This Moist Spice Sheet Cake is super moist and spiced with flavors of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. The best part of this recipe is that it is topped with Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting made with Bourbon, cream cheese, and powdered sugar.
It’s time to put the fruity desserts to the side and bring in the warm and spicy desserts that are perfect for the Fall. I love fall desserts because of the warmth and comfort that come with those flavors. The best part of this easy spice cake recipe is the simplicity of the recipe and the Bourbon frosting that tops it all off.
I have made a bundt spice cake before and this recipe isn’t all that different. The preference of this spice sheet cake recipe versus the bundt spice cake is the occasion and your baking mood that day. This sheet cake is great for taking to potlucks or having large crowds over where people can just cut a square and move forward. The bundt cake (in my opinion) is great if you want to get a little fancier and make something a little prettier.
Spice Cake Ingredients:
This homemade spice cake is made using some common cake ingredients such as flour, sugar, eggs, and baking soda. There are a few ingredients that make this spice cake amazing.
- Applesauce: In some cakes applesauce replaces eggs, but in this cake it adds moisture to the cake. You can’t taste much of it at all but when you take a bite of the cake and it melts in your mouth, you’ll know it’s there. You can also use shredded zucchini or a mashed banana instead.
- Pumpkin Spice: I know this is not a Pumpkin Cake, but I added a little of this and some extra cinnamon to accentuate the warm Fall spices. I used pumpkin pie spice because it has all of the Fall spices that is great for Fall baking.
How to Make Spice Cake
It’s really quite simple, you’re going to mix the wet ingredients together in one bowl, the dry ingredients in another, and you’re going to marry them in one bowl and all ingredients will live happily ever after. If you are nervous about making this spice cake recipe from scratch, don’t be! This cake is a great baking recipe for beginners.
Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting
Now, this is my favorite part! I honestly don’t think Bourbon is used enough in recipes. I don’t drink the stuff, but I love the woodsy, smokey, spicy, smell of Bourbon. Because of the smell, I get a sense of what is in it. Those flavors of the Bourbon can only make anything it is added to taste amazing! When making this cream cheese frosting, here is what you will need:
- Bourbon
- Butter
- Cream Cheese
- Powdered Sugar
- Salt
All you are going to do is pretty much add all of these ingredients in one bowl and mix until creamy and smooth like frosting and you’re done! Then you are going to spread it on top of the spice sheet cake and that is it, folks!
If you like recipes like this, you’ll love the ones below:
- Caramel Apple Layered Cake
- Pumpkin Bundt Cake
- Apple Spice Cake with Brown Butter Glaze
- Pumpkin Latte Cupcakes
Commonly Asked Questions
You can. It will take on a different spice flavor, but it will still be spicy. You can also add the spices separately if you would like: 2 tsp. Cinnamon, 1 tsp. Ground ginger, ½ tsp. Ground cloves, ½ tsp nutmeg.
Yes! You are pretty much going to bake for about the same amount of time or until a toothpick can be inserted and comes out clean.
Recipe partially adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction
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Moist Spice Sheet Cake with Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
Description
This Moist Spice Sheet Cake is perfectly moist and filled with Fall spices, topped with a Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 c. cake flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. Salt
- 2 tsp. Pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp. Ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp. Ground cinnamon
- 1 c. vegetable oil
- 1 3/4 c. light brown sugar
- 1 c. unsweetened apple sauce
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
FROSTING
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 4. Unsalted butter, softened
- 4 c powdered sugar
- 5 tbsp. Bourbon
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- To make the cake preheat the oven to 350 Degrees and spray a 9X13 baking dish with non-stick spray and set it aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin spice, ginger, and ground cinnamon and whisk.
- In a separate bowl, combine the vegetable oil, light brown sugar, apple sauce, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk together until all is combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients a cup at a time until well mixed. Pour the cake mix into a prepared baking dish and place it in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted in the center of the cake and comes out clean. Set aside and let cool completely.
- To make the frosting, mix the cream cheese and butter together with a handheld mixer or standing mixer until well mixed. Add the powdered sugar while alternating a tablespoon of the Bourbon until all measurements have come together. Add the pinch of salt. Spread the icing over the cooled cake and serve as desired.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: Dessert
This Moist Spice Sheet Cake looks simple but very satisfying! The flavor will burst in your mouth. And that frosting made it perfect.
Cream cheese frosting is my husband’s favorite. You added bourbon and he can’t stop talking about it. Thanks for sharing.
Awesome Marta!
Hey Nicole this “Moist Spice Sheet Cake with Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting” is simply amazing. I tried it at home, it was really good but my husband said the sugar was a little low. I liked it anyways. He is a sugar enthusiest. I will drove him to some BBQ food rather than sweets.
Yaaaaaay!
This looks and sounds delicious. Cake and spices is a winning combo, one of my favorites. I will definitely be making it this weekend. I always struggle to find good cake recipes so this will be a treat!
Great Natalia!
This frosting and cake recipe combination is a match made in heaven! This is beyond perfect!!
Thank you Leslie!
Love this spice cake. I did not use bourbon in the cream cheese but the cake and the frosting tasted super great!
So glad to hear it Priya!
Whoa!!! Now this my type of cake! This looks AMAZING! I am drooling over the bourbon frosting! Thank you so much for sharing!!!
Thank you Lori!
Wow, this cake is so perfect! ! love a good sheet cake because they are so easy to make, but you made it so much more interesting! I know that this recipe will be made on repeat in my house over the holidays, thank you so much for the recipe 😉
Thank you Cathleen!
The cake turned out so moist, and the frosting was amazing! My new favorite fall cake!
I am so glad to hear that Amy!
This cake looks amazing! That creamy frosting is just perfect.
Ohhh this cake reminds me of a pumpkin spice sheet cake I made recently but now you’re making me regret not using bourbon! 😂 I can’t wait to try your version of this delicious cake.
Thank you Marie!