Ingredients

Cake

• 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 tablespoons ground ginger
• ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
• ¼ teaspoon coarse salt
• ½ cup Rhinegeist Uncle Mild Ale
• ¾ cup molasses
• ¼ cup honey
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar

Glaze

• ½ cup maple syrup
• ½ cup Rhinegeist Uncle
• ¼ cup confectioner’s sugar

Preparation

In a large saucepan or medium stockpot, combine molasses, honey, Uncle, and baking soda over medium heat, stirring continuously. As the mixture starts to bubble, stir in granulated sugar, and reduce heat to low. Still stirring, reduce the mixture by ¼ and let cool slightly. 

In a separate mixing bowl, combine the remaining dry ingredients. In a stand mixer, stir in first the eggs, and then the beer and molasses mixture, and mix until smooth and slightly doughy. Cover and let cool in the fridge while you set the oven to 425 degrees and crack open an Uncle and chill for a minute or two. 

Liberally butter one medium, shallow cake pan or two smaller tart pans. If you use something too large, the cake will be too shallow and will burn easily, so keep an eye on it. Our photographer (and in-house baking expert) Nate says “if you’re lookin’, you ain’t cookin’,” but we think he just likes this because it rhymes. Bake for 15-20 minutes. 

To make the glaze, in a separate saucepan, combine the maple syrup (use the good stuff), Uncle, and confectioner’s sugar over a medium to high heat, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and reduce mixture by ⅓ to ½, depending on how thick you want the glaze to be. After the mixture is reduced, remove from heat and let it start to cool (but not completely!). Very carefully remove the cake(s) from the pan(s). If you wanna go the extra aesthetic mile, you can use a round cutter to get a perfect little circular cake. If you made two, layer them with a schmear of glaze in between the two cakes. With a frosting spatula, spread the glaze out over the top of your cake, letting the gooey glaze drip down the sides of the cake in a slightly provocative manner. Invite friends over and pretend you’re having a tea party, except with beer instead of tea—cakes and ale.

Enjoy!