perfection
There’s just something about a spice cake that feels like fall. You just can’t go wrong with cozy spices like cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and cloves in a tender cake with cream cheese frosting. Serve this cake for Thanksgiving, or any time you like, we don’t need an excuse for cake do we?! No.
Spice Cake Recipe Tips
- PAN PREPARATION: Make sure to grease your 9 x 13 baking pan before baking. I like to use a flour/oil baking spray to prepare my baking pan (PAM has a really good one). You can also grease the pan with butter then lightly dust it with flour.
- FROSTING THE CAKE: Make sure to let the spice cake cool completely (at least 1 hour) before adding the frosting or the frosting will melt.
- EASY FROSTING TIP: If you don’t feel like making the frosting from scratch, you can buy really great premade cream cheese frosting that works well with this cake. Or you can leave the frosting off the cake and serve it with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
- STORAGE: Keep any cake leftovers covered, just out on the counter. This cake stays moist for days!
Putting it all together:
Here’s a quick look at baking this yummy spice cake. I use a 9 x 13 prepared baking pan. Bake. Let cool. Frost. Then cut into squares. Enjoy!
Sometimes I like to dust the top with a light sprinkling of extra cinnamon. It looks pretty and adds flavour.
I hope you love this recipe!
Classic Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Spice Cake Recipe:
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1 cup butter
- 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1 8 oz package cream cheese (at room temperature)
- 1/2 cup butter (at room temperature)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
Instructions
Spice Cake Recipe:
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Prepare a 9 x 13 baking pan by lightly greasing it with butter, or using an oil baking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients and spices:2 cups all purpose flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/2 tsp allspice, 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- Using a stand mixer cream the butter and sugar together until smooth.1 cup butter, 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
- Add the eggs, one at a time, to the butter mixture. Then mix in the vanilla.3 large eggs, 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Add half of the flour mixture and all of the buttermilk to the butter mixture. Mix gently. Then add the remaining flour mixture and mix gently until fully combined.1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake for 40 – 45 minutes. The cake is done when the top feels/looks firm, and a toothpick inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool completely before frosting.
Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting:
- Beat together the ingredients for the frosting until it's is nice and fluffy. Make sure to scrape the bowl often.1 8 oz package cream cheese, 1/2 cup butter, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, 2 tbsp heavy cream
Putting it all together:
- Once the cake has cooled spread the frosting evenly over the top of the cake. Sometimes I like to add a light sprinkling of extra cinnamon to the top too.
More Cake Recipes
Who wants cake? Delicious chocolate cake, pineapple cake, lemon cake, peanut butter cake, coconut cake, chocolate chip, rhubarb, strawberry, banana, cherry, apple, carrot and SO MANY MORE!
Have a delicious day!
