High Altitude Gingerbread Coffee Cake
This moist, brown sugar coffee cake is spiced with ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves, with hints of molasses, and drizzled with sweet lemon icing.
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ½ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- ½ cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 1 cup full-fat sour cream
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup molasses (NOT Blackstrap)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Streusel
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ⅓ cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
Lemon Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 ½ - 3 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Spray a 9-inch square baking pan with non-stick baking spray.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda and spices.
- Separately, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, milk, sour cream, melted butter, molasses, and vanilla.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix just until combined. Spread the batter into the greased pan.
Streusel
- In a bowl, combine all the topping ingredients until moistened and crumbly.
- Sprinkle evenly over the batter.
Bake
- Bake the cake on the center oven rack for about 35-40 minutes, until a cake tester or sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack and cool for 30 minutes before serving.
Icing
- While the cake is cooling, whisk together all icing ingredients until smooth.
- Drizzle the icing over the warm cake. The icing will set in a few minutes.
Notes
Alternate Icing Flavors (use more or less liquid, for desired drizzling consistency):
- Maple: 1 cup powdered sugar + 1/2 tsp maple extract + 1/2 tsp vanilla extract + 3-4 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- Coffee: 1 cup powdered sugar + 1 tsp vanilla extract + 3 tbsp brewed coffee
- Eggnog Bourbon: 1 cup powdered sugar + 1 tsp vanilla + 1 tbsp bourbon + 2-3 tbsp eggnog
- Vanilla Bean: 1 cup powdered sugar + 1 tsp vanilla bean paste + 3-4 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- This cake is fantastic for days, staying soft and moist in an airtight container.
- To save time in the morning, I will usually bake it at night, then re-warm pieces in the microwave for 30 seconds at 50% power.
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