Gingerbread Loaf Recipe

Gingerbread is one of the classic flavors of the holiday season. A gingerbread loaf is the perfect easy dessert to have on hand when friends and family come to visit. This simple quick bread recipe is flavored with molasses and just the right amount of spice.

I’ll give you variations and substitutions where I can, plus helpful tips and tricks for success. Read on for this info as well as the recipe. If you’d like to skip straight to the recipe, use the jump to recipe button at the top of the post.

You may also be interested in my gingerbread cake and my gingerbread biscotti recipes. For ease of browsing, you can find all of my gingerbread recipes in one place.

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Gingerbread loaf

This easy gingerbread loaf recipe comes together in no time. The combination of spices that make up gingerbread are the flavors of Christmas. There is something about the blend of cloves, ginger, cinnamon and molasses that fills the house with a warm cozy feeling like nothing else can.

At Christmastime, a gingerbread slice with a cup of tea is something I look forward to. Why we only make this around the holidays, I’m not sure. This quick bread is so good, we should be enjoying it all year. 

What you need to know

I made a maple bourbon glaze to coat the gingerbread, which really complements the spices used. You can swap bourbon for a splash of milk or cream to keep the glaze kid-friendly, if you’ll be serving it to the whole family. Another option is to use half bourbon and half cream to make it a subtler flavor.

If you want to make a gingerbread loaf like Starbucks, swap out the maple bourbon glaze for a cream cheese frosting. Add a couple of teaspoons of orange zest to the batter of the gingerbread loaf and you’ll arrive at something similar.

Which loaf pan is best?

Before we get to the recipe, I want to talk about the loaf pan. This recipe works best in an 8.5 x 4.5 loaf pan. However, that isn’t the only topic for discussion on loaf pans. Do you choose a folded loaf pan or a molded loaf pan? Both have pros and cons.

A folded loaf pan will give you perfect, sharp corners, making your bread look like it stepped off the pages of a food magazine. The drawback is they have places where batter can hide, so cleaning them can take (slightly) more time.

A molded loaf pan is pressed from one piece of metal, making them a snap to clean, but the corners of the loaf will be rounded – not sharp, crisp corners.

If you have a 9×5 pan, it will work, but it won’t bake up as tall and pretty. The loaf will be shorter (flatter) and you’ll have to keep an eye on the gingerbread loaf, because it will bake a bit faster. 

Ingredients

This gingerbread loaf recipe uses common ingredients that you likely already have in the pantry.

• Flour – All purpose flour is the base of this quick bread.
• Baking soda – Baking soda is a leavener that helps the gingerbread loaf rise.
• Cloves, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cardamom – These spices give the loaf a ton of flavor.
  • Substitutions: You can use 2 1/2 tablespoons of pumpkin spice spice, if that is an easier option. It will not be the same, but it’s a decent swap.
• Molasses – I use Grandma’s brand molasses. I do not recommend blackstrap molasses.
• Salt – Fine sea salt is a great choice.
• Brown sugar – I’ve used both dark brown and light brown sugar. Use what you have.
• Butter – Unsalted, room temperature butter is your best option.
• Eggs – Large eggs are the standard in recipes, make sure they are room temperature.
• Milk – I like whole milk or 2% for this recipe.
• Oil – Use a neutral oil like canola, vegetable, or avocado for added moisture.

How to make

Here’s a quick summary of how to make this gingerbread loaf. Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full recipe. 

1. Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C. Beat wet ingredients together in a medium bowl, whisk dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix until combined.
2. Bake in a prepared pan until a tester comes out with only a few crumbs attached. Then cool completely.
3. Glaze or frost, you can decide if you want a thinner or thicker icing.
4. Let the icing set up before slicing.

Maple bourbon icing

To coat your gingerbread loaf with the maple bourbon glaze, let it cool completely before glazing. Trust me. If it is even slightly warm, the glaze will run off into a pool underneath your gingerbread instead of on top of it.

The glaze is whisked together in a small bowl, then you can pour right over the bread to coat it. I do this with a cooling rack set inside of a sheet pan to catch the excess. It keeps it from making a mess, and if you want to scoop it up and give the bread another pass with the icing, it will be clean and free of crumbs.

If you prefer a thicker icing, more like a frosting, you can use a little less liquid and adjust it until it is the consistency you like. Then spread it on top, and let it set up before slicing.

Gingerbread loaf FAQ’s

Variations and substitutions

• Orange zest – Add in a tablespoon or two of orange zest to the batter for a little citrusy zing.
• Pumpkin pie spice – Replace all of the individual spices for 2 1/2 tablespoons of pumpkin spice. It will not be exactly the same, but it’s an option if you don’t have all of the individual spices.

Serving suggestions

This would also be a great option for a homemade gift. You could bake the loaf in an aluminum loaf pan or bake it in a regular loaf pan, then box it up in these cute gift boxes made for dessert loaves.

Helpful tools and equipment

• Hand mixer – This is the same one that I own, and LOVE. It isn’t the least expensive option, but it is a fantastic hand mixer.
• Loaf pan – This is the exact pan that I used for the recipe.
• Rubber spatulas – You can never have too many.
• Parchment paper sheets are MUCH easier to use than tearing pieces off of a roll.

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Originally published 12/2/19, most recent update 12/4/24.