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Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.
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4.80 from 5 votes

Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting

Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake is topped with a delicious homemade brown sugar frosting.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Total Time50 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: boiled raisin cake, boiled raisin spice cake
Servings: 16
Calories: 513kcal
Author: Barbara

Ingredients

Boiled Raisin Cake

  • 2 cups water
  • 2 cups brown sugar
  • 2 cups raisins
  • 1 cup butter
  • 3 Tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon allspice
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Brown Sugar Frosting

  • 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 3 Tablespoons milk
  • 2 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

Boiled Raisin Cake

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
  • In a medium saucepan, mix together water, brown sugar, raisins, butter, and cocoa. Bring to a boil, and let simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and let cool. 
    Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.
  • In a separate bowl, mix together, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and ground cloves.  
    Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.
  • Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and stir until completely incorporated. 
    Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.
  • Pour into a 13x9 inch glass dish or cake pan that has been generously sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. 
    Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.
  • Bake for 35 minutes of until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake.
    Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.
  • While cooling, prepare the Brown Sugar Frosting.

Brown Sugar Frosting

  • In a medium sized saucepan, mix brown sugar, butter and milk.  Heat until the sugar is dissolved, whisking constantly.  Remove from heat and let cool completely.
    Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.
  • Once the sugar mixture is cooled, pour sugar mixture into a mixer bowl.  Add powdered sugar and mix until a frosting is formed.  If a runnier texture is desired, add milk 1 T. at a time until desired consistency. 
    Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.
  • Frost the cake, and enjoy!
    Old-Fashioned Boiled Raisin Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting is a spice cake featuring raisins cooked in brown sugar. This vintage cake is flavored with a combination of cocoa, cinnamon nutmeg, ground cloves and allspice.

Notes

  • We typically use purple raisins but yellow would work too. 
  • Use light or dark brown sugar in the boiled raisin cake and/ or the brown sugar frosting.
  • Let the brown sugar syrup cool before preparing the raisin cake batter. 
  • If you are missing a couple of the spices, feel free to leave them out. Just add a little bit more of the other spices. 
  • The brown sugar icing is completely optional.  The chocolate raisin cake is just as good by itself. You could even dust with powdered sugar.
  • Love vintage spice cakes? Try this amazing Pumpkin cake. 
  • The nutritional information below is auto-calculated and can vary depending on the products used. It should not be used for specific dietary needs.

Nutrition

Calories: 513kcal | Carbohydrates: 95g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 38mg | Sodium: 246mg | Potassium: 260mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 62g | Vitamin A: 448IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 75mg | Iron: 2mg