Pain d'epices (French Gingerbread Loaf)

Yummy and delicious, French gingerbread loaf, known as pain d'epices, is perfect for making all year round. This spiced bread baked as little loaves full of holiday spices and festive flavors makes a great edible holiday gift.

Christmas season is all about gingerbread: gingerbread men cookies, gingerbread Pavlova, and gingerbread cookie ornaments.

Here is another festive seasonal favorite - French gingerbread loaf. It is great for the perfect breakfast, snack, or dessert all year round. It is the same as pampering yourself with Banana Bread or French Pumpkin Pie at any time of the year.

And a quick reminder for a gingerbread lover: gingerbread madeleines are a special teatime treat during the magical time of the year.

What you will love the most about this pain d'epices recipe is how your home will smell during baking time.

No wonder neighbors will get into the Christmas spirit, smelling the gingerbread flavors and aromas around your house.

So go ahead and make the best gingerbread loaf yourself, or head to the nearest gingerbread bakery.

What is French gingerbread?

French gingerbread, French spice bread, or pain d'épices in French, is a soft and flavorful loaf cake made with a blend of spices. While the literal translation is "spice bread," it is mistranslated as "gingerbread."

Gingerbread recipes vary across France. However, it is said that only three French regions have traditionally produced gingerbread: Dijon, Reims, and Strasbourg. 

The pain d'épices contains ground spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, pepper, or cloves, aka a pain d’épices blend. Some cakes are made with only anise seeds, but the "most authentic recipe doesn't contain any ginger."

French gingerbread is egg- and butter-free, perfect for those with a food allergy. And the last distinguishing thing is that it is made with sugar and honey to give the cake its unique taste.

If you are in the USA, visit Thomas Keller's Bouchon bakery one day to try their signature gingerbread bread.

Why you should try this recipe

• As a holiday staple, the pain d’épices recipe is simple, even for a beginner baker. Nothing is complicated about making syrup one day ahead and infusing it with warm spices and exquisite flavors. And then, make the bread dough and bake.

• This gingerbread loaf is loaded with dried fruit that accentuates each slice. The aroma of freshly baked bread will waft through the house.

• Baked in a smaller loaf pan as a little tea loaf, French spice bread makes for a perfect dessert, a sweet treat, and a gift during the holiday season.

Ingredients

Here is a quick overview of what ingredients you will need. Follow the full recipe below for exact amounts and instructions. I recommend making the recipe as written for the best results.

• Honey: use high-quality honey, such as flavorful buckwheat honey. For a gourmet version, switch honey for unsulphured molasses (made from ripe sugar cane), date syrup, or maple syrup and make a vegan gingerbread loaf.

• Warm spices: use a mix of whole star anise, cinnamon sticks, and ground allspice.

• Flour: use all-purpose flour for the recipe making for the first time or experiment with other types of flour. To make gluten-free gingerbread, replace the flour indicated in a recipe with rice flour or chestnut flour. If you use chestnut flour, reduce the amount of honey and sugar because this type of flour is sweet.

• Corn starch: you can easily replace it with potato starch.

• Dark rum brings irresistible flavor to the cake.

• Baking powder: use fresh aluminum-free baking powder to make the recipe.

• Dried fruits: use dried apricots, cranberries, Medjool dates and raisins, and prunes, or experiment with other dried fruits and make your own combination.

• Almonds: you can replace slivered almonds with blanched almonds if preferred.

• Speculoos cookies: use store-bought cookies for the cake decoration, although this step is optional.

• Apricot jam: use thick apricot jam to better adhere to speculoos cookies' crumbs.

Variations of the recipe

Like any classic recipe, there are countless variations in preparation for French spiced bread. All ingredient variations will impart subtle yet still delicious nuances to your dessert.

• Examples include using citrus zest (lemon or orange zest) or candied orange peels like Jacquy Pfeiffer uses to make his famous gingerbread.
• Additionally, you might choose not to use whole star anise but cardamom pods.

Most of the pain d'epices are light in color. But with the addition of blackstrap molasses and dark brown sugar, the gingerbread bread gets its distinctive flavor and dark color.

Your personal preference is to leave the loaf plain, dust it with icing sugar, pour it with lemon glaze, or decorate it. It is already complete without decorations, but crumbled speculoos cookies and overlapping syrupy dried fruit make it look more festive.

This colorful final touch makes the gingerbread loaf stunning and upgrades it to the art of French pastry. So sliced, it has a beautiful velvety look full of dried fruit that makes each cut impressive.

To add festive cheerfulness, you can decorate your loaf with chocolate sprinkles and a fir branch.

How to make pain d'epices

To make the syrup, pour water, honey, and sugar, add cinnamon sticks, whole star anise, and ground allspice in a small saucepan (photo 1).

Bring to a boil while mixing. Remove the saucepan from the heat (photo 2), cover it with plastic film, and let it infuse at room temperature for 24 hours.

The next day, heat the oven to 320°F (160°C). To make the batter, mix flour, cornstarch, and baking powder in a large bowl. Drain the syrup with a colander and discard the spices. Add rum to the syrup and mix.

Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and combine them with a hand whisk (photo 3). Add whole prunes, dried apricots, cranberries, and slivered almonds to the mixture and mix (photo 4).

Pour batter into a prepared pan (buttered nonstick loaf pan or a silicone loaf pan), filling up three-quarters (photo 5). Make sure to read about how to bake with silicone molds.

Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Check the loaf readiness with a toothpick: gingerbread is ready if it comes out dry from the center of the cake (photo 6). Remove the loaf from the bread pan and let it cool on a cooling rack.

To decorate the loaf, place speculoos cookies in a food processor and crush them to get crumbs. Next, heat the apricot jam in a microwave and spread it over gingerbread using a silicone brush (photo 7).

Then, generously sprinkle the loaf's sides with crumbled speculoos cookies. Dip each dried fruit in a heated apricot jam, shake off the excess jam, and arrange prunes, dried apricots, Medjool dates, and raisins on top, overlapping each other. Fill the gaps between fruit with crumbled cookies (photo 8). 

Expert Tips

• Adjust the baking time and test the loaf/loaves for readiness with a toothpick if you use small loaf pans.
• Arrange whole star anise and cinnamon sticks on top of the loaf for additional decoration.

Storage

Store the cooled pain d'epices in a plastic bag or airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 to 3 days. You can refrigerate it for up to a couple of weeks. Then, decorate it (if desired) on the day of serving.

Can you freeze French gingerbread? You can freeze your honey spice cake covered with plastic wrap or in a freezer bag for a long time, up to 2 months. To thaw, leave the loaf in the fridge overnight.

Recipe FAQ

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The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.

The recipe was adapted from the Video Masterclass of Eric Kayser's bakery. It was originally published on December 11, 2019. The recipe has been revised to include improved content. All posted pictures are mine.