This spice cake is incredibly moist with a super soft crumb and the perfect spice cake flavor. Warm spices are complemented by brown sugar and vanilla, and the tangy cream cheese frosting really takes it to the next level. Included are directions for both brown butter cream cheese frosting and regular cream cheese frosting – each are equally delicious!

Spice cake might be one of the most underrated cake flavors. Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves pair perfectly with brown sugar and vanilla to create the ultimate cozy cake, comforting cake. This particular spice cake is incredibly moist and has the kind of soft, tender cake crumb that sticks to your fork with no risk of drying out.

I like to frost this cake with brown butter cream cheese frosting. Browning the butter first creates a cream cheese frosting that has a slightly nutty undertone that pairs perfectly with the warm spices and cream cheese. Of course, if you’d like to skip this step, regular, tangy cream cheese frosting works perfectly too.

This recipe is made in a sheet pan for simplicity, but it can easily be adjusted to be made as a layer cake as well.

What Makes this Cake So Moist?

The key to a good spice cake is getting a super moist, almost dense and springy texture. No one wants a dry, crumbly cake. This recipe use oil, which keeps the cake moist for longer and tender even if it’s been stored in the fridge (because butter is solid in the fridge and at room temperature, but oil is liquid). Because of all the flavor from the spices, you won’t miss the flavor from using butter.

Then eggs, applesauce and sour cream lead to the perfect texture. The eggs help to lift the cake, whereas the applesauce and sour cream give the most moist texture. I like using applesauce because it sweetens the cake and isn’t as heavy as the sour cream, whereas the sour cream is really the “big guns” for a super tender cake. I wouldn’t say that there’s enough applesauce to give this cake an apple flavor though – if you’re looking for an apple cake, try this apple spice cake.

Making Spice Cake

1. Prep. Start by preheating the oven and preparing the pan. Lightly spray with cooking spray, or grease then flour.
   1. Note – if you are making a layer cake, you’ll want to line the bottoms with parchment paper then lightly grease the sides.
2. Whisk the Dry Ingredients. Flour, cinnamon, ginger, ground nutmeg, ground cloves, baking powder, baking soda and salt. I recommend sifting the flour first if it’s lumpy.
3. Whisk the Oil, Sugar, Applesauce, Vanilla, and Eggs. Be sure to keep whisking until there are no lumps of sugar and you can no longer see any pieces of egg. You could also use an electric mixer for this.

4. Add in 1/2 the Dry Ingredients. You’ll whisk it into the wet ingredients – stop mixing as soon as you no longer see streaks of flour.
5. Whisk in the Sour Cream. Again – no electric mixer needed.

6. Add in the Rest of the Dry Ingredients. Again, a wire whisk is perfect for this task. Do not overmix, as it can cause air tunnels in the batter.
   1. The process of alternating between additions of dry ingredients and the sour cream helps to avoid overmixing and gives the cake a more consistent cake crumb.

7. Bake. You’ll pour the batter into the prepared pan/pans and bake in the preheated. When the cake is done, an inserted toothpick should come out clean, or with a few moist crumbs but no goopy batter.
   1. This cake is extremely unlikely to dry out, so if you’re unsure, I recommend baking for a minute or 2 extra.

For the Brown Cream Cheese Frosting

Brown butter cream cheese frosting is super creamy with an almost nutty undertone thanks to the brown butter. The cream cheese adds a tanginess, ensuring that the frosting isn’t too sweet. If making brown butter cream cheese frosting, you’ll need to allocate more time for browning the butter and then allowing it to cool and solidify.

To brown the butter, always start with cutting it into cubes so that it melts evenly. Using a light colored sauce pan makes the process easier because you can see the butter browning compared to using a black pan.

1. Melt the Butter. Add the cubed butter to a saucepan over medium heat. Stir with a rubber spatula or swirl the pan.
2. Brown the Butter. After the butter has melted, allow it to start to bubble and crackle. A foam will form on the top, then the milk solids will fall to the bottom and form little brown flecks. When you smell an almost nutty aroma, and you see brown flecks – remove from the heat.
3. Pour through a Metal Sifter (Optional). If any of the milk solids look black (not brown) pour the melted butter through a metal sifter to remove any burnt milk solids.
4. Cool the Butter. You’ll then transfer to a container, allow the butter to cool fully, then transfer to the fridge to harden.
5. Make the Frosting. When you’re ready to make the frosting – you’ll need to take the butter and cream cheese out of the fridge so that it can soften to room temperature. You’ll beat the butter until smooth and creamy – with the brown butter, this can take a little longer than usual. Then beat in the cream cheese. From there, you’ll beat in the powdered sugar and salt, and if needed, a little cream to thin the frosting out.

For Cream Cheese Frosting

If making regular cream cheese frosting, you’ll get to skip quite a few steps. It saves time, and has a slightly tangier flavor.

1. Beat the Butter. Be sure to turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the pan a few times so that there are no lumps.
2. Mix the Cream Cheese. Always use full-fat, brick style cream cheese.
3. Beat in the Powdered Sugar, Salt and Vanilla. Always sift the flour first to ensure that there are no lumps. If needed, you’ll whisk in a touch of whipping cream.

Pan Sizes, Bake Times and Frosting Details

I prefer to make this pan in a 9×13 inch (23×33 cm) cake pan for simplicity.

• 9×13-inch (23×33 cm) metal baking pan will need 40-45 minutes in the preheated oven. Make the frosting as directed.
• 2 layer 9-inch (23 cm) round cake pans – about 28-32 minutes in the preheated oven. For a naked cake (ie no frosting on the sides), keep the frosting as directed. To cover the sides as well, make 1.5x the frosting recipe.
• 3 layer 8-inch (20 cm) round cake pans – about 28-32 minutes in the preheated oven. For a naked cake, multiply the frosting by 1.5x. To cover the sides, multiply the frosting by 2.

Note: For a layer cake, I recommend cooling the cake layers fully, then refrigerating for about 30 minutes first. After adding each cake layer, I recommend placing the cake in the fridge for about 10 minutes. This helps the cake be sturdier.

Make Ahead Tips

Make the cake the day before you plan to serve, cool fully, then cover and store at room temperature or in the fridge overnight. When storing layer cakes, be sure that there are layers of parchment paper in between each layer if stacking – otherwise they will stick together.

If making brown butter frosting, brown the butter, cool fully, then store in the fridge overnight.

Making the frosting and decorate the day you plan to serve.

More Delicious Fall Cakes

• Pumpkin Cake
• Spice Bundt Cake with Maple Icing
• Apple Spice Cake
• Rum Soaked Cake