Gingerbread Christmas Cake with Snowy Lemon Buttercream

December 18, 2020
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It doesn’t get much more Christmassy than this snowy-themed 4-layer vegan Gingerbread Christmas Cake!  It’s easy to make, tastes divine and can be made a day or two in advance of Christmas Day, leaving you to concentrate on more important things on the day (gin).

This Gingerbread Cake is warming, spicy and sweet with ginger, cinnamon and mixed spice.  It’s got the beautiful deep treacly flavours of Jamaican ginger cake but with more structure and less stickiness to allow you to stack and decorate with confidence.  (If you’re looking for a Jamaican Ginger Cake recipe, I’ve got a fab one here you should try).

Sandwiched between the four aromatic layers of gingerbread cake is a silky smooth lemon buttercream; a flavour match made in heaven!

A large slice of vegan gingerbread Christmas cake with naked lemon icing, gingerbread deer and rosemary trees

This 4-layered vegan Gingerbread Christmas Cake is:

Impressive, yet easy to make

With aromatic ginger

Spicy cinnamon

And warming treacle

Layered with refreshing lemon buttercream

I have no doubt that you will LOVE this recipe – be sure to tag me on Instagram when you make it @aveganvisit 🙂

Chunky slices of 4 layer vegan gingerbread cake laid out on multiple plates on a table top

The Video Recipe:

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The Written Recipe:

Gingerbread Christmas Cake with Snowy Lemon Buttercream 6 sq

Gingerbread Christmas Cake with Snowy Lemon Buttercream

A warming, spicy and sweet 4-layer Gingerbread Christmas Cake with ginger, cinnamon and mixed spice, surrounded by a silky smooth and refreshing lemon buttercream.
5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dessert, Sweet Treat
Cuisine: Jamaican
Prep: 45 minutes
Cook: 1 hour 5 minutes
Total: 1 hour 50 minutes
Serves: 10 slices
Calories: 1292kcal
Author: Tara

Ingredients
 
 

Bowl ingredients:

  • 1 kg self raising flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 3 tbsp ginger (dried/ground)
  • 4 tsp cinnamon (dried/ground)
  • 2 tsp mixed spice
  • 500 ml dairy free milk

Saucepan ingredients:

  • 500 g dairy free margarine
  • 300 g treacle
  • 300 g golden syrup
  • 350 g soft light brown sugar

For the buttercream:

  • 500 g icing sugar
  • 200 g dairy free margarine
  • 1.5 tbsp natural lemon extract (*see notes)

Equipment

Instructions
 

To make the cake:

  • Preheat the oven to 160° C fan (180° C conventional / 350°F / gas mark 4).
  • Grease two deep spring form cake tins (20cm diameter x 7cm deep /8" x 3" ) and line them with parchment paper.
  • To a medium saucepan add the ‘saucepan ingredients' (margarine, treacle, syrup and sugar) and warm until combined, around 5 minutes. Take the pan off of the heat and set it aside for 15 minutes to cool.
    500 g dairy free margarine, 300 g treacle, 300 g golden syrup, 350 g soft light brown sugar
  • In a large bowl mix together the flour, baking powder and spices.
    1 kg self raising flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 3 tbsp ginger, 4 tsp cinnamon, 2 tsp mixed spice
  • Once the liquid in the saucepan has cooled, add it to the dry mixture along with the dairy free milk.
    500 ml dairy free milk
  • Stir well using a large whisk, until smooth and combined.
  • Divide the mixture between the two cake tins and bake for 65 minutes. Test the mixture with a skewer or knife - if the skewer/knife comes out clean your cakes are done, if there is cake mixture still on the skewer/knife then cook the cakes for another 5-10 minutes until the skewer/knife does come out clean.
  • Cool your cakes in the tins on the kitchen side. I like to make the cake the day before I want to decorate it because it needs to be completely cool before it can be decorated, plus it’s less to do all in one day.
  • When the cakes are completely cool (at least 4 hours), cut each cake in half horizontally to make four layers in total, and level out the top. The offcuts will provide tasty decorating sustenance!

To make the buttercream:

  • Add the icing sugar, margarine and lemon extract into a large bowl and either beat by hand or beat using an electric mixture. Once it is smooth and your cakes are cool, it’s time to decorate.
    500 g icing sugar, 200 g dairy free margarine, 1.5 tbsp natural lemon extract
  • Layer buttercream on top of each cake and then place one cake on top of another, creating four layers.  Smooth buttercream around the sides and top of the cake. Decorate however you like - I particularly like gingerbread woodland animals and upside down rosemary trees for this cake!

Video

Notes

Vegan / Dairy Free / Egg Free / Nut Free
* Lemon extract can vary in strength. I use 1.5 tbsp but I recommend adding it in stages until your buttercream is the desired flavour.
Recipe inspired by:  Jamaica, Caribbean 
Please check the allergens on the ingredients you purchase before use.  The allergen information provided in this recipe is intended as a guide only and is based on the specific ingredients and brands used at the time of creating the recipe, therefore we cannot guarantee that the same will apply to the ingredients you use.  Nutritional values are estimated.
We highly recommend you use the metric and 1x options on this recipe card for the best results. Please note that this recipe has not been tested using US measurements or increasing ingredient quantities to 2x or 3x, therefore results may vary.

Nutrition

Calories: 1292kcal | Carbohydrates: 205g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 48g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Sodium: 585mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 129g | Net Carbohydrates: 202g
Have you tried this recipe?Tag @aveganvisit on Instagram or hashtag it #aveganvisit!

Tara

Hi, I’m Tara! I’m taking you on a trip around the world in vegan cuisine and bringing the world’s most delicious dishes to your kitchen.