What Is The Main Spice In Spice Cake?

When autumn hits, everyone scrabbles toward their ovens in a mad dash to start making their favorite cold weather bakes. You may have been craving warm cinnamon rolls, apple tarts, or crumbly pumpkin scones, but if you really want to commit to a fall delicacy, we suggest looking no further than the spice cake.

This golden sweet pastry was first developed in Ancient Egypt and then eventually made its way north to Greece, which went wild over the spice and honey-filled bake, going so far as to sacrifice one every year to the gods because they thought it was so good (via Vondelmolen). Of course, these days, most of us don't sacrifice any of our bakes to deities, but we still think the spice cake is delicious. Made of buttermilk, your pick of fruit, and of course, the warmest, most autumn-worthy spices, the spice cake is perfect for those of us who are utterly obsessed with fall flavors.

So, what spices should you have at the forefront of your spice cake? First and foremost, we've got to crown cinnamon as king. Is it truly an autumn pastry if it doesn't have a healthy amount of the stuff thrown in? Cinnamon is going to be the most predominant spice in your cake, according to Southern Living. Known for its sweet and intense kick, it is the perfect base for your spice cake because it's so bold and complex.

To follow up the cinnamon and give the cake more depth, you must add nutmeg, cloves, and allspice, an intense dried berry, pimenta dioica, known for emulating the taste and smell of a variety of spices (via The Spruce Eats). Finally, you can add ground ginger and cardamom to make your cake richer and zestier. Of course, using fresh ingredients is always recommended. Still, if you open up your spice cabinet only to find it all dried up, pumpkin pie spice is an acceptable replacement for the above ingredients.