Old-fashioned iced gingerbread loaf has been a Christmas staple for generations! Moist, light, and warmly spiced, it’s an easy breakfast or dessert that you can make in advance. Finish the cake with a vanilla citrus glaze or a dusting of powdered sugar!
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If you love gingerbread recipes as much as we do, don’t miss these gingerbread muffins with streusel and eggnog glaze, these Williamsburg old-fashioned gingerbread cookies, and this gingerbread cake, too!
Fantastic recipe! My house smells SO like Christmas! Great flavors! Thank you!
– Debbie C.
Starbucks Gingerbread Loaf
This gingerbread loaf recipe is a homemade copycat version of the Starbucks gingerbread loaf — a seasonal favorite to pair with a warm latte in those classic red cups! It includes a vanilla-orange (or vanilla-lemon) glaze, just like the store-bought version. Pair it with your own cup of hot coffee, tea, cocoa, or Wassail for the ultimate cozy treat at any time of day!
What to Know Before You Get Started
- Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice are warm spices that give the iced gingerbread loaf cake its classic flavor.
- Molasses is a thick sweetener that gives the cake a bold, rich flavor. I use Grandma’s brand unsulfured, sun-ripened sugarcane molasses, but any similar variety will work. I do not recommend blackstrap molasses, which has a very different taste and texture.
- Sour cream is also an important ingredient in this cake, thanks to its high fat content and its acidity. The sour cream adds moisture without thinning the batter, adds fat for creaminess, helps to control the browning, and activates the baking soda.
- Just like Starbucks, I like to finish the gingerbread with a citrus glaze. Starbucks uses a vanilla-orange glaze, but lemon is a classic pairing with gingerbread, too. Pick whichever you prefer, or skip the glaze altogether and just dust the top of the gingerbread loaf with powdered sugar.
How to Make the Best Gingerbread Loaf Recipe
While it looks like a quick bread recipe in a loaf pan, the process for making this gingerbread is the same as making a cake from scratch. The end result is a moist gingerbread loaf with a light, tender crumb. Christmas perfection!
- Whisk together the dry ingredients. Don’t forget to properly measure the flour by weighing on a kitchen scale or spooning the flour into the cup and lightly leveling with the straight edge of a knife. Packing the measuring cup too tightly and using too much flour will result in a dry cake.
- Whisk together the wet ingredients. Make sure that all of your ingredients are at room temperature so that they blend together smoothly.
- Cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Whipping this air into the batter will help the cake rise during baking.
- Alternately add the flour mixture and the molasses mixture, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix in the sour cream.
- Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan. Line the pan with parchment paper or grease with a cooking spray that includes flour (such as this baking spray) so that the cake comes out easily at the end.
- Bake for about 45-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Cool completely on a cooling rack. Don’t leave the cake in the pan for too long after baking — about 10-15 minutes is plenty. After that, condensation will start to form and the moisture will negatively impact the crust.
- Whisk together the glaze, then drizzle over the top of the gingerbread.
- Slice and serve!
Serving Suggestions
This iced gingerbread loaf is a great make-ahead dessert for the holiday season, but you can also enjoy it at other times of day. For instance, set out slices of the loaf cake on a breakfast or brunch buffet alongside breakfast casserole with biscuits, or offer it as an afternoon snack with a cup of tea or homemade hot chocolate. It’s perfect on its own, or equally delicious topped with softened butter, honey butter, cream cheese, Christmas jam, or a dollop of whipped cream. If you’re serving the gingerbread cake for dessert, finish each slice with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Gingerbread loaf will stay fresh when covered at room temperature for 3-4 days — it does not need to be refrigerated. To extend the life of your cake, wrap it tightly or store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- How to Store: For the fridge or countertop, you can just wrap the cake tightly with plastic wrap. For the freezer, I recommend a layer of plastic wrap, followed by another layer of aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn.
- The cake is best when prepared 1 day in advance. The flavors come together and it gets even more moist as it rests!
Thank you for this!! I was hooked on the Gingerbread loaf from that coffee place, but they haven’t had it for the past 3 years in my area. This was sooo good with my mug of coffee.
– Maria
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Iced Gingerbread Loaf
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups (210 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup milk, at room temperature
- ¼ cup molasses (I use Grandma's brand)
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, softened at room temperature
- ½ cup packed dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
For the Icing
- 1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 2 tablespoons orange juice or lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch loaf pan; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, and salt. Set aside.
- In another medium bowl, whisk together the milk, molasses, egg, and vanilla extract. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer on medium-high speed to cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. With the mixer on low, alternately add the flour mixture and the molasses mixture, starting and ending with the flour mixture. (i.e., add 1/3 of the flour mixture, then half of the molasses mixture, another 1/3 of the flour mixture, the remaining ½ of the molasses mixture, and finally the remaining 1/3 of the flour mixture). Mix just until combined; do not over-mix. Add the sour cream; mix just until combined.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the Icing
- In a small bowl, whisk together confectioners sugar, 2 tablespoons of orange juice, and vanilla extract until smooth. The icing should be pretty thick. If it seems too thin, add a bit more confectioners sugar. If the icing is too thick, add another teaspoon or so of orange juice at a time until it reaches the desired consistency. Drizzle the icing over the top of the bread. Rest on a wire rack until the glaze sets.
Notes
Nutrition
Gingerbread Loaf Recipe Variations
- Instead of the vanilla-orange icing or the vanilla-lemon glaze, finish the gingerbread loaf with an easy cream cheese frosting, a dusting of powdered sugar, or caramel icing.
- The icing has just a subtle citrus flavor from the orange juice or lemon juice. For a stronger orange or lemon flavor, add about a teaspoon of freshly-grated orange zest or lemon zest to the glaze.
- Double the ingredients and bake two loaf cakes.
- If using unsalted butter, add ¼ teaspoon – ½ teaspoon of salt to the batter.
- Add 1 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans to the batter for a nutty crunch throughout.
- Raisins, dried cranberries, or chocolate chips would all be tasty additions to the flavorful batter, too.
More Gingerbread Recipes to Try
Soft Gingerbread Man Cookies
2 hours hrs 31 minutes mins
An Easy Gingerbread Latte Recipe to Make at Home!
10 minutes mins
Gingerbread Cake with Lemon Sauce
2 hours hrs 40 minutes mins
This recipe was originally published in December, 2021. It was updated in December, 2024.
Can this be frozen?
Thank you
Hi, Sar! Absolutely! You might prefer to add the glaze after you freeze and thaw the loaf, since the glaze can get smooshed and messed up in the freezer. Either way, though, it keeps in the freezer when wrapped tightly for up to 3 months.
Fantastic recipe! My house smells SO like Christmas! Great flavors! Thank you!
Yay! Thank you, Debbie. Merry Christmas!
Thank you for this!! I was hooked on the Gingerbread loaf from that coffee place, but they haven’t had it for the past 3 years in my area. This was sooo good with my mug of coffee.
Yay! Thanks, Maria!
Looks delicious! The only thing I don’t generally have around my house is the milk. Any substitutes for the milk?
Do you have cream or other milk substitutes in the house? That would be my first choice, but you could probably even use water — the texture just won’t be as good. Hope that helps!
Can I use all purpose, whole wheat flour?
We probably wouldn’t recommend it as your gingerbread loaf is likely to become very dense.
I just made this and sliced off a bit to taste it– it’s delicious!
I added a little more of the ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and brown sugar (to balance out the increase in spice) because I love strongly- spiced baked goods.
I’ll be very proud to present the gingerbread loaf at my block party tomorrow.
Thank you for yet another very tasty recipe, Blair!!
Oh, yay! I’m so happy to hear that. I love making strongly-spiced baked goods, too…especially at this time of year. Such a cozy treat! I hope that your neighbors approve! 🙂
Made this yesterday. Sooo yummy. Thanks for the recipe.
Thank you for trying it out! We’re so glad you enjoyed it.
Blair,
ever since the Covid pandemic, i started baking for 1st responders, which kept me from going beserk!! i feel all healthcare pros are 1st responders everyday, and since i see so many of them, i don’t enter an office w/o a cake, bundt, loaf, brownie, etc!
decided to bake a gingerbread for the 1st time, wanted a 9×5 but started your recipe before realizing it was only 8×4, but too late to change my mind! i followed the directions exactly, 3 different pans, my hand mixer for the final pan and mixed for almost 5 minutes as i’ve learned that fluffy mix really helps the cake be light and a beautiful crumb! the fragrance was lovely as i put cake into my oven for just under 50 minutes, testing several sites to make sure it was finished and used butter, spray, and parchment underneath!! as i tried to lift loaf out, seemed to have a problem as it was separating through the center, horizontally and then a small corner separated!!
was concerned but decided to wait awhile, but it didn’t matter, as i transferred it to a different rack, seemed to separate more! i’m very upset as will have to bake another last minute substitute to take to the cancer ctr where i’ll be Thurs afternoon, as the cake is separating through the center!!
i will be seeking out a different recipe for my next gingerbread cake as i did everything perfectly and HAVE NEVER HAD this result before!
thanks:) Kelli
Hi Kelli,
That’s so kind of you to bake for 1st responders! We’re sorry to hear this recipe didn’t turn out well for you. We’ve never had it separate, but the most common reason is overmixing. 5 minutes might have been too long! We’re happy to help troubleshoot if you ever want to try it again and hope you enjoy our other recipes.