Homemade Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Sign in to see ingredients
Create a free account to unlock this content
Don't have an account? Sign up free
Per serving
Calculating nutrition...
- 1
Toast the spices
Warm the 1/2 cup vegetable oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, cloves, cardamom, and allspice all at once and let them bubble for about 1 minute, until the kitchen smells amazing. Watch carefully so they don't burn. Here's the why: warming spices in a little fat blooms them and wakes up their flavor, the same trick you'd use in a curry. It makes a real difference. Take the oil off the heat and let it cool completely (I pop mine in the freezer for a few minutes).
- 2
Prep your pans and oven
Preheat the oven to 325F. Line the bottoms of three 9-inch cake pans with parchment circles, then grease the pans well, including up the sides. Low and slow at 325 keeps this cake tender instead of drying out the edges.
- 3
Cream the butter and sugars
In a stand mixer, beat 1 cup (2 sticks) of the softened butter until smooth. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and beat for 2 full minutes, scraping the bowl once. Don't rush this, you're beating air into the batter, which is what gives the cake its soft crumb.
- 4
Add the cooled spiced oil
Once the spiced oil is completely cool, pour it into the butter mixture and beat well. Make sure it's cool first, warm oil will melt your creamed butter and undo all that airy structure you just built.
- 5
Whisk the wet ingredients
In a separate bowl with a spout, whisk the eggs until smooth. Add the buttermilk, vanilla extract, almond extract, molasses, and sour cream and whisk together. All that sour cream, buttermilk, and oil is your insurance against dry cake.
- 6
Sift the dry ingredients
Sift together 3 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour with the salt and baking powder. Sifting isn't fussy, it keeps the leavening evenly distributed so the cake rises flat and even.
- 7
Combine, alternating
Add the wet and dry mixtures to the butter mixture in turns: half the wet, mix, half the flour, mix, then repeat. Alternating keeps the batter from breaking. Mix only until just combined, then scrape the bottom and sides. Overmixing now makes a tough cake.
- 8
Bake
Divide the batter evenly between the three pans. Bake at 325F for about 27 to 30 minutes. Rotate the pans around the 22-minute mark, but otherwise keep the oven door shut so the cakes don't deflate. They're done when the centers spring back and a toothpick comes out clean.
- 9
Cool the layers
Let the cakes cool in their pans on a rack for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the edge and invert onto the rack to finish cooling. Frosting a fully cooled (or even slightly chilled) cake is so much easier, warm layers melt the frosting right off.
- 10
Make the cream cheese frosting
Beat the remaining 1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter with the cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar and a splash of vanilla, beating until creamy. Add more powdered sugar if you want it thicker.
- 11
Frost and assemble
Stack the three layers, spreading frosting between each one, then frost the top and sides. Because of the cream cheese, keep the finished cake in the fridge. Slice, and enjoy every warm, spiced bite.
Sign in to see all instructions
Create a free account to unlock this content
Don't have an account? Sign up free
Homemade Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Created by: SugarAndButter
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 3/4 tsp ground cloves
- 3/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/2 tsp ground allspice
- 2 cup butter
- 2 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 5 eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 2 tbsp molasses
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 16 oz cream cheese
- 5 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Toast the spicesWarm the 1/2 cup vegetable oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, cloves, cardamom, and allspice all at once and let them bubble for about 1 minute, until the kitchen smells amazing. Watch carefully so they don't burn. Here's the why: warming spices in a little fat blooms them and wakes up their flavor, the same trick you'd use in a curry. It makes a real difference. Take the oil off the heat and let it cool completely (I pop mine in the freezer for a few minutes).
- Prep your pans and ovenPreheat the oven to 325F. Line the bottoms of three 9-inch cake pans with parchment circles, then grease the pans well, including up the sides. Low and slow at 325 keeps this cake tender instead of drying out the edges.
- Cream the butter and sugarsIn a stand mixer, beat 1 cup (2 sticks) of the softened butter until smooth. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and beat for 2 full minutes, scraping the bowl once. Don't rush this, you're beating air into the batter, which is what gives the cake its soft crumb.
- Add the cooled spiced oilOnce the spiced oil is completely cool, pour it into the butter mixture and beat well. Make sure it's cool first, warm oil will melt your creamed butter and undo all that airy structure you just built.
- Whisk the wet ingredientsIn a separate bowl with a spout, whisk the eggs until smooth. Add the buttermilk, vanilla extract, almond extract, molasses, and sour cream and whisk together. All that sour cream, buttermilk, and oil is your insurance against dry cake.
- Sift the dry ingredientsSift together 3 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour with the salt and baking powder. Sifting isn't fussy, it keeps the leavening evenly distributed so the cake rises flat and even.
- Combine, alternatingAdd the wet and dry mixtures to the butter mixture in turns: half the wet, mix, half the flour, mix, then repeat. Alternating keeps the batter from breaking. Mix only until just combined, then scrape the bottom and sides. Overmixing now makes a tough cake.
- BakeDivide the batter evenly between the three pans. Bake at 325F for about 27 to 30 minutes. Rotate the pans around the 22-minute mark, but otherwise keep the oven door shut so the cakes don't deflate. They're done when the centers spring back and a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool the layersLet the cakes cool in their pans on a rack for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the edge and invert onto the rack to finish cooling. Frosting a fully cooled (or even slightly chilled) cake is so much easier, warm layers melt the frosting right off.
- Make the cream cheese frostingBeat the remaining 1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter with the cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar and a splash of vanilla, beating until creamy. Add more powdered sugar if you want it thicker.
- Frost and assembleStack the three layers, spreading frosting between each one, then frost the top and sides. Because of the cream cheese, keep the finished cake in the fridge. Slice, and enjoy every warm, spiced bite.