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This Spice Cake is everything I love about a cozy homemade cake! We’re talking three layers of incredibly moist spice cake, drizzled with a buttery brown sugar buttermilk syrup, and smothered in the most delicious brown butter cream cheese frosting. Add a little crushed gingersnap crunch between the layers, and whew! Every bite is rich, tender, perfectly spiced, and downright irresistible.
For more cozy baking recipes, make my cardamom layer cake and sweet potato pound cake!
If you’re looking for a homemade spice cake recipe that’ll steal the show at Thanksgiving, Christmas, or your next family gathering, this is the one! Bonus: the batter comes together in one bowl! It’s got all those warm, cozy flavors we love, with a little extra something special in every layer.
Spice Cake Recipe Overview
- ⭐ Difficulty: Intermediate
- 🕒 Prep Time: 40 minutes
- 🎂 Bake Time: 24–27 minutes
- 🧑🍳 Total Time: About 4 hours, including cake cooling, frosting, and assembly
- 👪 Serves: Approximately 12–16 slices
- 🍂 Made With: Brown sugar, applesauce, molasses, buttermilk, sour cream, warm spices, brown butter, and cream cheese
- 🍰 Why This Recipe is the Best: This isn’t your average spice cake! Three layers of soft, perfectly spiced cake get a drizzle of buttery buttermilk syrup, then they’re stacked with nutty brown butter cream cheese frosting and crushed gingersnaps. That combination of soft cake, silky frosting, and a little crunch? My goodness, it’s GOOD!
Table of contents
What Is Buttermilk Syrup?
Y’all, if you’ve never had buttermilk syrup, you’re in for a treat! It’s a rich, buttery syrup made with brown sugar, buttermilk, and vanilla that tastes like a cross between buttery pancake syrup and salted caramel (but way easier to make). It goes exceptionally well with spice cake and my Brown Butter Carrot Cake, enhancing the flavor AND texture of the cake. Don’t skip this one!
My tip: Use a large saucepan because this syrup bubbles up quite a bit! The baking soda reacts with the acidic buttermilk, creating lots of foam as it cooks. Let the syrup cool before drizzling it between the cake layers, and remember, a little goes a long way!
Key Ingredients You’ll Need
(The full list of ingredients and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.)
- Brown sugar and molasses: These give the cake its deep, rich flavor and complement the warm spices. Use regular unsulphured molasses rather than blackstrap, which can taste bitter.
- Unsweetened Applesauce: My little secret for an incredibly moist spice cake! I even do this in my red velvet layer cake and everyone LOVES it. Use unsweetened applesauce so you can control the sweetness without adding extra sugar.
- Sour cream and buttermilk: Both add richness and a subtle tang that balances the sweetness. If you don’t have any buttermilk, you can make your own homemade buttermilk with just whole milk and lemon juice.
- Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves: The perfect combination of warm spices! Cinnamon brings sweetness, ginger adds warmth, and nutmeg and cloves give the cake a deeper, more aromatic flavor.
- Gingersnap cookies: Crushed gingersnaps add a little crunch between the soft cake layers and creamy frosting. That texture contrast is everything!
Variations and Substitutions
- Add toasted pecans. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of chopped toasted pecans into the cake batter like how we do with my Italian Cream Cake.
- Use a classic cream cheese frosting. Short on time? Skip browning the butter and use the traditional cream cheese frosting from my Old Fashioned Hummingbird Cake instead. It’s just as delicious!
How to Make Spice Cake
(The complete ingredients and detailed instructions can be found in the recipe card below.)
Prep: Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease and flour three 8-inch cake pans.
Step 1: Brown the butter for the cream cheese frosting. Brown 1 cup of salted butter until golden and nutty, then let it cool until solidified but soft.
Step 2: Make the spice cake batter. Whisk together the oil, sugars, eggs, vanilla, buttermilk, sour cream, applesauce, and molasses. Add the spices and dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans.
Step 3: Bake the cakes and prepare the buttermilk syrup. Bake the cakes for 24–27 minutes, until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. While they bake, cook the buttermilk syrup until golden and bubbly, then set it aside to cool.
Step 4: Make the brown butter cream cheese frosting. Beat the cooled brown butter with the remaining softened butter until fluffy. Gradually mix in the powdered sugar, milk, and reserved buttermilk syrup. Add the cream cheese and mix until smooth and creamy.
Step 5: Assemble and decorate. Stack the cooled cake layers with frosting, a light drizzle of buttermilk syrup, and crushed gingersnaps between each layer. Apply a thin crumb coat, refrigerate for 30 minutes, then finish frosting and decorating the cake.
How to Keep a Three-Layer Spice Cake From Sliding
With three layers of moist cake, creamy frosting, and buttery syrup, the last thing you want is your cake doing the cha-cha across the cake stand! I perfected how to stack a 3 layer cake when developing my Matilda Cake recipe because it’s so slippery and soft.
- Go easy on the syrup. Add just a light drizzle of cooled buttermilk syrup between the layers to prevent slipping.
- Keep the layers aligned. Stack each cake layer directly on top of the one below it, making sure the edges line up. Gently check the cake from all sides as you build to keep it straight and even.
- Watch your frosting consistency. If the frosting feels too soft to hold its shape, refrigerate it for about 30 minutes before assembling.
My tip: Don’t skip the crumb coat! Refrigerating the assembled cake for 30 minutes helps stabilize the layers before adding the final coat of frosting.
Britney’s Pro Tips
- Don’t skip the brown butter bits! Those little golden-brown specks at the bottom of the pan are packed with nutty, toasted flavor. Scrape every last bit into your cooling container, then let the butter solidify before whipping it into the frosting.
- Measure your flour carefully. Too much or too little of any of the ingredients can throw off the texture of the cake. I recommend using a kitchen scale for the most accurate results.
- Use room-temperature ingredients. Eggs, sour cream, and buttermilk blend more smoothly when they’re not refrigerator-cold, giving you a more evenly mixed batter.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Once the flour goes in, mix just until combined. Overmixing develops gluten, which can make the cake tough instead of soft and tender.
- Cool your cake layers completely. Even slightly warm cake can melt cream cheese frosting. For the cleanest layers, make sure everything is completely cool before assembling.
Spice Cake Recipe FAQs
Dry spice cake is usually caused by too much flour, overmixing, or overbaking.
Use a kitchen scale to measure your flour, mix the batter just until combined, and begin checking your cake around the 24-minute mark. A toothpick should come out with a few moist crumbs, not wet batter.
Absolutely! This is a great cake to make ahead for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any special occasion. Bake and cool the cake layers a day or two in advance, then wrap them tightly and refrigerate. You can prepare the frosting and syrup ahead as well, keeping them chilled until you’re ready to assemble. Bring the frosting back to a spreadable consistency before using.
No, the applesauce mainly contributes moisture and a subtle natural sweetness. Once it’s combined with the molasses, brown sugar, and warm spices, the apple flavor blends into the background.
Spice cake and carrot cake have similar warm flavors, but they’re not quite the same. Both often contain cinnamon, nutmeg, and cream cheese frosting.
However, carrot cake gets part of its texture and moisture from grated carrots, while this spice cake uses applesauce, sour cream, and buttermilk. It’s got that same cozy spice flavor without the carrots!
Store the frosted cake covered in the refrigerator for up to 4–5 days. Let the cake sit at room temperature for 20–30 minutes before serving so the frosting softens/for the best texture. To freeze, wrap unfrosted cake layers tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before frosting.
More Homemade Cake Recipes You’ll Love
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Spice Cake with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 ½ cups (340 g) Salted Butter, room temperature
- 4 cups (500 g) Powdered Sugar
- 2 tbsp (30 g) Whole Milk
- 2 tbsp Buttermilk Syrup, from above
- 8 oz (225 g) Cream Cheese, room temperature (cut into chunks)
- 10 Gingersnaps
Cake Ingredients
- 1 cup (224 g) Vegetable Oil
- 1 cup (220 g) Brown Sugar
- 1 cup (200 g) Sugar
- 4 large (200 g) Eggs, (room temperature)
- 1 tbsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/3 cup (80 g) Buttermilk, (room temperature)
- 2/3 cup (160 g) Sour Cream, (room temperature)
- 2/3 cup (165 g) Applesauce, (room temperature)
- 2 tbsp (30 g) Molasses
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tbsp Cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1/2 tsp Nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp Ground Cloves
- 2 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
- 3 cups (375 g) All Purpose Flour, (sifted)
- 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
Buttermilk Syrup
- 1/4 cup (56 g) Salted Butter
- 1/2 cup (110 g) Brown Sugar
- 1 tbsp Corn Syrup, (you can also use honey)
- 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/4 cup (60 g) Buttermilk, (room temperature)
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- Pinch Kosher Salt
Instructions
- Start by browning the butter for the frosting. Add 1 cup of salted butter to a skillet (reserve remaining ½ cup of butter, do not brown – it stays at room temperature to make the frosting extra fluffy). Once melted, cook until the butter becomes foamy and develops browned bits on the bottom of the pan, about 7-10 minutes. It’s done with the foam on top and also has speckled bits that float to the top and smells caramel/nutty. Pour into a heat safe container and let it cool to room temperature for 2 hours, until fully solid but not hard. (it should be at the ideal temperature by the time that the cakes are finished baking) If making ahead of time, cover with plastic wrap. 1 ½ cups Salted Butter
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prep 8 inch cake pans – grease and flour all along the bottom and sides of the pan, tapping off any excess flour. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together vegetable oil, brown sugar, and sugar for about 1 minute until the sugar begins to dissolve. Add egg, vanilla extract, buttermilk, sour cream, applesauce, and molasses. Whisk together until smooth, about 1-2 minutes, then add cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, ground cloves, baking powder, and kosher salt. Continue to mix until the spices are fully incorporated into the batter, about 30 seconds. 1 cup Vegetable Oil 1 cup Brown Sugar 1 cup Sugar 4 large Eggs 1 tbsp Vanilla Extract 1/3 cup Buttermilk 2/3 cup Sour Cream 2/3 cup Applesauce 2 tbsp Molasses 1 tbsp Cinnamon 1 1/2 tsp Ground Ginger 1/2 tsp Nutmeg 1/4 tsp Ground Cloves 2 1/2 tsp Baking Powder 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- Then add all purpose flour and baking soda and mix until combined, about 30 seconds. Divide batter evenly among the 3 cake pans. Bake for 24-27 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted into the middle of each cake comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Allow the cakes to cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then turn over onto a wire rack and cover with plastic wrap to cool completely. 3 cups All Purpose Flour 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
Make The Buttermilk Syrup
- While the cakes are baking, make the buttermilk syrup. In a large saucepan or dutch oven over medium-high heat, melt butter, then add brown sugar, baking soda, corn syrup, and buttermilk. Stirring frequently, bring to a boil (it’ll become very bubbly, just keep stirring) and boil for about 5-6 minutes, until the color turns deeply golden. Remove from heat and allow any bubbles to settle, then add vanilla extract and a pinch of kosher salt. Set aside to cool. 1/4 cup Salted Butter 1/2 cup Brown Sugar 1/2 tsp Baking Soda 1 tbsp Corn Syrup 1/4 cup Buttermilk 2 tsp Vanilla Extract Pinch Kosher Salt
- Add gingersnaps to a food processor and blend until smooth. Add to a small bowl and set aside. 10 Gingersnaps
Make the Cream Cheese Frosting
- Now make the frosting – add the room temperature browned butter and remaining ½ cup of room temperature salted butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed for 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl halfway through.
- Add 2 cups of powdered sugar, 2 tbsp whole milk, and 2 tbsp of the cooled buttermilk syrup. Mix on low for about 30 seconds, until combined, then increase mixer speed to medium and mix for another 2 minutes. 4 cups Powdered Sugar 2 tbsp Whole Milk 2 tbsp Buttermilk Syrup
- With the mixer going, add chunks of cream cheese and mix until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. 8 oz Cream Cheese
Assemble the cakes
- Once the cakes have cooled completely, place one cake layer onto a cake stand. Add a generous amount of frosting on top and spread into an even layer. Drizzle some of the buttermilk syrup and sprinkle crushed gingersnaps on top. Place the second layer on top and repeat. Then add the third layer and coat the entire cake with a thin layer of frosting (crumb coat). Place into the refrigerator for 30 minutes, then add the remaining frosting to the cake. Decorate however you’d like!
Video
Notes
- Measure your flour carefully. Too much or too little of any of the ingredients can throw off the texture of the cake. I recommend using a kitchen scale for the most accurate results.
- Use room-temperature ingredients. Eggs, sour cream, and buttermilk blend more smoothly when they’re not refrigerator-cold, giving you a more evenly mixed batter.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Once the flour goes in, mix just until combined. Overmixing develops gluten, which can make the cake tough instead of soft and tender.
- Cool your cake layers completely. Even slightly warm cake can melt cream cheese frosting. For the cleanest layers, make sure everything is completely cool before assembling.
- Go easy on the syrup. A little drizzle adds wonderful flavor, but too much syrup between the layers can make the cake soggy and cause the frosting to slide. Save the extra for decorating and serving!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
