Photography by Anna Beck
When a recipe survives the test of time, you know it’s a good one. This spice cake is a great example. My mother has been baking this cake since she was a teenager. She baked it for my dad on his 17th birthday and has been making it for his birthday ever since, including this month, 50 years later. It's filled with warm spices and covered in a decadent caramel frosting. Whether it be the love, the story, or the flavor, this recipe is a family favorite.
Spice Cake
- ¾ cup shortening
- 1 ¼ cups brown sugar
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 3 cups cake flour (or 2 ¾ cup all-purpose flour)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk
Caramel Frosting
- ½ cup unsalted butter or margarine
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 ¾–2 cups sifted powdered sugar
Directions:
1. To make the cake, cream together until fluffy the shortening, brown sugar, and sugar. Beat in the eggs.
2. Sift the flour together in a separate bowl with the baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Stir together.
3. Alternate adding the flour mixture and the buttermilk to the butter and sugar mixture. Beat to combine.
4. Grease and flour a 9-by-13-inch pan or three 8-inch round pans, and add the batter to the pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
5. Once cooled, frost with the caramel frosting.
6. To make the caramel frosting, melt the margarine/butter in a sauce pan. Add the brown sugar, and cook over low heat for two minutes, stirring constantly. Add in the milk and continue stirring until the mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat and cool. Add in the powdered sugar until it's a smooth frosting consistency. Spread on the cooled spiced cake.
