The perfect healthy High Protein Gingerbread Cake topped with a Protein Cinnamon-Ginger Frosting. Healthy, no sugar ginger spice cake recipe uses protein powder and has no oil or butter.
My original recipe here was for an adaptable ginger cake recipe which used unflavored protein powder to replace some of the flour. So making a regular ginger spice cake would be as simple as using flour (with some other moisture swaps).
But fasttrack to 4 years later after a lot of experimentation in the kitchen and being more open to ingredients like real molasses - here we have the perfect high protein gingerbread cake. It uses vanilla protein powder to replace the sugar (like my usual recipes), but also has the molasses for that deep rich gingerbread vibe!
The cinnamon-ginger frosting was the perfect finishing touch!
Ingredients for High Protein Gingerbread Cake
- Vanilla Protein Powder (Whey-Casein) to repace the sugar in a regular cake, and add the protein. I use the one from Quest Nutrition.
- Flour - Use All-purpose flour, 1:1 gluten free baking flour, Whole Wheat Pastry Flour or White Whole Wheat Flour (for a healthy ginger cake)
- Coconut Flour
- Peanut Butter Powder like the PB powder from PB2 or PbFit.
- Gingerbread Spices - A mix of ground ginger, cinnamon and cloves for that authentic gingerbread flavor
- Baking Soda
- Unsweetened Applesauce to add moisture to the cake, so there's no oil and no butter needed in this recipe.
- Molasses; I recommend this one
- A large Egg and Egg Whites
- A bit of Almond Milk
Alternate Ingredients for Low calorie Gingerbread Cake
- Greek Yogurt: Use coconut yogurt for a non dairy option, or cream cheese (use this recipe!)
- Protein Powder: A whey-casein blend is recommended, but you can try whey or a plant-based blend. You may need to slightly adjust the amount of almond milk and applesauce (reduce to ½ cup if using whey) to maintain the correct batter consistency.
- Sweetener: The molasses gives the essential dark color and rich flavor, but you can swap it for honey or maple syrup if you prefer (though this will affect the sugar content and color of your ginger cake).
- Peanut Butter Powder: Use the same amount of flour, but add a little extra milk.
- Cloves: Use nutmeg or allspice!
- Almond Butter: Use any nut or seed butter of your choice. Or even melted butter.
- Applesauce: Use the same amount of mashed banana or pumpkin puree (but this might alter the flavor)
How to make Healthy Gingerbread Cake
This homemade healthy gingerbread snacking cake is super easy recipe and is great for as a Christmas cake for dessert too!
Step 1: Prep and Mix Ingredients
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and line an 8x8" baking pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine the vanilla protein powder, flour, peanut butter powder, coconut flour, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Whisk well to ensure the spices and leavening are evenly distributed.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the applesauce, molasses, egg whites, egg, and almond butter.
Step 2: Combine
- Pour the wet mix into the dry mix and gently fold until just combined.
- Tip (Consistency): If the batter appears too thick or crumbly, add a little almond milk at a time until the mixture is uniform and smooth enough to pour.
- Tip (Texture): Do not overmix the batter! This is crucial, as overmixing develops gluten and will cause your cake to turn out too dense instead of light and fluffy.
- Tip (Taste): Taste the batter and see if you need it sweeter; Add some stevia sweetener if needed.
Step 3: Bake
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and spread evenly with a spatula.
- Bake on the center rack for 18-20 minutes.
Tip: The cake is done when a tester toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the center of the cake is springy to the touch. - Transfer the cake to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Tip: Let the cake cool before adding frosting.
Step 4: Frosting and Serving
- In a small bowl, combine the Greek Yogurt, protein powder, cinnamon and ginger. Stir until the mixture is uniform and creamy.
- Spread the protein powder greek yogurt frosting over the cooled cake, top with festive sprinkles (optional), slice, and enjoy this delicious ginger snacking cake!
For a Layered Ginger Cake
Double the recipe and use 2 9" cake pans; You also want to triple the recipe for the frosting; This is so that you have enough for the sides of the cake too.
To make a Healthy Gingerbread Loaf Cake
Pour the batter into a parchment lined loaf pan and bake for about 45-55 minutes. A tester inserted should come out dry here too.
I would recommend covering the cake with a foil tent after 25-30 minutes of baking.
Storage for Sugar Free Gingerbread Cake
This low calorie sugar free gingerbread cake recipe keeps well and is perfect for meal prepping a great healthy ginger dessert.
- Freezing: For long-term storage, slice the cooled ginger spice cake into individual portions. Wrap each piece tightly in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer-safe bag or container. The high protein ginger snack cake will keep for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- Countertop: Store the cooled cake (unfrosted) in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Keep the frosted cake for about 2 hours. - Refrigeration: Keep this healthy ginger cake (frosted or unfrosted) in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
More high protein cake recipes for the holidays:
- Oreo Red Velvet Protein Cake
- Protein Sugar Cookie Loaf
- Hot Chocolate Protein Cake
- Snickerdoodle Protein Cake
Healthy High Protein Gingerbread Cake (Oil Free, Sugar Free)
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup Whey-casein Vanilla Protein Powder, 60g
- ½ cup Flour, 60g
- ¼ cup Peanut Butter Powder, 24g
- 2 tablespoon Coconut Flour, 14g
- 1½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Ground Ginger
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Ground Cloves
- ¾ cup Unsweetened Applesauce, 180g
- 3 tablespoon Molasses, 60ml
- 2 Egg Whites, 60ml
- 1 Egg
- 1 tablespoon Almond Butter, 14g
- 2 teaspoon Optional Unsweetened Almond Milk, 10ml
Frosting:
- ⅔ cup Non-fat Greek Yogurt, 150g
- ⅓ cup Vanilla Protein Powder, 30g, Whey-casein
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon Ground Ginger
Are you Making This?
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Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line an 8x8" baking pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine vanilla protein powder, flour, peanut butter powder, coconut flour, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon and cloves.
- In another bowl, whisk together applesauce, molasses, egg whites, egg and almond butter.
- Pour wet mix to dry, and gently fold until combined. If batter is too thick, add almond milk a little at a time.Don't overmix or the cake will turn out too dense.Taste the batter and add extra sweetener if needed.
- Pour mixture into prepared baking pan.
- Bake on center rack for 18-20 minutes; a tester inserted into the center should come out clean and center of cake springy to touch.Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
To frost:
- In a bowl combine Greek Yogurt, protein powder, cinnamon and ginger. Stir until uniform.
- Spread frosting over cake, top with festive sprinkles, slice, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Nutritional information is calculated using products recommended below.
- Quest Nutrition Vanilla Milkshake Protein Powder
- Pb2 Original Powdered Peanut Butter
- PbFit Original Powdered Peanut Butter
- Servings: 9 pieces | Serving size: 1
- Calories: 130 cal
- Fat: 2.1g | Saturated fat: 0.5g
- Carbohydrates: 15.7g | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5.8g
- Protein: 12.1g
Joel says
I remember trying the original recipe a while ago and it was amazing, so when I saw that she tweaked it and made it "better" I knew I had to make it again!
And oh..my..gosh, was it even better than before!
I used a slightly caramel hinted protein powder, and it amplified the warm flavors even better than the original recipe with vanilla flavored protein (in my opinion).
If you have not tried this recipe, I highly recommend that you make it, because you will be making it again every holiday season!
Haylee Jane Monteiro says
Omg using caramel sounds soo much.better, Wish I would've thought of that.
So glad you tried both the versions and liked them 🙂