Gingerbread Pound Cake With Rum Glaze Recipe

The holiday season is the perfect time to bake up Christmas-inspired desserts and just generally get into a festive baking spirit, and this gingerbread pound cake with rum butter glaze from recipe developer Jessica Morone certainly checks the festive box. Packed with the warm flavors like ginger, cinnamon, cloves and molasses, this cake feels like a holiday classic, but with a touch of sophistication thanks to a rich, buttery glaze spiked with rum. It's the kind of dessert that makes any gathering feel extra special, or transforms a cozy night at home into a festive celebration. 

"Gingerbread is just the perfect thing to bake during this season with all its warm spices, and I love that since its a pound cake its really easy to make," Morone tells us. "It's also great that you could customize it however you want, by baking it in a Bundt pan or adding different flavors to it." This cake combines the nostalgia of classic gingerbread with a fun, boozy twist that's perfectly fitting for the season.  

For the gingerbread pound cake itself you will need all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground cloves, ground allspice, vegetable oil, brown sugar, eggs, molasses, and sour cream. For the rum glaze you will need granulated sugar, unsalted butter, rum, and vanilla extract. 

Morone notes that you can use any kind of rum you like, but if you want the glaze to look more white in color you should stick to a white or clear rum, or if you want the glaze to be a darker color you can use dark rum. You can also swap out the rum with rum extract in the glaze, just use about a teaspoon of it rather than the 1/4 cup you would use if you are using regular rum. 

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

Line the bottom of an 8x4-inch loaf pan with parchment paper and then spray the pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. Set aside.

In a large bowl beat together the vegetable oil and brown sugar until well combined.

Add the eggs, molasses, and sour cream to the oil/sugar mixture, mixing until fully incorporated.

Slowly add the flour mixture to the wet mixture, mixing until smooth.

Spread the batter evenly into the prepared loaf pan.

Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Allow the cake to cool for about 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool further as you make the glaze.

In a small saucepan, whisk together the sugar, butter, and rum and cook over medium heat until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved fully.

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.

With a toothpick, poke holes all over the top of the warm cake.

Pour about half of the glaze over the cake, let it absorb into the cake, then pour the remaining half of the glaze over the cake.

Let the cake cool completely and the glaze to set before cutting and serving.

When you think of Christmas, gingerbread likely comes to mind, with its warm, spiced, and festive flavor. Whether it's in the form of soft cakes like this one, crispy cookies, or intricately decorated houses, gingerbread captures the cozy essence of the season — but what is it, exactly? Its distinct taste comes from a mix of molasses, which gives gingerbread its dark color and soft chewy texture, and spices like ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, which blend to create a deep, aromatic sweetness.

Gingerbread's history is just as delightful as its taste — forms of gingerbread have been around since ancient Greece and Egypt. It became popular in medieval Europe, where it was a treat fit for special occasions and often crafted into ornate shapes. Queen Elizabeth I may have inspired the first gingerbread man, and over time, it became a Christmas staple, with gingerbread men and houses adding a playful touch to holiday traditions — and, of course, that spiced, molasses-infused flavor to boot.

There are a few ways to change up this recipe to make it uniquely yours. Instead of baking it in a traditional loaf pan, this can be baked in a bundt pan for a more elaborate presentation. Just thoroughly grease the bundt pan and decrease the baking time by about 15 minutes, as a bundt pan will bake this cake faster than a loaf pan. If you're a fan of citrus, try mixing some orange zest into the batter; it complements the warm spices in gingerbread beautifully. You could also substitute part of the molasses with dark honey or golden syrup for a lighter, more nuanced sweetness.

For the rum butter glaze, experiment with flavored rums, like spiced rum or coconut rum, to add an extra layer of complexity. Or take out the rum completely and use 1 teaspoon of rum extract instead. If you don't like the flavor of rum just omit it and make it a simple vanilla glaze. To take the presentation up a notch, top the glazed cake with candied ginger, toasted pecans, or a dusting of powdered sugar for a snowy effect.