Gingerbread Cake Recipe | Eggless Gingerbread Loaf

With Christmas right around the corner, it’s the perfect time to make this Eggless, Vegan Gingerbread Cake! This deliciously moist and relatively healthy spice cake is a traditional Western treat that is served around the winter holidays, and now you can make it at home, too.

About Gingerbread Cake

Gingerbread Cake is a moist, soft, deeply spiced cake with a strong aroma and taste of ginger that is traditionally made for Christmas. My version happens to be eggless, easy to make vegan, and is quite healthy from the addition of whole wheat flour.

I have wanted to make an eggless version of gingerbread cake for quite some time now. While I had to develop my own recipe, the cake was a hit at home. Not to toot my own horn, but this cake is damn good. You won’t even know that eggs have not been used.

Want more Christmas baking inspiration? You can also check out my Christmas Fruit Cake and Gingerbread Cookies.

Aside from being delightfully spiced and delectably moist and tender, this egg-free gingerbread loaf recipe is:

• Made With Just 10 Ingredients – Chances are you already have most of what you need on hand.
• Quick & Easy – It takes just 10 minutes of prep time and another 40 minutes of baking time to make this gingerbread loaf cake.
• Cozy & Nutritious – I’d consider this gingerbread cake to be rather healthy, as the recipe has been made with whole wheat flour (atta), which is rich in fiber and essential nutrients. Using unrefined jaggery as the sweetening element also adds a lovely dose of minerals to the mix.

Ingredients & Substitutions

As promised, you only need a few simple ingredients to make this yummy gingerbread loaf. Here’s your shopping list:

• Organic Whole Wheat Flour – If you have been following the blog for awhile, you know that I prefer to make my bakes as healthy as possible. Incorporating whole grain flour adds fiber and nutrients without any extra fuss! You are welcome to use all-purpose flour instead.
• Ginger – Feel free to use either ginger paste or grated ginger. In a pinch, you can also use ginger powder, but reduce the amount to just a teaspoon.
• Candied Ginger – For pops of chewy, spicy-sweet texture throughout. You can also use golden raisins (a.k.a. sultanas) or regular raisins for texture, or omit them altogether.
• Cinnamon Powder & Nutmeg – You can’t have a spice cake without spices! If possible, grate your own nutmeg for a more potent flavor.
• Baking Soda & Baking Powder – These two leaveners act differently, so make sure to use them both.
• Plant based Yogurt – For moisture and richness. I have used cashew yogurt. You’re welcome to use your preferred plain, unsweetened plant-based yogurt if you like. You could also opt to make the cake with dairy yogurt (curd).
• Oil – Any neutral flavored oil (e.g. sunflower, grapeseed, peanut, or avocado oil) will do the trick. Avoid using olive oil, as it’ll give your bake a strange savory taste.
• Jaggery – Traditionally, gingerbread should be made with molasses. However, since molasses is not easily available here in India, jaggery is a good and healthy substitute.
• Water – If possible, try and use filtered water for the best results.

How is Gingerbread Cake made

This simple eggless ginger cake comes together with just 10 minutes of active prep. Here’s how:

Make Cake Batter

1. First mix the whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and grated nutmeg very well in a bowl. You can also sieve the ingredients if you like. Add the ginger paste and candied ginger and mix again.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk the ¼ cup cashew yogurt with ¼ cup water to a smooth and even mixture. Then add the oil to it and mix thoroughly. Keep aside.

3. Heat the ½ cup water till it is just hot (no need to boil) in a microwave or on the stovetop. Add jaggery to the hot water and stir well to dissolve it completely. If jaggery has impurities, strain it.

4. Pour the yogurt and oil mixture to the flour mixture. Next add the jaggery syrup. Fold the ingredients gently and make a smooth and fine batter. Do not over do the folding.

Bake Gingerbread Loaf

5. Pour into a greased baking round pan or loaf pan and bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees C/356 degrees F for 35 to 40 mins. It took me 41 minutes to bake the cake.

6. Place the cake pan on a wired tray to cool. Once it cools enough to handle, remove the cake from the pan. Before you move to the next step ensure the cake is completely cooled.

7. Dust some icing sugar (a.k.a. confectioner’s sugar or powdered sugar) on the cake if you like. You can even use a lacy doily to make a pretty snowflake pattern on it!

8. Slice the eggless gingerbread and serve plain or with some whipped cream or Vanilla Ice Cream. It also goes well with Tea or Coffee!

Expert Tips

• To measure dry ingredients for baking, it is advised that you use a kitchen scale. This level of precision will ensure that your bakes turn out beautifully every time! If you don’t have a scale on hand, be sure to use the spoon and sweep method for the best results.
• Invest in an oven thermometer. They’re only a few dollars, and they’re far more accurate than the dials on the oven!
• You could easily add sweetener of your choice in the cake. Brown sugar, molasses, white granulated sugar, raw sugar, demerara sugar, coconut sugar, palm sugar are some options. Add less or more of these sweeteners according to your preferences.
• Preheat the oven before you start making the batter, otherwise you’ll lose some of the rising power of the baking powder since it becomes activated as soon as it touches liquid.
• If the top of the cake is browning too quickly, cover it loosely with aluminum foil or butter paper to protect it while you continue to bake it through.

FAQs

This Gingerbread Cake recipe from the blog archives, first published in December 2013 has been republished and updated on December 2022.