Moist Warmly Spiced Gingerbread Loaf (Printable version)

A moist, warmly spiced gingerbread loaf with hints of cinnamon, cloves, and ginger.

# What You'll Need:

→ Dry Ingredients

01 - 2 cups all-purpose flour (approximately 8.75 oz)
02 - 1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
03 - 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
04 - ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
05 - 1 teaspoon baking soda
06 - ¼ teaspoon salt

→ Wet Ingredients

07 - ½ cup unsalted butter, melted (4 oz)
08 - ¾ cup dark brown sugar (5.3 oz)
09 - ⅔ cup molasses (5.4 fl oz)
10 - 1 large egg
11 - ½ cup whole milk (4 fl oz)

# How to Prepare:

01 - Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and line a 9x5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, baking soda, and salt until evenly distributed.
03 - In a separate bowl, whisk the melted unsalted butter and dark brown sugar until smooth. Incorporate molasses, the egg, and whole milk, whisking to blend thoroughly.
04 - Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients. Stir gently until just combined, avoiding overmixing to maintain a tender crumb.
05 - Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the surface evenly.
06 - Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center emerges clean.
07 - Allow the loaf to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring it to a wire rack to cool completely prior to slicing.

# Expert advice:

01 -
  • It comes together in under an hour, which means you can satisfy a craving for something homemade without the fuss.
  • The molasses and brown sugar create this deep, almost caramel-like richness that makes it taste like you spent way more effort than you actually did.
  • It keeps beautifully for days, so it's perfect for meal prep or giving away as gifts.
02 -
  • Overmixing the batter is the quickest way to end up with a dense, tough loaf instead of the tender crumb you're after, so treat that final stir like you're folding a love letter.
  • Fresh spices make a transformative difference; if your cinnamon smells faint or your ginger tastes dusty, the loaf will taste a little flat no matter what else you do right.
  • The loaf actually tastes better the next day after the flavors have had time to settle and deepen, so don't judge it on day one.
03 -
  • Room-temperature ingredients mix more smoothly than cold ones, so pull your egg and milk out of the fridge a few minutes before you start.
  • If you don't have parchment paper, a well-greased pan works fine, but parchment truly saves you the heartbreak of a stuck loaf.

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