Gingerbread Bundt Cake Recipe | The Recipe Critic

Festive Gingerbread Bundt Cake is moist, tender and the perfect dessert for the holidays. Topped with a flavorful brown butter maple glaze, you’ll welcome a slice any time of day.

That classic gingerbread flavor always gets me excited for the holidays! A few more of my favorites that you should try are this gingerbread layered cake, warm gingerbread cake with caramel sauce, these easy gingerbread sugar cookie bars, and don’t forget about the soft and chewy gingerbread cookies!

Gingerbread Bundt Cake Recipe

This warmly spiced gingerbread bundt cake is the perfect show-stopping sweet treat to serve after Christmas dinner! This tasty dessert will be the star of the show wherever it goes. Bundt cakes always look so elegant, and this one is incredibly delicious, too! To really take it to the next level, it’s drizzled with a simple, yet flavorful brown butter maple glaze. For a little extra holiday pizazz, you can also garnish it with cranberries. You can even use sugared cranberries to really impress!

Not only is it super tasty, but it’s easy to make and smells divine as it bakes. It’s sure to put you in a festive holiday state of mind! Brown sugar and molasses give this cake its signature brown color, and also add moisture and sweetness without making it overly sweet. Warming spices such as cinnamon, ginger, and cloves gives this dessert its deep, rich flavor. The brown butter maple glaze is an extra special finishing touch. It smells wonderful, and it adds an extra dimension of flavor! This gingerbread bundt cake is so good, it’s sure to become a new Christmas tradition.

Ingredients in Gingerbread Cake

The simple ingredients in this gingerbread bundt cake recipe are mostly all basic baking staples and ones you probably have on hand. If you don’t have buttermilk, I’ve provided the link to a recipe for homemade buttermilk. Note: exact measurements are in the recipe card below.

• Flour: Use all-purpose flour so your cake has a nice, tender crumb.
• Sugars: A combination of granulated sugar and dark brown sugar sweeten the cake and add rich complex flavor.
• Baking Essentials: Use baking powder and baking soda for a delicious, fluffy texture.
• Salt: To balance the sweetness and enhance the overall taste.
• Spices: A blend of ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground cloves for the cozy taste of gingerbread in every bite.
• Buttermilk: Buttermilk adds moisture and fluffiness to your cake. In fact, the acid in buttermilk actually causes a chemical reaction with the baking powder and soda in your batter, making the whole cake extra fluffy!
• Milk: I recommend whole milk for more richness.
• Vanilla: Use pure vanilla extract for best results.
• Vegetable Oil: Helps to keep the cake moist. You can also use another oil variety, if you’d like.
• Molasses: This is the key ingredient for deep, rich gingerbread flavor.
• Eggs: Three eggs will provide stability and structure to the gingerbread bundt cake, and also bind the ingredients together.

Brown Butter Maple Glaze

• Salted Butter: Will make the glaze smooth and rich.
• Pure Maple Syrup: So the glaze has delicious maple flavor.
• Powdered Sugar: Gives the glaze perfect sweetness and a smooth texture.
• Milk: Use 2 tablespoons to get the consistency right.

How to Make Gingerbread Bundt Cake

Follow a few simple steps, and you’ll have an incredible holiday dessert in no time! This gingerbread bundt cake is a family favorite, and one we enjoy year after year.

1. Prep: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and spray a 10-cup bundt pan with baking spray.
2. Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. 
3. Add Wet Ingredients: To the same bowl add the buttermilk, milk, vanilla, molasses, oil, and eggs and beat with the paddle attachment of a stand mixer or a hand mixer just until fully combined.
4. Bake: Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan and bake for 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean and the cake bounces back if you gently press on it. 
5. Cool: Let the cake cool for 10-15 minutes before flipping it onto a cooling rack. Remove the pan and let it cool completely.
6. Make & Add the Glaze: Prepare the glaze by beating the butter, maple syrup, powdered sugar, and milk together until smooth. Then drizzle over the top of the cooled gingerbread bundt cake just before serving.