about the recipe
Some of my favorite recipes have come from when I accidentally mess up following another one. This is one of those times.
I had attempted a spice cake, and it came out mealy, stodgy, and greasy - oh and had almost no spice flavor!
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For my next attempt, I made some adjustments:
- Added lift and moisture
- Doubled the spice. Yep, doubled.
- No butter on the cake pan. Again, you read that correctly.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
Adding lift and moisture to cakes and quick breads is tricky. There is a fine balance between enough and too much. Whenever I have met a muffin recipe that is just too dry, I reach for greek yogurt or sour cream as my added moisture, so I have it a shot with this cake. Yogurt or sour cream both add moisture, without the added grease of more oil or butter. Another added benefit is the acid, which helps with lift due to activating the leavening agents (baking soda). Just by adding one ingredient, we have lift and moisture.
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Doubling the spice was easy, but there is a thing as too much spice. Ginger has some power behind it while allspice and cinnamon warm things up.
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Now for the weirdest one: not buttering the pan. So many recipes call for buttering the cake pan really well to prevent the cake from sticking when you're trying to remove it. This is great advice and should always be heeded. However, with this spice cake, I found that buttering the pan can make the cake way too greasy. Spices are hydrophobic, meaning they do not want to dissolve in water. But they LOVE fat. So with the added butter from greasing the pan, all those spices in the batter absorb the butter into the cake structure, making it greasy and stodgy. A quick spritz with Pam and a liner of parchment paper was enough to prevent this cake from sticking!
tips & tricks
Room temperature ingredients are crucial for this recipe, as with most. Take the time to let the eggs and yogurt warm up.
Cake Tin Size: I used one 8" cake tin, but you can use different sizes and variety like a springform or a sheet pan. The baking time is largely dependent on the depth of your cake, the deeper the pan the longer the cake will take to bake. If you're using a different cake tin size or type, just keep an eye on the baking time!
Storage: The cake on its own can sit in an airtight container on the counter for a couple days, but the cream cheese frosting must be refrigerated. The frosted cake can stay in the fridge for a few days.
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ingredients
Spice Cake:
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 plain greek yogurt
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Cream Cheese Frosting:
1/2 stick butter, softened
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups powdered sugar
Pinch of salt​
recipe
1
Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare one 8" cake pan with cooking spray and line with parchment paper.
2
Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and salt. Set aside.
3
In a medium bowl, combine melted butter and sugars, beating until light. Add vanilla, eggs, and yogurt. Beat until smooth.
4
Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, mixing slowly until just combined. Don't over mix the batter!
5
Pour batter into the prepared cake tin, making the batter level with a spatula. Bake for 36-40 mins or until a toothpick comes out clean from the middle.
6
Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and let cool fully.​
7
For the frosting, beat together the butter and the cream cheese until fluffy and combined.
8
Add the vanilla and salt. Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. If the texture is too stiff, add a splash of milk or cream. If the texture is too creamy, add more powdered sugar ~1/2 cup at a time.
9
Once the cake is cool enough to not melt the frosting, spoon a generous amount on the cake and spread out to your liking. Sprinkle a little cinnamon over top for a nice touch and some extra spice!
