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Three kinds of ginger give this gingerbread loaf its distinctive spicy flavor, from the warmth of ground ginger to the zing of fresh ginger and the chewy sweetness of crystallized ginger on top. It’s a recipe that makes a familiar quick bread more interesting, with a lively bite that ginger lovers will appreciate.

This is one of my favorite baking recipes. I wish I could claim it as my own, but my friend, Chef Sondra Bernstein, shared it with me. I liked it so much I featured it in my first cookbook, Fork Me, Spoon Me: the sensual cookbook.

Table of Contents

Why you’re going to love this gingerbread quick bread

The crystallized ginger on top adds a satisfying chewiness, with bursts of sweetness against the loaf’s warm spice. It gives the bread a more interesting texture than you’d get from ground ginger alone.

Ginger has also earned a place in the long history of aphrodisiac foods. Its warming sensation and distinctive zing have helped give it that reputation. Ginger has also been used as an aid to digestion, although that research is separate from its traditional use as an aphrodisiac.

Unlike a frosted cake, this loaf needs no extra decoration. Its candied ginger topping supplies plenty of texture and flavor, while the loaf format makes it easy to slice and serve. It is essentially a one-bowl, one-pan baking project.

This tasty loaf cake works as a pick-me-up or a romantic breakfast in bed.

Serving suggestions

It’s a surprisingly simple ginger loaf recipe. But one that has a powerful ginger flavor and just the right balance of sweet.

Serve it with breakfast or as a morning snack. (It’s great for breakfast in bed.)
It’s also a smart choice for a low-stress brunch dessert.
It even makes a nice side for a salad with a vinaigrette.
Grill leftover slices (if you have any leftovers), and serve them with eggs and bacon.
For individual portions, bake the batter in mini loaf pans.

Gingerbread Recipe from Fork Me, Spoon Me: the sensual cookbook

Breakfast in Bed Triple Gingerbread Loaf

Print Recipe

This gingerbread recipe from the cookbook Fork Me, Spoon Me features three kinds of ginger for the most powerfully spicy flavor. It's a super-moist bread perfect as a breakfast or snack.

Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine American

Dish Type bread

Cooking Style Easy

Seasonal autumn, Christmas, Holiday season, spring, Valentine's Day, winter

Ingredient ginger

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 50

Total Time 1 5

Servings slices

Calories 216

Author Sondra Bernstein

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
6 tbsp crystallized ginger minced and divided into two 3-tbsp portions
1/2 cup unsalted butter room temperature
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
3 tbsp fresh ginger root peeled and grated
1/2 cup buttermilk

Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan. Mix the first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl. Add 3 tablespoons crystallized ginger and thoroughly mix.
Beat the butter and both sugars in large bowl until the mixture becomes light and frothy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Mix in fresh ginger.
Stir the dry ingredients into the creamed butter and egg mixture, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with dry ingredients.
Transfer batter to waiting pan. Sprinkle remaining 3 tablespoons crystallized ginger over batter.
Bake until a toothpick, gently inserted into the cake’s warm center, comes out clean, about 50 minutes.
Turn out onto rack and cool completely. Serve slices with vanilla yogurt and a bowl of strawberries.

Notes

A note on the provided nutrition information

The nutrition information provided has been estimated by an online nutrition calculator and is not a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Nutrition

If you like this easy loaf cake recipe from Fork Me, Spoon Me: the sensual cookbook, try the whole book!

Pin this gingerbread breakfast loaf recipe:

This article was published in 2013 and most recently updated in 2026 with a new introduction and a slight clarification to the recipe instructions.

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Amy Reiley

Eat Something Sexy's Creator & Editor-in-Chief Amy Reiley is the award-winning author of five aphrodisiac cookbooks. She has her Master of Arts in Gastronomy, awarded by Le Cordon Bleu and The University of Adelaide. She is also a Certified Nutrition Coach awarded by the International Sports Sciences Association and she is a California Certified Massage Therapist.

Amy is considered a leading authority on aphrodisiacs. Her work in aphrodisiacs is quoted in publications including National Geographic, The New York Times, Epicurious, Wine Enthusiast, Health and Playboy magazines. She speaks internationally on aphrodisiac foods and has brought her knowledge of aphrodisiac history and science to national television shows including The Today Show and CBS Early Show. She is a frequent guest on relationship and lifestyle radio and podcast shows and has been interviewed by BBC and NPR radio, Cosmopolitan radio and popular podcasts including My Dad Wrote a Porno.

Amy is also a freelance food, wine and health researcher and writer as well as a wine competition judge. Her work has appeared in publications ranging from Variety to The Daily Meal. She is an MSN content provider. And she is also a former wine editor for Gayot.com and wine & spirits editor of Las Vegas magazine.

Fun fact: Amy was the creator of the first ever comprehensive food and wine apps, Amy Reiley's Pocket Gourmet and Amy Reiley's Pocket Vineyard for Palm.

Triple Ginger Gingerbread Loaf Recipe with Fresh, Dried and Candied Ginger