Name: Old-Fashioned Raisin Spice Cake
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 2 h 50 min
Yield: 16
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 3 Cups Unbleached, All-Purpose Flour, divided; 1 Tablespoon Ground Cinnamon; 1 Tablespoon Ground Ginger; 1 teaspoon Baking Powder; 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda; 1/4 teaspoon Salt; 1 Cup Raisins; 1 Cup Salted Butter, softened; 2 1/4 Cups Sugar; 5 Eggs; 1 Cup Buttermilk

I may earn a commission if you click on links in this post and make a purchase.

Jump to Recipe

This old-fashioned raisin spice cake was inspired by a vintage cookbook, an abundance of eggs, and a chilly day that called for an afternoon of baking. It’s a tender and moist cake that keeps well on the counter for a few days and can easily serve as the base for fruit sauces, ice cream, whipped cream, and more.

A slice of cake with whipped cream on top sits on a plate. The remaining cake sits in the background with a blue pitcher. Text overlay reads: Old-fashioned cake recipe Raisin Spice.

Add us as a trusted Google source

Easy to Make But Needs Time

The batter comes together quickly with basic pantry ingredients, but this cake needs a full hour in the oven plus cooling time before it’s ready to slice. It’s a good one to bake on a day when you’re home anyway. It also keeps well, so baking it a day ahead is a perfectly reasonable plan.

Basic Ingredients

Flour, butter, eggs, sugar, buttermilk, raisins, and a couple of spices. Nothing unusual or hard to find. If you bake with any regularity, your pantry is probably already stocked.

Spice Choices

The recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of spice total. Cinnamon and ginger are the natural choice in our house since we always have them on hand, and they work beautifully together in a cake like this. Pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice would be equally good if that’s what you have. Cardamom, nutmeg, or clove are worth trying too. Use what you like.

A whole raisin space cake sits on a flowered cake plate with a blue pitcher behind it.

Buttermilk

Store-bought buttermilk works fine here. If you don’t have any on hand, sour milk is an easy substitute. Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to your measuring cup, fill to the 1 cup mark with regular milk, and let it sit for about 5 minutes before using. Powdered buttermilk also works, just follow the baking instructions on the canister.

Raisins or Other Dried Fruit

Dark raisins are the obvious choice and what this recipe is built around. Golden raisins would be equally good. Dried cranberries or other dried fruit cut into small pieces would work too if you want to mix things up.

If you like dried fruit in baked goods, Spiced Fruit and Nut Cookies with Dried Apples and Raisins are worth making alongside.

A slice of raisin spice cake sits on a plate. The remaining cake and a blue pitcher sit in the background.

To Glaze or Not

This cake is honestly good plain. A simple vanilla or chocolate glaze would be a nice addition if you want something a little more dessert-like, but it doesn’t need it.

How to Serve

Plain slices alongside coffee or tea is the simplest and most natural way to enjoy this. A dusting of powdered sugar, a spoonful of whipped cream, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream all work well if you want something a little more. This is also a good base for warm fruit sauces in the fall and winter. Brandied Cherry Berry Preserves are a particularly good match if you have a jar on hand.

A slice of cake with whipped cream on top sits on a plate. The remaining cake sits in the background with a blue pitcher.

How to Store

Store leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. For longer storage, freeze in an airtight bag for up to 6 months. Let it thaw on the counter before serving.

Yield: 16 Servings

Old-Fashioned Raisin Spice Cake

A vintage-inspired raisin spice cake made with buttermilk and pantry spices. Tender, keeps well, and good plain or dressed up with a simple glaze or fruit topping.

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Cooling Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time 2 hours 50 minutes

Ingredients

3 Cups Unbleached, All-Purpose Flour, divided
1 Tablespoon Ground Cinnamon
1 Tablespoon Ground Ginger
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1 Cup Raisins
1 Cup Salted Butter, softened
2 1/4 Cups Sugar
5 Eggs
1 Cup Buttermilk

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 10 inch tube pan.
In a small bowl, toss together the raisins and 1/4 cup of the flour. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of stand mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and creamy. Set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl or the bowl of stand mixer, whisk the eggs until very light and fluffy.
Slowly blend eggs into the sugar mixture at medium speed, use a spatula to clean the sides of the bowl.
At a low speed, add 1/3 of the dry ingredients into the sugar mixture and mix well. Add half of the buttermilk, mixing well. Then another 1/3 of the dry ingredients, mix, add the remaining buttermilk and mix. Stir in the final 1/3 of the flour mixture. Stir just until blended.
Fold in the floured raisins, mixing until completely blended.
Pour batter into the prepared cake pan and bake 1 hour to 65 minutes or until inserted tester comes out clean.
Cool cake in pan on wire rack for 20 minutes. Loosen the cake from the pan by running a butter knife around the rim.
Turn the cake out of the pan and cook completely on wire rack, about an hour.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 495Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 9gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 93mgSodium: 276mgCarbohydrates: 86gFiber: 2gSugar: 45gProtein: 8g

We try our best but cannot guarantee that nutrition information is 100% accurate.