Soaked Ginger Cake with Brown Sugar Sauce
This is a gingerbread poke cake recipe, a classic gingerbread cake that is soaked with a buttery brown sugar sauce. It’s a simple recipe that tastes extra special.
With such an alluring name this poke cake is at the top of our Valentine’s Day menu.
Soaked with a buttery brown sugar sauce while it’s still warm from the oven, this gingerbread poke cake is beyond moist. A dollop of whipped cream is all it needs for a final dressing.
PrintSoaked Ginger Cake with Brown Sugar Sauce (Gingerbread poke cake)
This gingerbread cake with a buttery brown sugar sauce is rich, moist and flavourful. A dollop of whipped cream is all it needs.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 1:10
- Category: Cakes
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups flour (works with brown rice flour)
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 3/4 cup water
- 3/4 cup oil
- 3/4 cup Crosby’s Fancy Molasses
- 2 eggs
Buttery Brown Sugar Sauce
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/3 cup water
Instructions
Instructions:
- In a large bowl combine dry ingredients.
- In another bowl beat together the water, oil, eggs and molasses.
- Add wet ingredients to dry and mix well.
- Pour into a greased 8” x 8” pan.
- Bake at 350 for 45 -55 min until the edges of the cake start to pull away from the sides of the pan.
Optional: Add 1/4 cup chopped candied ginger to the batter.
While the cake is in the oven prepare the sauce:
Buttery Brown Sugar Sauce
- Heat until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved.
- Add water.
- When cake is cooked, cool in pan for 10 minutes then prick with a fork or skewer and pour over the sauce.
- Serve cake warm with whipped cream.
Poke holes in the cake for the sauce to soak through: While the sauce is still hot…Spoon it over the cake, taking care to cover it well.
Pour every last drop (no matter how tempting it is to save a spoonful for yourself).
Serve immediately, while it’s still warm.
Susie
My son and husband LOVE this cake! It has been requested as their cake for the last three birthdays!
AJ
I’m reading the Buttery Brown Sugar Sauce. Do you add the water after the butter and sugar has dissolved?
Crosby Molasses
Hi AJ,
Yes, we add the water after the butter and sugar has dissolved. Sorry for the confusion, I will modify the instructions. Thanks for pointing that out.
Maggie
Newly gluten intolerant so imagine my surprise and delight when I read this recipe can be done with rice flour! And ginger cake is one of my favourites!!
Dawn Sprigler
My Grandmother made a version of this that I loved. As I remember the bottom 1/4 of the cake was supper moist and she would cut you a piece then put it on a plate bottom side up and top with whipped cream. I have not been able to replicate but I’m going to try this recipe. Any suggestions on how to get the sauce on the bottom?
Crosby Molasses
Hi Dawn, Your grandmother’s version sounds wonderful! Wondering if you could pour the sauce onto a serving dish and then sit the cake in it for a while, to absorb the sauce. NOt sure if it would end up with the same texture you remember.
Janet
How soft do the leftovers get the next day? Can you refrigerate or freeze the cake for later use?
Crosby Molasses
Hi Janet, I’d refrigerate any leftovers. SUrprisingly the cake doesn’t get too soft. That’s why it’s great to serve extra sauce alongside :)
Linda
I made this for the first time, but I made it in my square muffin tin pan. So I had 12 little cakes…6 disappeared within minutes. I’ve hidden the rest.
Crosby Molasses
Hi Linda, I love the idea to make this recipe in muffin tins. (Easier to hide, too :))
Jenny
Hi Bridget, I am planning to make this for the weekend. I will tell you a story about how naughty I was as a child. I loved my Mum’s gingerbread, especially if it sank a bit in the middle and was stickier than usual. As I started learning to cook I was told that opening and closing the oven door while a cake was in it could cause the cake not to rise. After that if Mum was cooking gingerbread and went out of the kitchen to feed the chickens or pick veggies for dinner I would open the door and slam it shut. She couldn’t understand why sometimes it rose and sometimes it would sink!!!! Just in case I never mentioned that little trick to my children! ;-)
Crosby Molasses
Hi Jenny, That is a hilarious story. Your poor mom :)
Michelle Doucette
I made this yesterday (Jan 29/19)… it was good but I would suggest it does not need to bake that long… I would probably suggest 35 to 40 min… and I made the sauce using cream rather than water… served it on the side… very good and will make again
Crosby Molasses
Thanks Michelle, Cooking time is a funny thing and hard to pinpoint sometimes. Thanks for letting me know. I’ll make a note in the recipe that baking times may vary.
Brigitte St Jean
I made mine n a 9 by 13 pan and it was delicious!!
Brigitte St Jean
It is very delicious.. I made it in a 9 / 13 pan and loved it. I think putting it into a bigger size pan the cake is not as thick . I also use 3/4 cup of (milk) instead of water.
Crosby Molasses
Hi Brigitte, Great suggestion to use milk in place of the water and to make it in a bigger pan. That way the sauce can sink all the way through :)
ginny james
My grandmother used to make this for us with the brown sugar sauce and she gave me the recipe but I lost it. I am so glad that you posted this can’t wait to make it.
Crosby Molasses
Hi Ginny, Yes, that brown sugar sauce is an old classic. Glad you rediscovered it.
D’Ann Kelly
Omg I have been looking for this cake recipe for years.
Margaret Barry
I am certainly going to make it and I know that there will be no leftovers.
Lorraine
Hi there;
I made this as dessert for bookclub and they loved it. It was a great fit for the meal I served which was a hearty winter type affair. Thanks for the recipe…another keeper!
Crosby Molasses
Hi Lorraine, I’m pleased this was a hit with your book club. It’s a favourite for me too!
Deborah
We’ve been making this Gingerbread Cake With Brown Sugar Sauce for years. Growing up we always had this once a week for dessert.
Deborah
We making this Gingerbread Cake With Brown Sugar Sauce for years. Growing up we always had this once a week for dessert.
Crosby Molasses
Hi Deborah, I love how gingerbread recipes are often family classics. This cake was a new discovery for me but I grew up eating gingerbread with a different sauce on the side. It’s still one of my favourites.
Lucille
my name is Lucille and i am a weight Watcher i NEED THE NUTRITIONAL INGREDIENTS to calculate the points …..
Crosby Molasses
Hi Lucille, Bit by bit I have been adding nutritional info to recipes. It’s a long process though…
Carmen Braddick
my mom always made gingerbread cake but she made a lemon sauce with it which i have done for years. i put the sauce on each piece. going to try this sauce it sure sounds deliicous. goodbye lemon sauce, you were so good.
Crosby Molasses
Hi Carmen, I love lemon sauce with my gingerbread too. It’s an old fashioned classic, I think.
Francie
Made this cake for my family tonight. I cannot have flour so I used brown rice flour as a substitute and it came out delicious! Thank you for sharing this recipe :) I enjoyed the fact that i was able to use b rice flour and make it gluten free….awesome!
Crosby Molasses
Hi Francie, I’m so pleased that it worked with brown rice flour. I’ll add that to the blog post so others know it’s possible. Thanks so much for letting me know.
Mike
Made this last weekend for my wife. Love ginger flavour so I added 1 tbsp. finely minced crystallized ginger to batter before baking. Didn’t want leftover to get mushy on second day so didn’t put sauce on till we served it on plates. Popped cake in micro to warm next day. Warmed up the sauce and poured on as we served it to our guests. Great Cake ! Thanks
Crosby Molasses
Hi Mike, Thanks for the suggestion to add crystallized ginger. It sounds so delicious that I think I’ll add it to the recipe, as an option.
Pat
made this cake this morning, having it when we play cards this evening. Will put the sauce on the side. Can I add raisins ??
Crosby Molasses
Hi Pat, Yes, feel free to wait with the sauce. Although I know some who have made a double batch of sauce, one for soaking and the other for pouring over. As well, raisins would be a yummy addition too. Enjoy.
Karen Williams
In the oven cooking now,it smells delicious .i put it in a 9x9pan but it seems like a lot of batter,the cake is right to the top, I don’t think there will be enough room to put the sauce on when it is done
Crosby Molasses
Hi Karen. Did the sauce soak in alright for you? I should add that it’s okay to remove the cake from the pan first if it seems as though the sauce will just pour over the edges.
Cathy
I made this a few weeks back for a family dinner. I had also made a blueberry cheesecake type dessert. This was the dessert everyone went for. I also saved the sauce and served it over each serving, rather than poking the cake and pouring it over. It definately was a hit!
Bridget
Hi Cathy,
I’m so glad everyone loved it! I like your idea of serving the sauce on the side too.
lorraine brown
i;m going to try cake,will let you know the results,,ty for receipe
Bridget
Hi Lorraine — I hope that you enjoyed it!
Joan
I made this for my daughter’s birthday…..turned out great!!!!
But, I needed more than 1 pan…thought of using a 9X13 pan…but decided to use two 9X9 pans.
I got a bit more in one pan than the other, so the middle of one wasn’t quite done, but it was just a (in case we need it) one, so…was no problem.
I put the sauce over individual pieces, so any leftovers wouldn’t be soggy…
And everyone took some home…with sauce in bottles.
Bridget
Hi Joan,
What a great idea to use this recipe as a birthday cake. Love your idea to pour the sauce on individual pieces and sending people home with their little jars of sauce was very sweet. Thanks for telling me all about it!
Viola
Hi Beatrice.
This is almost identical to the recipe that our Mom and Dad made at home. They always put the sauce on each individual piece as well and I have always done the same for our own family. It is still a favorite of my husband too!
– Thanks for sharing!
Bridget
Hi Viola,
There’s nothing like a familiar gingerbread recipe to bring back memories. By the way, I am now a convert to putting the sauce on individual pieces!
Joan
Wow!! Just in the nic of time….tomorrow is my daughters birthday…guess what kind of cake she is getting!!!!!!!!
Will let you know how it goes over. But I have to make it in a 9X13, (7 of us) Just hoping it works.
Beatrice
My mother made this when we were kids. We put the sauce on each piece so that the leftovers didn’t get soggy.
Bridget
Hi Beatrice,
That’s a great idea (assuming there are leftovers!)
carol
I have places this in my favorites.
I am going to make this !!!
Donna
this cake looks great. As for the putting the sauce on 1/4 at a time.. just cutting it into 4, overwrapping and freezing with 1/4 of sauce in sm container.. would do nicely. thaw..heat and serve…a little at a time…
Bridget
Hi Donna,
What a great suggestion and a treat to know you have more in the freezer when you get a craving.
Yolande
I made it in a 8″ x 8″ pan as it says and after
I poured it in the pan I only had about 1/4 inch
left on the top so at this point I knew something
was wrong to I put a cookie sheet under it on a
second rack and its a good thing I did it spilled alot
So what did I do wrong
Bridget
I wonder if your 8×8 pan is smaller than mine? I’ll update the recipe to say that it can be made in an 8×8 or 9×9 pan.
Jennie Landry
was delicious, would definitely recommend any one to make. my husband said it was the best desert I ever made.
Going to make two more now, the one I made last night was so good it”s all gone.
Gail Richard
This was the very best ginger cake ever. My husband had two servings after supper and our little grand-daughter loved it too. Soooo moist and delicant. Wanted so much to post a picture of our little and the look of anticipation on her face when she had her piece of cake. Yummy!
Bridget
Dear Gail,
I’m so pleased that you loved the cake and am even happier that you let me know. Love the image of your grand-daughter enjoying it too.
Carol Ann
Even in an 8 x8 pan, this cake will take a few days for my husband and I to get through. Any suggestions on how to not make it turn into mush after 24 hours, perhaps only soak a quarter of it at a time?
Bridget
Hi Carol Ann,
Good suggestion to soak just 1/4 of it at a time. That way it’ll last a lot longer and you won’t feel obliged to eat a whole cake at once.
Marie
I could care less if there is no chocolate! Ever since I was a little child, I loved Vanilla better, so this cake looks so delicious that I’m nearly afraid to try it — but not that afraid!
I will definitely be making this for Valentines day dessert.
Thank you for this
Bridget
Hi Marie,
I hope that you enjoy it! The extra bonus is that it’s quick and easy to make.
Marie
OMG…my mouth is watering so bad right now. Must drink some Crosby’s until I can get this cake made. You have been in my life for 56 years and will be till one of us die!!! I love you!!!
Bridget
Marie, you’re hilarious. This message made my day!
sylvia
It sounds yummy will be making it soon
Bridget
Hi Sylvia,
I hope that you enjoy it!
Carmel Anderson
going to try these recipe they look delisious
Bridget
Hi Carmel,
I hope that you enjoy them!
Brigitte
That’s looks really good probably on my list to do for the week-end.
Bridget
Hi Brigitte,
I hope that you had a chance to give this a try!
Beatrice Grant
Sounds yummy