Healthy Gingerbread Loaf

Slices of gingerbread loaf with maple cream cheese frosting on parchment paper.

4.89 from 17 votes

A lightened up gingerbread loaf made with applesauce instead of oil and maple syrup instead of sugar. It's packed with warm spices and topped with a delicious maple cream cheese frosting.

Prep Time15

Cook Time45

Total Time1

Course: Baked Goods, Breakast

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Author: Brittany Mullins

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ cup applesauce
⅓ cup pure maple syrup
⅓ cup blackstrap molasses
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
¼ cup unsweetened almond milk any milk will work

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

4 ounces cream cheese softened
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
⅓ cup powdered sugar
3 Tablespoons maple syrup

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9″x5″ loaf pan or line with parchment.
In a medium bowl, stir together flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ground ginger and cloves.
In a large bowl, whisk together applesauce, maple syrup, molasses, eggs, vanilla and milk until combined.
Add dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and stir together until just combined (don’t over mix).
Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. If you notice the top is browning quickly, cover it with tin foil to prevent burning.
Let loaf cool for 15-20 minutes before removing from pan and frosting.
In the bowl of a stand mixer or a regular bowl if using a hand mixer, combine cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar and maple syrup. Whisk until smooth and fluffy. Spread over gingerbread loaf and serve.

Video

Notes

Vegan: To make this loaf vegan, use a flaxseed egg. Mix 2 Tablespoons of ground flaxseed with 6 Tablespoons of warm water. Set aside to let the mixture gelatinize. Use vegan cream cheese (I like Kite Hill cream cheese!) and vegan butter for the frosting.
Gluten-free: I haven't tested this with gluten-free flour but you should be able to swap the all-purpose and whole wheat pastry flour 1:1 with a gluten-free flour blend.
Storage: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5-7 days. For longer storage, I recommend leaving the frosting off and freezing for up to 3 months.

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