MOLASSES COFFEE CAKE

Makes 8 to 10 servings

There’s no reason not to have this cake year-round, but there are many

reasons to have it all through the fall, the holiday months and into late

winter, when soft spice cakes seem as cozy as fuzzy slippers. The cake

reminds me of gingerbread, but its texture is lighter and its flavor more

complex. The spices, a mix of ginger and cinnamon along with Chinese fivespice

powder, a blend that brings depth to the cake as well as a spot of

mystery: They’re not easy to place. But it’s the coffee that will surprise you.

You add it when it’s hot, so it thins and smooths the batter, and you think

that it might be the cake’s strongest flavor, but it plays hard to catch. In the

end, it’s the ease with which the ingredients coalesce that makes the cake so

good. You don’t have to glaze it — it’s fine plain and so good plain with a

scoop of vanilla, chocolate or coffee ice cream — but the glaze, a mixture of

white chocolate, cream and coffee, is a beautiful finish. Glaze it, put it on a

pretty plate and you’ve got a party cake. That the cake, baked and prettily

glazed, can be kept in the freezer for a couple of months, waiting for a

birthday or Thanksgiving, puts it at the top of my bake-often list.

a word on the glaze

The recipe for the glaze makes about 1 cup, which is more than you’ll need

for the cake. However, making less is fussy and not always successful. You

can store the excess glaze in the refrigerator and warm it very gently in a

microwave when you want to use it again — it makes a good dip for cookies,

it’s fun over ice cream and it’s nice to pass at the table with the cake.

For the cake

1½ cups (204 grams) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 stick (8 tablespoons; 4 ounces; 113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature

⅔ cup (132 grams) packed brown sugar

⅓ cup (80 ml) unsulfured molasses

1 large egg, at room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

⅓ cup (80 ml) hot coffee or espresso (can be made with instant coffee or espresso

powder)

For the coffee glaze (optional)

1½ teaspoons instant espresso powder, plus (optional) more for decoration

1 tablespoon boiling water

5 ounces (142 grams) best-quality white chocolate, finely chopped

⅓ cup (80 ml) heavy cream

2 teaspoons unsalted butter, cut into 2 pieces, at room temperature

Whipped cream, for topping

WOR K I NG A H E A D

This cake is even better on the second day — the spices have more time to ripen.

TO M A K E T H E C A K E : Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350 degrees

F. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan that’s at least 2 inches high (use a

springform if you don’t have a regular cake pan that’s tall enough), fit a

round of parchment paper into the bottom of the pan, butter the paper and

dust the interior with flour; tap out the excess.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and soda, salt, ginger, five-spice

powder, cinnamon and pepper.

Working in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or in a large

bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar together on

medium speed for about 2 minutes. Add the molasses and beat for 2 minutes

more, scraping the bowl as needed. Add the egg and beat for 2 minutes, then

beat in the vanilla. Turn the mixer off, add the flour mixture and pulse to

begin incorporating it. Then beat on low speed only until the dry ingredients

disappear into the batter. With the mixer on low, add the hot coffee, again

mixing only until it is incorporated. Scrape the batter into the pan and

swivel the pan to even it.

Bake for 28 to 33 minutes, until the cake is beautifully browned and has

risen uniformly. It will pull away from the sides of the pan if gently tugged

and a tester inserted into the center of the cake will come out clean.

Transfer the pan to a rack and let the cake rest for 5 minutes, then run a

blunt knife around the sides of the cake. Turn the cake out onto the rack,

gently peel off the parchment, invert onto another rack and cool to room

temperature; or, if you used a springform, simply remove the ring. The cake

may develop a little dip in the center — that’s its personality.

TO M A K E T H E O P T I O N A L G L A Z E : Dissolve the instant espresso in the boiling

water. Put the chopped chocolate in a small heatproof bowl.

Bring the cream to a boil (you can do this in a microwave oven), stir in the

espresso extract that you made and pour the cream over the chocolate. Let

sit for 30 seconds and then, using a whisk or small heatproof spatula, stir

until the mixture is smooth. Add the butter one piece at a time, stirring until

it is melted and incorporated.

Set the cake, on the rack, on a piece of foil to catch drips. Pour as much of

the glaze as you want over the cake and use a long spatula or a table knife to

spread it. I like it when the glaze drips down the sides of the cake unevenly;

if you want to smooth it, you can, of course. Sprinkle with a little instant

espresso powder to decorate, if you’d like.

Put the cake in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes to set the glaze, then

return it to room temperature for serving. Pass any remaining glaze at the

table.

S TO R I N G : Wrapped well, the cake can keep at room temperature for up to 3

days. Wrapped airtight, it can be frozen for up to 2 months, glaze and all.