Gingerbread Village Cake

I have to say, I absolutely LOVED creating this cake. It’s the most fun I’ve had in the kitchen in a long time, and I definitely felt like I was a kid again. Which I think is exactly what baking and blogging should feel like! I can’t say it was without a little bit of frustration too, which is also part of baking, photographing and blogging I guess.

I can’t even remember the last time I piped icing on gingerbread cookies and at first it was just frustrating but after a good night’s sleep (it never fails me), I sort of got the hang of it. I will probably never be a master at it but I do enjoy it! Perhaps this year will be the year I make a gingerbread house again? We’ll see, we’ll see…

I love experimenting with recipes and tried a couple of different versions for the gingerbread layer, but in the end, this one with lingonberries was definitely my favorite. Lots and lots of flavor and so moist (I know a lot of people hate that word but I don’t know what other word to use, hehe).

I also experimented with getting that blueish grey shade on the cake. I was thinking about how blueberry powder reacts when I add lemon juice to it – it becomes pink when you add something acidic, so I figured it would become more blue when adding something alkaline. And it totally worked! Feel free to try it if you want, or don’t if you think it sounds weird. I promise you it’s not though! Hope you like it!

GINGERBREAD VILLAGE CAKE

Makes one 9-inch layer cake

Some notes about this recipe:
-If you can’t find lingonberry jam for this recipe, I bet frozen lingonberries would work too, just thaw them and stir them together with a little bit of sugar. Apple sauce might work too but I haven’t tried either of those suggestions.
-I used store-bought gingerbread dough for this cake but feel free to make your own! If your cookies float out too much during baking, be prepared with a sharp knife as soon as they get out of the oven – and cut the edges again. The cookies are still soft when they get out of the oven!
-Because I prefer not to use artificial food coloring, I experimented with black sesame and blueberry powder! I wanted the cake to be slightly grey/blue so I added some black sesame paste which does give a slight taste to the cake. Omit the sesame seeds if you know you don’t like them. I added baking soda to blueberry powder to change the ph of it. This doesn’t affect the flavor at all, but feel free to omit this from the recipe if you want. Or use a food coloring of your choice! Or just leave the cake white. All options are totally fine!

INGREDIENTS

Gingerbread cake

200 g (1 3/4 stick) salted butter
360 g (2 1/2 cups) all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. flaky salt
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tbsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. freshly ground cardamom
2 tsp. freshly ground cloves
1 tsp. allspice (can be omitted)
4 large eggs
360 g (1 2/3 cup) granulated sugar
250 ml (1 cup) sour cream
150 ml (2/3 cup) lingonberry jam

Gingerbread cookies

about 500 g of gingerbread dough (I used store-bought but feel free to use homemade)
150 g (1 cup) powdered sugar
1 1/2 – 2 tbsp. lemon juice (or as needed)

Frosting

200 g (1 3/4 stick) softened butter (I use salted but feel free to use unsalted)
250 g (1 2/3 cup) powdered sugar
300 g cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 tsp. vanilla bean powder
zest from 1 orange
2 tbsp. black sesame seeds 2 tbsp. maple syrup (can be omitted)
2 tsp. blueberry powder 1/4 tsp. baking soda 1-2 tsp. water (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

GINGERBREAD CAKE

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Grease and flour two 23-24 cm (9 inch) springform pans. Set aside.
Melt the butter and set aside.
Mix flour, baking soda, salt and spices in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Beat eggs and sugar until fluffy and lighter in color, about 3-4 minutes.
Add the dry ingredients and butter to the egg mixture in additions, and stir until completely smooth. Stir in the sour cream and lingonberry jam.
Divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake on the middle rack for 25-27 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Let cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then unmold onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Knead the dough lightly with floured hands to make it soft and pliable. Lightly flour the table and the rolling pin and roll out to 2-3 mm thickness.
Cut out shapes using a knife or cookie cutters. Bake the cookies at 175°C (350°F) for about 5-10 minutes depending on size. Let cool completely.
Stir together powdered sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl. Start with a small amount of juice and add more until icing reaches a good piping consistency. Your mixture should be thick enough that it will not run when piped, but not so thick that you can’t squeeze it through a piping bag.
Transfer icing to piping bag and cut a tiny hole in the bag for piping. Decorate the cookies and let the icing harden before placing the cookies on the cake.

FROSTING

Beat butter and powdered sugar until pale and fluffy. Add cream cheese and vanilla and beat until just smooth. Stir in the orange zest.
Place the black sesame seeds and maple syrup in a mortar and pestle. Crush and grind the seeds until a paste forms. Stir the paste into the frosting.
If the frosting seems soft, place the bowl in the fridge while you prepare the next steps.

ASSEMBLY

Cut both cake layers in half using a serrated knife so you get four cake layers.
Place the first cake layer on a cake board or directly onto a plate or cake stand. Spread a layer of frosting on the first layer. Repeat this until you’ve used up all layers.
Spread a thin layer of frosting all over the cake. Place the cake in the fridge for a few minutes if the frosting is soft.
Place the blueberry powder and baking soda in a small bowl and stir in some water. Let stand for a couple of minutes, then add to the remaining frosting. Stir until smooth.
Cover the cake with the remaining frosting and decorate with the gingerbread cookies. I placed toothpicks behind the cookies on top of the cake to get them to stand up. Dust with snow (aka powdered sugar) if desired.