Christmas Spice Cake is the ultimate holiday cake that is so simple with less than 10 ingredients! It's made with walnuts and pureed plums for a winter twist.
There are a lots of spice cake recipes out there, but the sugar plum fairy insists you make this one! It's the perfect holiday cake that has simple ingredients and takes less than 15 minutes to mix-up. Bonus, your house will smell incredible!
The smell of a sugar and spice cake baking in the oven is never better than when the weather decides to cool down and the decorations are up. Along with this spice cake, my Apple Dapple Cake and Applesauce Strawberry Jam Cake are excellent holiday cake recipes to make!
Table of Contents
Why You'll Love this Recipe
- Moist and Dense Texture: The combination of sweet and fruity flavors, moisture, spices, and texture variations makes the spice cake recipe incredibly delicious!
- Precious Memories: Reminds you of family gatherings, holiday traditions, or cherished childhood memories which makes this cake taste even sweeter.
- Homemade Holiday Gift: This spice cake wraps up and travels well, making it a great gift to give to your family and friends over the holidays.
- Festive Holiday Flavors: This cake smells amazing as it’s baking and tastes like your favorite winter whimsical holiday!
Ingredients in Holiday Spice Cake
Scroll down for specific ingredient amounts in the recipe card.
- Self-Rising Flour: Flour that already includes the leavening agents for the cake and enhances the cake's flavors.
- Granulated Sugar: Adds sweetness, moisture and tenderness to this jam cake recipe.
- Spices: Ground Cinnamon & Cloves: These warm spices give this cake a comforting quality and holiday feel.
- Eggs: Binds the ingredients, helps with its rise and provides structure to the cake.
- Canola or Vegetable Oil: Adds moisture and creates a soft, tender crumb with a neutral flavor.
- Puréed Fruit (Baby Food) : Plum, Prunes, Plum Apple or Prune Apple
- Walnuts: Adds a crunchy texture and nutty flavor. They complement the sweetness of the puréed fruit and spices.
- Whipped Cream, optional: Adds a light, airy sweetness that complements the flavors of the cake.
Tools You'll Need
- Mixing Bowls
- Spatula
- Mini Bundt Pan, Fluted Bundt Pan, or 13"x9" Baking Dish
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
How to Make Christmas Spice Cake
- Preheat oven to 350˚F.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together self-rising flour, sugar, cinnamon and ground cloves.
- In another medium mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, oil and baby food.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until blended. If adding toasted walnuts, fold into the mixture.
- Pour into a well-greased bundt pan, 13"x9" pan or 2 pans that make 12 mini bundt cakes. If baking in a bundt pan or 13"x9" pan, bake 50-60 minutes. If baking 12 mini bundt cakes, bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Optional, serve whipped cream on the side.
Tips and Substitutions
- Self-rising flour is a type of flour that already contains leavening agents, typically baking powder and sometimes salt, which are already mixed into the flour. If you don't have any on hand, you can make your own:
- SUBSTITUTION: For every 1 cup of self-rising flour, you can use 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.
- Fresh puréed fruit or jarred baby food both work in this cake. The flavor and density will slightly vary depending on the fruit chosen, but plums, prunes, apples, or a blend of these fruits can all be used.
- This cake can be baked in a fluted bundt pan, mini bundt pan, or 13”x9” pan. The oven temperature at 350˚F will remain the same, but the time will vary depending on your chosen pan.
- Bundt or 13"x9" Pan: bake 50-60 minutes
- 12 Mini Bundt Cakes: Bake 1 pan at a time, 25-30 minutes
- This recipe for spice cake is great served by itself. However, you can add a topping if desired. A couple options are:
- Dusting of Powdered Sugar
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- Blend together 4 ounces softened cream cheese, ¼ cup room-temperature salted butter, 1 ½ cups powdered sugar and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract. Spread on cake once completely cooled.
Storage and Freezing
Store leftover cake and at room temperature for up to three to five days. It can be eaten at room temperature or reheat in the microwave 10-15 seconds.
For longer term storage, this cake can also be frozen. Simply wrap the cake tightly in plastic wrap to seal out any air and moisture. You can also double-wrap it with aluminum foil for extra protection. Store the cake in the freezer for up to 2-3 months. When you're ready to enjoy it again, remove it from the freezer and let it thaw in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
FAQs
Spice cakes typically contains a blend of warm, aromatic spices that give it its distinctive flavor. The exact spices used can vary from recipe to recipe, but common spices found in spice cake include cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, ginger, and cardamom
To prevent a dry spice cake, pay close attention to your measurements and follow the recommended baking times. Overmixing the cake batter can develop too much gluten, which can lead to a tougher and drier texture. Improper storage can also cause cake to dry out.
Spice cake is called "spice cake" because it is a type of cake that is flavored with a variety of warm spices. It has rich and aromatic flavors that are perfect for autumn and winter seasons, as well as for celebrations and holidays.
Spice cake can be baked in a bundt, mini bundt, or 13”x9” pan.
Try these other Cake Recipes
Christmas Spice Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups self-rising flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 4 teaspoons ground cloves
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1 cup baby food plum, prunes, plum apple or prune apple
- 1 cup toasted walnuts
- Whipped Cream optional topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together self-rising flour, sugar, cinnamon and ground cloves.
- In another medium mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, oil and baby food.Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until blended. If adding toasted walnuts, fold into the mixture.
- Pour into a well-greased bundt pan, 13"x9" pan or 2 pans that make 12 mini bundt cakes. If baking in a bundt pan or 13"x9" pan, bake 50-60 minutes. If baking 12 mini bundt cakes, bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Optional, serve whipped cream on the side.
Video
Notes
- Self-rising flour is a type of flour that already contains leavening agents, typically baking powder and sometimes salt, which are already mixed into the flour. If you don't have any on hand, you can make your own:
- SUBSTITUTION: For every 1 cup of self-rising flour, you can use 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.
- Fresh puréed fruit or jarred baby food both work in this cake. The flavor and density will slightly vary depending on the fruit chosen, but plums, prunes, apples, or a blend of these fruits can all be used.
- This cake can be baked in a fluted bundt pan, mini bundt pan, or 13”x9” pan. The oven temperature at 350˚F will remain the same, but the time will vary depending on your chosen pan.
- Bundt or 13"x9" Pan: bake 50-60 minutes
- 12 Mini Bundt Cakes: Bake 1 pan at a time, 25-30 minutes
- This recipe for spice cake is great served by itself. However, you can add a topping if desired. A couple options are:
- Dusting of Powdered Sugar
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- Blend together 4 ounces softened cream cheese, ¼ cup room-temperature salted butter, 1 ½ cups powdered sugar and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract. Spread on cake once completely cooled.
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