This homemade spice cake with creamy caramel icing is light and flavorful. The cooked caramel frosting is smooth and delicious like brown sugar fudge.
Jump to:
Take it from me, you won’t want to miss this combination. Spice cake with caramel! It’s one of the best things in life.
This two-layer, easy-to-make spice cake recipe from scratch has all the essential spices for perfection: cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and allspice. And the Creamy Caramel Icing has the texture of melt-in-your-mouth caramel fudge.
This recipe is a vintage gem found by my friend Susan LaRosa, who writes the blog A Cake Bakes In Brooklyn.
She collects recipes she finds at flea markets and antique stores, then bakes them and lets us know the winners! Spoiler: this old-fashioned spice cake recipe is a winner!
Ingredients in Homemade Spice Cake
The spice balance in this cake is really perfect. I find most spice cakes have too much nutmeg or often taste like gingerbread instead of spice cake.
This recipe doesn’t even have ginger in it, so the spice mixture stays away from a holiday taste. Cinnamon is the main flavor and the ground cloves, nutmeg, and allspice balance it out just right.
A touch of molasses helps deepen the flavor. I like to use simple unsulphured molasses instead of blackstrap. Blackstrap molasses is darker in flavor and a bit too strong for this delicate spice cake.
This old-fashioned spice cake recipe requires a few more special ingredients. Namely, cake flour and shortening. Cake flour has a lower protein content than all-purpose flour, which results in a lighter, fluffier cake.
How to Make Spice Cake
This homemade spice cake has a fine, delicate crumb because of the high-ratio method used when making it.
Baking experts will explain that the high-ratio method means the fat or butter (in this case shortening) is mixed with the dry ingredients before the liquid ingredients are added. This simply yields a different, fine texture (plus it’s super easy).
The wet ingredients are then whisked into the dry. Bake the spice cake layers until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
The cake is baked in two 9-inch pans and layered with that lovely creamy caramel icing.
Can I Make Spice Cake Cupcakes?
I’ve had a few queries about this cake and whether it could be made into cupcakes. I haven’t experimented with it. I’m sure it would be lovely but you’ll have to bake one or two off to see how full to fill the cupcake cups.
I wouldn’t want you to fill them all and have tiny cupcakes or an overflowing mess. They will also be very delicate cupcakes because of the high-ratio cake texture. That’s not a bad thing, just something to be aware of!
Can I Freeze This Cake?
Yes, both the caramel cake frosting and the cake itself can be frozen for up to three months. Freeze in separate containers or freeze once assembled. The icing will get a crisp crust if frozen on the cake. If not you can gently heat it and immediately use it.
Tips for the Best Spice Cake
- Do NOT use blackstrap molasses to make this recipe. It’s much too bitter. Opt for a mild molasses instead.
- If you don’t serve it to the neighborhood, the extras are even tastier the next day!
- If you feel trendy, you can sprinkle the top with just a touch of flaked sea salt for a salted caramel treat.
Spice Cake With Creamy Caramel Icing
Ingredients
- 2 cups cake flour sifted
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup shortening
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ cup milk
- ¼ cup unsulphured molasses
- 2 large eggs
- Creamy Caramel Icing
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans and line bottoms with parchment; set aside.
- In a mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, shortening, salt, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, baking soda and baking powder.
- In a separate bowl stir together milk, molasses and eggs. Add to dry ingredients and mix on medium speed, about 2 min.
- Pour batter into prepared pans and bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, 27 to 30 min. Let cool.
- Spread ¼ cup Creamy Caramel icing on one cake, then top with second layer. Frost entire cake.
Notes
- If you feel trendy, you can sprinkle the top with just a touch of flaked sea salt for a salted caramel treat.
- This old-fashioned recipe has a lovely light texture, which is due to a mixing technique called the “high-ratio method.” You combine the shortening with all of the dry ingredients – not just the sugar – to create a finer crumb.
- The Nutrition Facts are calculated for just the cake. See the Frosting recipe for the additional facts.
Nutrition
For more baking deliciousness try one of Susan’s classic recipes, Pecan Crispies. They are buttery, crunchy, and nutty. I guess just what you’d expect from the name! Perfect with a cup of hot tea.
Cake recipes for any occasion
About Tara Teaspoon
I’ve been in the food publishing business for over 20 years, creating recipes & food-styling for magazines, books, television & advertising. Order my new cookbook & stick around for amazing things to eat.
Recipe contributed by Susan LaRosa from acakebakesinbrooklyn.com Photographer Seth Smoot Originally published LHJ 03/12
Mary Bench says
This icing takes me back to my mother’s kitchen!
Madeline says
This is definitely one of the best cakes I’ve ever made! So light and delicious. I used a bit of dark cocoa powder in place of a bit of the flour to make it a chocolate spice cake. We only had dark brown sugar, but that worked just great. I am so making this again.
Julie Fleischhacker says
Hi Madeline, thank you for the lovely comment and great additions with the dark brown sugar and cocoa powder! I’ll be trying that myself. Tara
Ellie O says
Would you mind sharing approximately how much “dark cocoa powder ” you substituted for flour? A few tablespoons? A 1/4 cup? etc. Thanks.
Tara says
Hi Ellie, You commented on the Spice Cake Recipe so I’m not sure what dark cocoa reference you are talking about. Let me know! [email protected]
Ellie O says
The number of servings is listed as “8”. That appears to be an error. A 2-layer 9″ cake should serve at least 12 and up to 14 or 16!
Tara says
Hi Ellie, The recipe is a vintage recipe and I stayed true to the details, which say the cake serves 8. As you can see from the picture, I show a big slice. However, you’re right! A double layer 9-inch cake can serve many more people if the slices are small! Totally up to you!
Lydia says
I made these as cupcakes for my boyfriend’s birthday. In my oven on convection bake, 17 minutes was perfect. I filled the cups 2/3 of the way and they raised perfectly to the top!
I also wanted to say this recipe is very versatile. I added 1/2 cup of applesauce in place of one egg (eggs and I don’t get along) and also added 1/8 tsp of cardamom and 1/8 tsp of ginger (because I love those flavors). The cupcakes came out amazing! I used a salted caramel cream cheese frosting (because I wasn’t confident about trying the included frosting recipe) but I am definitely going to try that frosting recipe in the future when I am not serving it to other people. Thank you for the wonderful recipe!