German Chocolate Spice Cake (Gewuerzkuchen)

This buttery German spice cake aka. Gewuerzkuchen with a beautiful texture is a family favorite. It’s absolutely delicious, spicy, not overly sweet, very moist and so easy to make.

Loaded with chocolate, hazelnuts, butter and homemade gingerbread spice mix and finished off with a thin layer of homemade jam and chocolate glaze. Just like my German husband’s grandmother, Annagret used to make it. (you may recognize her from this Semmelknödel recipe or this Buttercremetorte recipe)).

But it also tastes great dusted with powdered sugar or coated with icing. The beauty of this recipe is that you can make it not only during festive season, but at any time of the year. Simply substitute German gingerbread spice mix with one teaspoon cinnamon.

And if you don’t have access to hazelnuts, don’t let that stop you from making this recipe. Simply use almond nuts instead.

What you’ll need to make German spice cake

• 4 medium eggs Germany, large US, room temperature
• 400 g (0.88 lbs/ 3 1/3 cups) hazelnuts or any ground nuts
• 125 g (4.4 oz/ about 1 cup) plain flour/ all purpose flour
• 100 g (3.5 oz) dark chocolate
• 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar
• 150 g (5.3 oz/ ¾ cup) sugar
• 3 teaspoons German gingerbread spice mix
• 200 g (7.1 oz) butter, soft, plus extra for greasing
• 200 ml milk (6.8 fl.oz/ about ¾ cup + 1 tablespoon), room temperature
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder for dusting

For the chocolate glaze

• 150 g (5.3 oz) dark chocolate
• 100 ml (3.4 fl.oz/ about ½ cup – 1 tablespoon) whipping cream
• 4 tablespoons jam, warm (I’ve used homemade red currant)

How to make chocolate spice cake

Grease a 30 cm (11.8 inch) loaf tin with butter and dust it with unsweetened cocoa powder and preheat the oven to 175 ° C (347 °F), with both top and bottom heat.

Next add the baking powder and ginger spice mix to the bowl with plain flour and mix well and cut dark chocolate into chunks.

Then add the eggs, sugar and butter to a separate bowl and beat until creamy. Add the plain flour mixture. Followed by part of the milk and then part of the nuts. Repeat the process until you’ve used up the milk and nuts.

Now fold in chopped chocolate and transfer the batter to the prepared cake tin.

Bake for 60 minutes. Since the temperature differs from oven to oven, insert a wooden toothpick near the center of the cake just to check the cake for doneness.

If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is done. Let the cake cool down briefly, then remove it from the cake tin and let cool down completely.

Once the cake has cooled down, melt the chocolate in the microwave or over a hot water bath and stir in whipping cream (heavy cream). Next, brush the cake with warm jam. (If you’re using jelly, there is no need to warm it.

You’re simply warming the jam, to make it easier to spread on the cake.). I sliced the crust off the top of the cake, before brushing it with jam, just to have a perfectly made cake. But this step is totally optional.

Now spread it with chocolate glaze. Let the chocolate glaze dry for at least 30 minutes and enjoy.

Did you make this German spice cake with chocolate and hahezlnuts ? I’d love to hear from you! Simply write a review and add rating to it.