Easy Spice Cake with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
Spice cake made simple! This easy recipe can be made in about an hour and tastes delicious with its warm spices and brown butter cream cheese frosting.
Servings: 12 slices
Calories: 382kcal
Equipment
- 9x5" loaf pan lightly greased and lined with parchment paper
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring spoons
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Electric mixer recommended
Ingredients
Spice Cake
- 1¾ cups (218.75 g) all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¾ cup (170.25 g) unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar dark or light, packed
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120 g) sour cream room temperature
- 2 tablespoons (30 g) molasses
- ¼ cup (60 g) Lifeway Organic Plain Whole Milk Kefir room temperature
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting (Optional)
- 4 ounces (113.4 g) cream cheese room temperature
- 3 tablespoons (42 g) unsalted butter browned and cooled to room temperature (about 2 tablespoons of browned butter)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar
Instructions
Spice Cake
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5" loaf pan with nonstick spray and line it with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
- In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream, and molasses really well.
- Alternately mix the dry ingredients and kefir into the wet ingredients until everything is combined well.
- Pour the spice cake batter into your prepared loaf pan. Bake on the oven's middle rack until a toothpick comes out clean (about 48-53 minutes).
- Let the cake cool in the pan for about 20 minutes, then transfer it to a wire cooling rack.Make the frosting while it cools to room temperature.
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting (Optional)
- Cook the butter in a small nonstick skillet over medium-low heat while stirring frequently to prevent burning. Once brown nutty-smelling bits form, remove from heat, transfer to a heat-safe container, and let it cool to room temperature.Notes: 1) You can place the browned butter in the refrigerator to cool faster. 2) If you don't want to use browned butter, you can replace it with 2 tablespoons of room temperature butter.
- In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese until smooth.
- Stir in the butter and vanilla extract.
- Mix in the powdered sugar until everything is combined well and smooth.
Frost the Cake
- Once the cake has cooled and you're ready to serve it, spread the frosting over the top. Slice and enjoy!
Notes
Browned Butter: Browning butter will leave you with an amount less than what you started with. The frosting recipe calls for 3 tablespoons of butter because it gets cooked down to about 2 tablespoons of browned butter. Whether you're using room temperature or browned butter, the amount to add to the frosting is 2 tablespoons.
Make Ahead: The cake and frosting can each be made a day in advance. Wait until you're ready to serve the cake to frost it.
Storage: Unfrosted cake is best stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 days. The frosting and frosted cake should be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Lifeway: My friends at Lifeway Foods sponsored this recipe, but all opinions are my own.
Nutrition
Calories: 382kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 85mg | Sodium: 252mg | Potassium: 136mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 31g | Vitamin A: 685IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 91mg | Iron: 1mg
