Shoofly Cake Recipe

A slice of shoofly cake sitting on round plate.

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Shoofly cake is a rich molasses-based dessert with a soft cake layer and crumb topping, baked in one pan and perfect for sharing. It’s simple, nostalgic, and full of bold, old-fashioned flavor.

Prep Time15

Cook Time45

Total Time1

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: slices

Calories: 538kcal

Author: Jessica Burgess

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour sifted
2 ¼ cups dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup salted butter 2 sticks, softened
2 cups boiling water
1 cup molasses
2 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs room temperature

Instructions

Preheat your oven and prepare your baking dish. Preheat to 350°F and spray a 9x13 with non-stick cooking spray.
Mix the wet ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the boiling water, molasses, baking soda, and salt until the molasses has dissolved completely. Let it cool for about 10 minutes, then whisk in the eggs. If the molasses mix isn’t cool enough, the egg will scramble, so make sure you wait. You can stick it into your refrigerator to speed up this process. While it cools, work on the next step (dry ingredients).
Make the dry mixture. In a large bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add the butter and work it into the mixture with a fork or clean hands until it resembles damp sand. Set aside.
Set aside the topping and combine the rest with the wet mixture. Set aside 2 cups of the flour mixture and combine the remaining mix with the molasses mixture. Stir until well combined.
Top with the crumble and bake. Pour the molasses mixture into the baking dish and then sprinkle the reserved flour mixture evenly over the top. Don’t dump it in; sprinkle it evenly. Bake uncovered for 55 minutes or until the center is set and firm. If the center is still jiggly, pop it back in the oven or it will fall once cooled.
Cool and serve. Cool completely before serving.

Notes

Let the molasses mixture cool before adding eggs to prevent scrambling
Sift flour if clumpy to avoid dry pockets in the cake
Bake until center is fully set (no jiggle) to prevent sinking after cooling
Cool completely before slicing for best texture and clean cuts

Nutrition