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    Home » Recipes » Desserts

    Gingerbread Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

    Published: Nov 8, 2022 · Modified: Sep 6, 2023 by Christy Faber · 2 Comments

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    This Old Fashioned Gingerbread Bundt Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting is the perfect festive dessert for the holiday season.  Fill your home with the old-fashioned fragrance of Christmas- ginger, cinnamon and cloves.  The beautiful addition of frosted cranberries on top makes this cake an elegant addition to your holiday table.

    Gingerbread bundt cake elevated on a glass cake stand with frosting and frosted cranberries on top.

    My version of gingerbread cake is inspired by a cake I often enjoyed at my friend Bekah’s house when we were kids.  I often slept over at her house from Saturday night to Sunday morning before going to church together.  Her mom, Kathryn, would often serve a gingerbread cake for a special Sunday morning breakfast. 

    The recipe was one she had inherited from her granny and the tradition included pouring heavy cream on top.  No surprise that we would dig right in!

    I decided to make my cake in a Bundt pan as a simple way to create a beautiful presentation.  I knew that an orange cream cheese icing would be a delicious complement to this spicy, aromatic cake.  The frosted cranberries are the literal “topping on the cake!”  If you prefer a simpler presentation, replace the cream cheese frosting with a dusting of powdered sugar.  So pretty!

    I hope my Gingerbread Bundt Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Icing will become a part of your family’s holiday tradition, or enjoy it anytime, including at breakfast doused in heavy cream!

    Discover a variety of holiday-inspired recipes: Candy Cane Thumbprint Cookies, Pumpkin Pie Pecan Bars, Chai Tea Ice Cream, Comforting Custard Drink.

    Jump to:
    • Why You'll Love This Recipe
    • Ingredients
    • How To Make Gingerbread Bundt Cake
    • Expert Tips
    • Recipe FAQs
    • More Holiday Recipes
    • Recipe
    • Gingerbread Bundt Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

    Why You'll Love This Recipe

    • Fills your home with aromas of the holidays! (just like my Walnut and Date Scones)
    • This cake makes a beautiful Christmas table centerpiece.
    • The creamy citrus icing really compliments the warm spices in the cake.
    • This recipe is still incredibly delicious if you simplify the prep and skip the icing and the frosted cranberries.
    • Freezer-friendly! (Freeze the cake without the icing)
    • Comforting flavors (just like my Olive Oil Carrot Cake)

    Ingredients

    Ingredients to make gingerbread bundt cake in measuring spoons, pinch bowls, bowls and measuring cups.
    • Molasses - choose "light" or "fancy" molasses for baking.
    • Spices - if your cloves, cinnamon and ginger have been in your cupboard for a long time they may have lost a lot of their flavor. Invest in fresh spices for the most flavorful cake.
    • Butter - you can use salted or unsalted. If you use salted butter then decrease the amount of salt added to the recipe slightly.

    See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

    How To Make Gingerbread Bundt Cake

    Here are the step-by-step instructions to make this recipe.

    Step 1: Whisk together the dry ingredients.

    Add the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk together until thoroughly combined.

    Dry ingredients sitting in a mixing bowl with a wooden spoon beside, on a marble countertop.

    Step 2: Combine butter and sugar

    In a separate medium bowl, combine the melted butter and sugar. Beat for two minutes until well combined.

    Sugar sitting on top of melted butter in a ceramic mixing bowl on a countertop.

    Step 3: Add egg and molasses

    Add the egg and beat until combined. Blend in the molasses.

    All wet ingredients mixed together in a mixing bowl with bubbles on top.

    Step 4: Add dry ingredients and combine, then add hot water.

    Add the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined.

    Now add the hot water and mix the batter until it is smooth.

    Wet and dry ingredients combined by a Danish dough whisk in a ceramic mixing bowl.

    Step 5: Pour batter into bundt pan and bake.

    Pour the batter into a greased 10-cup bundt pan. Bake in a preheated 350-degree F oven for 40 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

    Allow to cool for 10 to 20 minutes and then remove the cake from the pan onto a wire rack. Allow the cake to cool completely before icing.

    Cake batter prepped and sitting in a Bundt pan to be baked.

    Step 6: Make the cream cheese icing.

    Be sure your cream cheese is at room temperature.

    Combine the cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth.

    Gradually add in the orange juice as you continue beating to achieve a smooth texture.

    Add the vanilla and orange zest and combine.

    Pour the icing over the top of the cake allowing it to drip down on either side.

    Frosting pouring over the top of the cake on a cooling rack on a baking sheet.

    Step 7: Make frosted cranberries and add them to the cake.

    First, make your simple syrup. Combine the ¼ cup sugar and ¼ cup water in a medium saucepan. Heat the syrup over medium heat, stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar. Do not bring to a boil.

    Add the cranberries to the simple syrup, stirring gently to coat.

    Using a slotted spoon, carefully remove the cranberries to a wire rack over a pan to catch the drippings.

    Wait for about an hour for the cranberries to dry and then roll them in the ⅓ cup sugar.

    Add the frosted cranberries to the top of the iced cake for a beautiful presentation.

    Candied cranberries sitting on top of finished gingerbread bundt cake on a glass cake stand.

    Expert Tips

    • Properly grease your Bundt pan: grease your pan well with coconut oil or vegetable oil and then dust with flour and tap out the excess. After baking, wait 10-20 minutes for the cake to cool before turning it out on a cooling rack.
    • Measure the flour carefully and accurately. The best way to do this is to spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off with the back of a knife.
    • When adding the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mix just until combined. Overmixing can result in a denser cake.
    • Be sure to add the hot water after you have combined the dry and wet ingredients. If you add the hot water directly to the wet ingredients you risk cooking the egg on contact.
    • Use a cake tester or toothpick to check for doneness. Insert it into the center of the cake; if it comes out with a few moist crumbs (not wet batter), the cake is done.
    • For the cream cheese icing, adjust the amount of orange juice to achieve your desired consistency. Add more juice for a thinner icing or more powdered sugar for a thicker one.
    • When decorating the top of the cake you can also add some fresh rosemary sprigs for a festive touch.
    • You can bake the cake a day in advance and store it, tightly wrapped, at room temperature. Add the icing and cranberries just before serving.

    Recipe FAQs

    What is the best way to prevent your cake from sticking to the Bundt pan?

    Choose a Bundt cake pan with a non-stick coating.  It is still important to grease your pan well.  Be sure to grease every nook and cranny.  Butter is not the best choice for greasing a Bundt pan as the milk solids may cause sticking. (I use coconut oil)  Sprinkle flour into the pan and tap the sides to distribute it evenly.  When the cake is finished baking, it is important to let it cool for 10 to 20 minutes.  Then invert your cake over a wire cooling rack.  Let cool completely before adding icing. 

    What molasses is best to use in a gingerbread cake?

    Choose fancy molasses for baking as opposed to blackstrap molasses which has gone through additional boiling in processing.  Fancy molasses is lighter and sweeter and is also known as cooking molasses.  Blackstrap molasses is more often used for savory recipes such as baked beans and barbecue sauce.

    What's the best way to store this cake?

    Any cake with a cream cheese frosting should be stored in the refrigerator.  You shouldn’t let it sit out any longer than two hours.  

    Can I make this cake in advance?

    Yes, you can make the cake in advance. Store it at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a day before adding the icing and cranberries.

    A slice of Gingerbread Bundt cake on a special dessert dish with the cake in the background.

    More Holiday Recipes

    • Chocolate Peppermint Crinkle Cookies
    • Gluten-Free Buckwheat Flour Brownies
    • Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup
    • Fudgy Chocolate Orange Pudding Cake

    If you tried this Gingerbread Bundt Cake or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!

    Recipe

    Gingerbread Bundt Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

    Christy Faber
    This Gingerbread Bundt Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting is the perfect festive dessert for the holiday season. Fill your home with the old fashioned fragrance of Christmas- ginger, cinnamon and cloves. The beautiful addition of frosted cranberries on top make this cake an elegant addition to your holiday table.
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe SaveSaved!
    Prep Time 15 minutes mins
    Cook Time 40 minutes mins
    Cooling 15 minutes mins
    Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins
    Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
    Cuisine british
    Servings 12 pieces
    Calories 382 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    Gingerbread Cake

    • 2 ½ cup all purpose flour
    • 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
    • 1 teaspoon ginger
    • ½ teaspoon cloves
    • 1 cup hot water
    • ½ cup butter
    • ½ cup sugar
    • 1 large egg
    • 1 cup fancy molasses

    Frosting

    • 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
    • ¼ cup orange juice
    • orange zest from half an orange
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • ¼ cup powdered sugar

    Frosted Cranberries

    • 1 ½ cup fresh cranberries
    • ¼ cup sugar for simple syrup
    • ¼ cup water
    • ⅓ cup sugar for rolling

    Instructions
     

    Gingerbread Cake

    • Combine the dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
    • Cream the melted butter and sugar together. Beat for two minutes until well combined.
    • Add the egg and beat until combined. Blend in the molasses.
    • Add the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined.
    • Now add the hot water and mix the batter until it is smooth.
    • Pour the batter into a greased 10 cup bundt pan. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 40 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
    • Allow to cool for 10 to 20 minutes and then remove the cake from the pan onto a wire rack. Allow the cake to cool completely before icing.

    Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

    • Be sure your cream cheese is at room temperature.
    • Combine the cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth.
    • Gradually add in the orange juice as you continue beating to achieve a smooth texture.
    • Add the vanilla and orange zest and combine.
    • Pour the icing over the top of the cake allowing it to drip down on either side.

    Frosted Cranberries

    • First, make your simple syrup. Combine the ¼ cup sugar and ¼ cup water in a medium saucepan. Heat the syrup over medium heat, stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar. Do not bring to a boil.
    • Add the cranberries to the simple syrup, stirring gently to coat.
    • Using a slotted spoon, carefully remove the cranberries to a wire rack over a pan to catch the drippings.
    • Wait for about an hour for the cranberries to dry and then roll them in the ⅓ cup sugar.
    • Add the frosted cranberries to the top of the iced cake for a beautiful presentation.
    • The cranberries will keep in the fridge for 2 to 3 days.

    Notes

    • Properly grease your Bundt pan: grease your pan well with coconut oil or vegetable oil and then dust with flour and tap out the excess. After baking, wait 10-20 minutes for the cake to cool before turning it out on a cooling rack.
    • Measure the flour carefully and accurately. The best way to do this is to spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off with the back of a knife.
    • When adding the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mix just until combined. Overmixing can result in a denser cake.
    • Be sure to add the hot water after you have combined the dry and wet ingredients. If you add the hot water directly to the wet ingredients you risk cooking the egg on contact.
    • Use a cake tester or toothpick to check for doneness. Insert it into the center of the cake; if it comes out with a few moist crumbs (not wet batter), the cake is done.
    • For the cream cheese icing, adjust the amount of orange juice to achieve your desired consistency. Add more juice for a thinner icing or more powdered sugar for a thicker one.
    • When decorating the top of the cake you can also add some fresh rosemary sprigs for a festive touch.
    • You can bake the cake a day in advance and store it, tightly wrapped, at room temperature. Add the icing and cranberries just before serving.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 49.51gCalories: 382kcalCarbohydrates: 57.5gProtein: 5.1gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 9.2gCholesterol: 57mgSodium: 386mgPotassium: 96mgFiber: 1.4gSugar: 32gCalcium: 55mgIron: 3mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

    If you make this recipe please leave a comment and give this recipe a rating! I aim to respond to every single comment. I am so grateful when you trust me and try one of my recipe creations in your own kitchen. I love to hear how it went!  Let’s connect on Instagram and tag me in your food pics!

    ‘Til next time,

    Christy

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Natalie says

      September 15, 2023 at 7:30 pm

      5 stars
      There are so many thing about this recipe I love - that cake is gorgeous and that cream cheese frosting sounds divine. I agree - what a nice pairing with the spice of the cake. And, such a nice childhood memory you have connected to this cake. Thanks for sharing.

      Reply
    2. Allison W says

      November 08, 2022 at 7:25 pm

      This looks so beautiful! Can't wait to try this for a beautiful holiday dessert

      Reply
    5 from 2 votes (1 rating without comment)

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    Welcome,

    I’m Christy

    a happy wife and mother to three boys, a nutritionist, a food lover and a Canadian. Creating and experimenting in the kitchen is my idea of an afternoon well spent. To me, a clean kitchen is an empty canvas of possibility and that means my kitchen never stays clean for long. My dream is that one or more of the recipes I share here will inspire you, perhaps even becoming a cherished family favourite.

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