Indulge in the Ultimate Holiday Treat: The Irresistible Oreo Gingerbread Cake Recipe

The festive season has officially begun, and with December’s arrival, it’s time to trade those autumnal pumpkin and apple flavors for the vibrant tastes of peppermint and gingerbread! As the air fills with holiday cheer, what better way to kick off your Christmas baking than with a show-stopping dessert that perfectly blends classic festive spices with a beloved cookie? Prepare to dazzle your taste buds and impress your guests with this incredible Oreo Gingerbread Cake – a true celebration of holiday flavors.

This festive cake marks my inaugural Christmas creation of the season, and I’m truly beginning with a bang, combining two of my all-time favorite things: Oreos and gingerbread! If you haven’t yet experienced the sheer delight of Oreo’s limited edition Gingerbread Oreos, consider this your urgent call to action. Seriously, drop everything and go get some. Their spiced, sweet, and utterly addictive flavor profile is nothing short of life-changing. But you know me—I tend to be quite enthusiastic with my culinary pronouncements, and these cookies absolutely live up to the hype.

This cake is a symphony of textures and flavors: a crunchy gingerbread Oreo crust, moist and aromatic gingerbread cake layers, a luscious cream cheese filling, and a velvety gingerbread buttercream frosting. It’s designed to be the centerpiece of your holiday dessert table, offering a unique twist on traditional Christmas bakes. The warmth of ginger, cinnamon, and molasses perfectly complements the familiar sweetness of Oreos and the tang of cream cheese, creating a balanced and unforgettable taste experience. Let’s dive into creating this holiday masterpiece!

Crafting the Perfect Gingerbread Oreo Crust

The foundation of this spectacular cake is its gingerbread Oreo crust, and while it might seem straightforward, there’s a crucial “pro tip” that will elevate your crust from good to extraordinary: **always remove the frosting from the Oreos before making the crust.** This step might sound tedious, but trust me, it’s a game-changer.

When I first attempted this crust, I left the creamy filling intact. As it baked, the sugar in the Oreo cream caramelized and transformed into a hard, crystalline shell, creating an unfortunate hole in the center of the crust. This not only affected the structural integrity but also resulted in an uneven and less desirable texture. The second time, I meticulously removed the creme from the middle of each cookie, and the difference was remarkable! The resulting crust was beautifully crumbly, evenly baked, and maintained its delightful gingerbread Oreo flavor without any unwanted surprises.

To achieve this, simply twist each Gingerbread Oreo to separate the wafers, then scrape off the frosting with a knife or spoon. Once the cookies are de-frosted, pulverize them into a fine crumb in a food processor or blender. This fine consistency ensures a cohesive and uniformly delicious base for your cake. Combine these crumbs with melted butter and a touch of sugar, press into your cake pans, and bake until lightly golden and fragrant. This foundational layer provides a wonderful crunch and an extra layer of gingerbread goodness that perfectly complements the soft cake layers above.

Baking the Perfect Gingerbread Cake Layers

The heart of this holiday dessert is its rich, spiced gingerbread cake. Achieving a soft, moist, and perfectly textured cake layer is key to an amazing finished product. Here are some essential tips to ensure your gingerbread cake is nothing short of perfection:

• Use Room Temperature Ingredients: This tip is paramount, especially for your butter! Cold butter doesn’t cream properly with sugar, leading to a lumpy batter and a denser cake. Room temperature butter, eggs, and buttermilk emulsify beautifully, creating a smooth batter that traps air efficiently. This trapped air is crucial for a light and tender crumb. So, plan ahead and let that butter soften on the counter for at least an hour before you start baking.
• Thoroughly Beat the Butter and Sugar: This step, known as creaming, is vital for the cake’s texture. When butter and sugar are beaten together vigorously, the sharp sugar crystals cut into the butter, creating tiny air pockets. These air pockets expand during baking, resulting in a wonderfully soft and moist cake. Don’t rush this process; beat until the mixture is visibly lighter in color and fluffy in texture.
• Incorporate Molasses Slowly and Steadily: Molasses is a key ingredient for gingerbread’s distinct flavor and deep color. When adding it to your creamed butter and sugar, do so slowly and continuously. Think of it as emulsifying these rich ingredients together. This gradual addition ensures the molasses is fully incorporated without deflating the air you’ve worked hard to beat into the butter and sugar, and it prevents the mixture from curdling.
• Use a Kitchen Scale for Even Batter Distribution: For a professional-looking cake with perfectly level layers, a kitchen scale is your best friend. After mixing your batter, divide it evenly among your prepared cake pans by weight. This guarantees that each cake layer will be the exact same size and thickness, ensuring uniform baking and making the assembly process much easier.

Following these steps will yield gingerbread cake layers that are incredibly aromatic, deeply flavored with warm spices, and possess a wonderfully tender crumb. The combination of ginger, cinnamon, and a hint of molasses creates that quintessential holiday warmth that everyone loves.

Mastering the Art of Cake Stacking and Frosting

Once your beautiful gingerbread cake layers are baked and cooled, the next crucial step is assembly. You might have heard various theories on the ideal temperature for cake layers during stacking and frosting, with some suggesting frozen layers. However, through extensive trial and error, I’ve discovered a method that consistently yields the best results for a smooth, stable, and beautifully frosted cake.

My top tip for successful stacking and frosting is to work with **COLD** cake layers, not frozen, and definitely not room temperature. When cake layers are frozen solid, applying buttercream can cause the frosting to seize and harden instantly, making it incredibly difficult to spread smoothly and achieve that perfect finish. On the other hand, room temperature cakes can be too soft and prone to tearing or crumbling under the pressure of frosting, especially if they are particularly delicate. Cold cake layers, however, offer the perfect balance.

I recommend keeping your cake layers in the fridge until you are completely ready to frost. The cold temperature makes them firm and much easier to handle, preventing tearing and creating a stable base for stacking. If you’ve baked your layers in advance and frozen them for longer storage, simply take them out of the freezer and let them sit on the counter for about an hour. This allows them to thaw just enough to become cold but not completely frozen, nor too soft. This “just cold” state is ideal for applying your cream cheese filling and gingerbread buttercream, allowing for a clean crumb coat and a flawlessly smooth final finish.

The cream cheese filling offers a delightful tang that cuts through the richness of the gingerbread, while the gingerbread buttercream brings an additional layer of spiced sweetness and a beautiful, smooth texture. Pay attention to the crumb coat step – a thin layer of frosting applied to lock in any loose crumbs before the final decorative layer. This ensures a clean outer finish, free from crumbs, making your holiday cake look professionally made. After the crumb coat, a quick chill in the freezer helps set it, preparing the cake for its final, smooth coat of gingerbread buttercream.

Recipe: Oreo Gingerbread Cake

Oreo Gingerbread Cake

Molly Murphy

This festive Oreo gingerbread cake features a delightful gingerbread Oreo crust, rich and moist molasses gingerbread cake layers, a tangy cream cheese filling, and a velvety gingerbread buttercream frosting. Perfect for holiday gatherings!

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Ingredients

  

For the Oreo cookie crust

• 30 gingerbread Oreo cookies (cream removed)
• ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
• 2 Tablespoons sugar

For the gingerbread cake

• 3 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
• 1 cup brown sugar packed
• ½ cup molasses
• ½ cup honey
• 2 large eggs room temperature
• 1 ½ cups buttermilk room temperature

For the cream cheese filling

• 6 ounces cream cheese room temperature
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1¾ cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the gingerbread buttercream

• 2 cups unsalted butter slightly cold and cut into cubes
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 cups powdered sugar measured and then sifted
• 3 Tablespoons heavy whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon molasses
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon ginger

Instructions

 

For the crust

• Preheat your oven to 325°F (160°C). Prepare three 8-inch cake pans by spraying them with cooking spray, lining the bottoms with parchment paper, and spraying again. Set aside.
• Carefully remove the frosting from the middle of each gingerbread Oreo cookie. In a food processor or blender, pulverize the frosting-free Oreo cookies until they form a fine, sand-like crumb.
• In a small bowl, combine the pulverized gingerbread Oreo crumbs, melted butter, and granulated sugar. Mix until the mixture is well combined and holds together when pressed with your hand.
• Divide the Oreo mixture evenly into the three prepped cake pans (approximately ¾ cup per pan). Press the mixture firmly and evenly onto the bottom of each pan using the back of a spoon or the bottom of a flat-bottomed cup.
• Bake the crusts for 8 minutes. While they cool, proceed to prepare your gingerbread cake batter.

For the cake batter

• Preheat your oven to 325°F (160°C).
• In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Ensure all dry ingredients are thoroughly combined. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the room temperature unsalted butter and packed brown sugar on high speed for 3 minutes. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and continue beating for another 2 minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy.
• With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour in the molasses and honey. Once fully added, increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 2 minutes to ensure thorough emulsification.
• Beat in the large eggs one at a time, allowing each egg to fully incorporate before adding the next. Remember to scrape down the bowl after each addition to ensure a homogenous batter.
• With the mixer on the lowest speed, alternate adding the dry flour mixture and the room temperature buttermilk. Begin by adding ⅓ of the flour mixture, then half of the buttermilk, followed by another ⅓ of the flour mixture, the remaining half of the buttermilk, and finally, the last ⅓ of the flour mixture. Mix just until combined; be careful not to overmix the batter, as this can lead to a dry cake.
• Once the batter is mixed, evenly divide it into the prepared pans with the baked Oreo cookie crusts. For 8-inch pans, this will be approximately 18 ounces (about 510g) of batter in each pan. Bake for 28-32 minutes. Start checking for doneness at 28 minutes. Insert a toothpick into the center of a cake; if it comes out clean or with only a few moist crumbs, your cake is done.
• Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for 15 minutes before carefully removing them and transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely to room temperature. Once cool, wrap each layer tightly in plastic wrap and either refrigerate them until cold (for immediate assembly) or freeze for longer storage.

For the cream cheese filling

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the room temperature cream cheese for a couple of minutes until it is completely smooth and free of lumps. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat for an additional 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Once incorporated, increase the speed to high and beat for a few minutes until the mixture is light and smooth. Transfer this cream cheese mixture to a medium-sized bowl.
• Clean the stand mixer bowl and fit it with the whisk attachment. Pour the heavy whipping cream into the bowl and whisk on high speed for approximately 5-7 minutes, until the cream forms stiff peaks. This process transforms the heavy cream into fresh whipped cream.
• Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture using a spatula. Continue folding until no streaks of whipping cream remain and the mixture is uniformly combined. Be careful not to overmix, as this can cause the filling to curdle.
• This cream cheese filling is best used fresh but will hold for a couple of hours at room temperature. If you’re not using it immediately, store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
• For the gingerbread buttercream
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the slightly cold, cubed unsalted butter on medium-high speed for 3-5 minutes until it becomes light and creamy.
• With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the sifted powdered sugar, ground spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger), heavy whipping cream, vanilla extract, and molasses. Continue mixing on low until all ingredients are just incorporated.
• Once everything is combined, increase the mixer speed to medium-high and beat for another 5 minutes. This process will whip air into the buttercream, making it light, fluffy, and incredibly smooth.
• To achieve a truly silky and smooth buttercream, remove the bowl from the mixer and, by hand, vigorously stir the buttercream with a wooden spoon or spatula for a minute or two. This action helps to release any trapped air bubbles, resulting in a perfectly smooth finish for your cake.

Assembly

• Place your first cold gingerbread cake layer (with the Oreo crust facing down) onto a cake board or serving platter. Evenly spread half of the prepared cream cheese filling over the cake layer. Carefully place the second cold cake layer on top, and spread the remaining half of the cream cheese filling.
• For the final cake layer, place it bottom-side down onto the stack. Using the gingerbread buttercream, apply a thin, even coat around the entire cake, including the top and sides. This is known as the crumb coat, which traps any loose crumbs and creates a smooth foundation. Place the cake into the freezer for 15 minutes to allow the crumb coat to firm up.
• Once the crumb coat is set and chilled, remove the cake from the freezer and apply the final, thicker coat of the gingerbread buttercream. Smooth it out with an offset spatula or bench scraper for a polished finish. Decorate as desired with extra gingerbread crumbles or small gingerbread cookies.
• For the best flavor and texture, allow the cake to come to room temperature for about 30-60 minutes before serving. Enjoy your delicious and festive Oreo Gingerbread Cake!

This Oreo Gingerbread Cake is more than just a dessert; it’s a festive experience, blending the comforting warmth of traditional gingerbread with the playful crunch of a favorite cookie. Whether you’re baking for a family gathering, a holiday party, or simply to enjoy a special treat at home, this recipe promises to deliver smiles and satisfied palates. The deep, rich spices, the creamy filling, and the unique crust come together in perfect harmony, making it an unforgettable addition to your holiday baking repertoire.

Don’t be intimidated by the multiple components; each step is straightforward and contributes to the overall magic of the cake. Take your time, enjoy the process, and let the enticing aromas of ginger and molasses fill your kitchen. This cake not only tastes incredible but also looks stunning on any holiday table, making it a perfect centerpiece. Share the joy of baking and indulge in a slice of pure holiday bliss!

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