Healthy Classic Gingerbread Loaf with Maple Glaze

 
We generally host a small and low-key Thanksgiving consisting of my parents, my brother, my grandma that lives across town, and me. Even with that small number of people, my dad still cooks for a crowd — especially when it comes to the herbed sausage stuffing! — and we end up with a fridge jam-packed with leftovers.  

But this year, both my brother and my stomachs felt slightly under the weather, so it seemed rather silly to prepare a meal that could easily serve twelve with just three people eating the dishes. We downsized the turkey, cranberry salad, homemade wheat rolls, green beans, and pecan pie (we turned those into mini pies, if you saw that on my @AmyBakesHealthy Snapchat!)…

But we still cooked a full-sized batch of my maple sweet potato casserole and Dad’s stuffing. Never get between Dad or Grandma and their stuffing!
 

 
After the feast ended and we nibbled on pieces of pie in front of the classic “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” animated movie, we packed up leftovers for Grandma. We sent her home with all of the turkey and a few portions of everything else, which left very little for us. Finally, a Thanksgiving meal that didn’t take over every square inch of space in the fridge!

With just a few slices of pie that were bound to disappear in the next 24 hours, I figured my family wouldn’t mind if I started my holiday baking on Black Friday, the very next morning after Thanksgiving. Surprisingly enough, my favorite way to kick off the season isn’t with cookies or candy…
 

 
It’s with this healthy gingerbread loaf with maple glaze! There’s something magical and incredibly irresistible about the warm, spicy flavor of gingerbread, and those qualities really shine in this easy recipe. It’s the perfect treat for curling up in front of the fire or pairing with a hot cup of coffee…

And I definitely did both!
 

KEY INGREDIENTS TO MAKE A HEALTHY GINGERBREAD LOAF

Let’s go over what you’ll need to make this healthy gingerbread loaf recipe! Most of these ingredients are common baking staples, so there’s a decent chance you have many of them in your pantry and fridge already.

Flour. This classic gingerbread recipe begins with whole wheat flour. Yes, just plain ol’ regular whole wheat flour! Some people believe that 100% whole wheat baked goods always turn out dry or bland, but not this one. There’s plenty of moisture from the other ingredients to make this quick bread taste as tender as cake!

Tip: If you’d like to make this healthy gingerbread loaf gluten-free, then see the Notes section of the recipe. I’ve shared my top recommendations there!

Spices. They’re the true stars of the show! Ginger is the most important (it’s impossible to make gingerbread without it!), and you’ll use a generous amount to give the loaf its rich, spicy taste. You’ll also sprinkle in cinnamon, plus a hint of nutmeg and cloves. I tried the bread both with and without the last two, and they add a much fuller, rounder, and cozier flavor. Please don’t skip them!

Tip: I love my gingerbread on the extra spicy side, so I add quite a bit more than some other people! If you’re not as big of a fan, that’s totally fine. You can easily reduce the amount of ginger so your loaf has less of a kick!

Greek yogurt. This healthy gingerbread loaf only contains 1 tablespoon of butter and egg whites, so the rest of its tender texture comes from Greek yogurt, one of my favorite ingredients in healthier baking. It’s thick and creamy, and it provides the same moisture as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories. It also gives this gingerbread a protein boost!
 

 
Sweeteners. Yes, plural! This healthy gingerbread loaf is sweetened with both molasses and pure maple syrup.

Molasses is a thick, dark brown liquid with a consistency similar to honey. It provides the iconic rich, warm background flavor profile of gingerbread, so I don’t recommend substituting anything for it! Molasses is fairly inexpensive, and you can generally find it on the baking aisle near the other liquid sweeteners.

Tip: I promise molasses isn’t a “one-time use” ingredient. You can bake all of these other gingerbread-flavored recipes of mine with it too… Including these gingerbread cookies, these gingerbread muffins, these scones, and this breakfast cake!

For the pure maple syrup, make sure you use the real kind that comes directly from maple trees! The only ingredient on the bottle should be “maple syrup,” and it’s often sold in thin glass bottles or squat plastic jugs (like this).

Tip: I don’t recommend substituting pancake syrup or sugar-free syrup. Both of these contain other ingredients, which often changes the way they behave in baking recipes. This is especially true of sugar-free maple syrup! It’s typically water-based, which can cause baked goods to collapse while cooling and turn out overly dense.
 

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST HEALTHY GINGERBREAD LOAF

Now let’s briefly cover how to make the best gingerbread loaf. I have some tips for you, but this recipe is easy to whip up — I promise!

Mix by hand. Put away your stand mixer and hand-held mixer! Those tend to overmix batters that are low fat and low calorie, like this one. Overmixing often yields tough, gummy, or dense textures… Not good! But if you gently mix by hand, you’ll end up with a gingerbread loaf that’s beautifully soft, tender, and moist.

Alternating additions. This technique is really common for making cake batter. We’re going to use it to make this healthy gingerbread loaf too — because it helps keep your quick bread really soft and moist!

“Alternating additions” is just a shorthand way of saying that you’ll switch between adding some of the flour mixture, gently folding it in, adding some milk, gently folding it in, and so on and so forth… Until you run out of flour mixture and milk!
 

 
Bake. Spread the batter into your loaf pan, and set a timer. It takes a while to finish, but that just means that your kitchen will smell extra cozy and festive that much longer!

Cool. I’m a stickler about this… You must let your healthy gingerbread loaf cool completely to room temperature before doing anything to it — slicing, serving, nibbling, you name it! When you first pull them from the oven, cakes’ and quick breads’ internal structures haven’t yet fully set. If you cut into them while they’re still warm, you disrupt that setting process. I know it’s really hard to wait, but I promise it’s worth it!

And now for the finishing touch…
 

 
Glaze (optional). It’s truly optional, so if you prefer a classic plain gingerbread loaf (like most of my family), feel free to skip it. However, some of my taste testers really enjoyed the extra sweetness it provided!

The glaze is very simple. Just stir together Greek yogurt, maple syrup, and liquid stevia. That’s it!

Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that’s clean eating friendly. This is the liquid stevia that I buy, and you can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, as well as online. (You can use it to make all of these recipes of mine too!)

Tip: Many stevia brands and products have different sweetness levels, so they’re not necessarily 1-for-1 substitutes for each other. For the best results, I highly recommend using the same one that I do. It’s really concentrated, so a little goes a long way!
 

 
Even with all of the Thanksgiving leftovers, this gingerbread disappeared amazingly quickly. I caught my mom sneaking a slice nearly every time I walked in the kitchen! Then again, I was guilty of the same thing too, so… This recipe is definitely becoming a weekly routine during the holidays at our house! 😉

And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your healthy classic gingerbread loaf!

Healthy Classic Gingerbread Loaf with Maple Glaze

© Amy's Healthy Baking

Yields: 1 loaf, 12 slices

This easy recipe is perfect for chilly winter days! The gingerbread is full of warm spices and cozy flavors, and the maple glaze on top adds a little extra sweetness. Leftovers will stay fresh for at least four days if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

5 from 6 votes

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Ingredients 

FOR THE GINGERBREAD

• 2 cups (240g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp (11g) ground ginger (see Notes before beginning!)
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• ¼ tsp ground cloves
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 tbsp (14g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
• 2 large egg whites (room temperature)
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• ¾ cup (180g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
• ¼ cup (60mL) molasses (not blackstrap!)
• ¼ cup (60mL) pure maple syrup
• 6 tbsp (90mL) nonfat milk

FOR THE GLAZE

• 2 tbsp (30g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
• 1 ½ tsp pure maple syrup
• ¼ tsp liquid stevia (or adjusted to taste)

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 325°F, and coat a 9x5” loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
• To prepare the gingerbread, whisk together the flour and next 7 ingredients (through salt) in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, and vanilla. Stir in the yogurt, mixing until no large lumps remain. Stir in the molasses and maple syrup. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and milk to the yogurt mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour in 3 equal parts.)
• Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 325°F for 35-40 minutes or until the top feels firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with dry crumbs attached. Cool the loaf in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• To prepare the glaze, stir together the yogurt, maple syrup, and stevia in a small bowl. Just before serving, drizzle the gingerbread loaf with the glaze.

Notes

IMPORTANT GINGER NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: I love my gingerbread on the extra spicy side, so I use a lot of ground ginger! If you prefer a mellower and more "normal" ginger flavor, use 1 tablespoon (5g) of ground ginger instead.

 

IMPORTANT MEASURING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: It’s extremely important to measure the flour correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale (← that's the one I own!). Too much will dry out your batter and loaf.

 

IMPORTANT MIXING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: Do not use a stand mixer or hand-held mixer to make the batter. This results in a gummy, chewy, rubbery, or tough loaf. Use a whisk where explicitly instructed, and use a fork for everything else.

 

IMPORTANT COOLING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: It’s important to let the loaf cool completely to room temperature before glazing, slicing, and serving. This is because the loaf's structure hasn’t fully set until it has fully cooled. (A warm loaf will also melt the drizzle!) Do not cut the loaf while it’s still warm!

 

FLOUR ALTERNATIVES: White whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the regular whole wheat flour.

 

EGG WHITES VS WHOLE EGGS: You must use both egg whites. The protein in the egg whites, along with the protein in the Greek yogurt, also helps prevent your loaf from collapsing while cooling. If you didn’t use both of the egg whites, your loaf would sink some, especially in the center, and turn out pretty dense and somewhat soggy in texture. (But the flavors will remain the same!)

 

If you prefer to use whole eggs, then use 2 whole eggs, and decrease the milk by 1 tablespoon to compensate for the added volume from the yolks.

 

MOLASSES NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: I use this kind. I don’t recommend substituting anything for the molasses, if at all possible. It’s required to produce the iconic gingerbread flavor. It’s a dark, thick liquid with a consistency similar to honey, and it can often be found near the maple syrup at the grocery store. Do not use blackstrap molasses; it’s too bitter.

 

However, I understand it can be hard to find molasses outside of the US, so in a pinch, you can substitute pure maple syrup, honey, or agave. They’ll produce the same texture, but keep in mind your loaf will have a noticeably different flavor.

 

MAPLE SYRUP ALTERNATIVES: Honey or agave may be substituted for the pure maple syrup in the loaf. (You can also substitute them in the glaze, but the glaze will lose its maple flavor.) Do not substitute sugar-free maple syrup! It’ll make the loaf collapse while cooling and turn out overly dense.

 

MILK ALTERNATIVES: Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.

 

STEVIA NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: Many stevia brands and products have different sweetness levels, so they're not necessarily 1-for-1 substitutes for each other. For the best results, I highly recommend using the same one that I do! It’s one of my favorite ingredients (you’ll also use it in all of these recipes of mine!), and I buy it online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found.

 

I do not recommend substituting any "regular" liquid sweetener in place of the liquid stevia (ie pure maple syrup, honey, agave, etc). Liquid sweeteners will make the glaze too thin and runny to stick to the gingerbread loaf. If using a different granulated sweetener, you’ll need the equivalent of 1-2 tablespoons of powdered sugar.

 

GLUTEN-FREE OPTION: For the gluten-free flour, use as follows: 1 cup (120g) millet flour, ½ cup (60g) tapioca flour, ½ cup (60g) brown rice flour, and 1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum. Many store-bought gluten-free flour blends (I like this one from Bob's Red Mill) will also work, if measured like this.

 

HOW TO STORE: Store leftover gingerbread in the refrigerator inside of an airtight container. It should keep for at least four days (if not closer to a week!).

 

{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat}

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.

View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
 
 
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡  The Ultimate Healthy Gingerbread Cookies
♡  Gingerbread Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
♡  Classic Gingerbread Muffins
♡  Gingerbread Oatmeal Snack Cake
♡  Chocolate Chip Gingerbread Scones
♡  Baked Gingerbread Donuts with Maple Glaze
♡  Morning Glory Gingerbread
♡  …and the rest of Amy’s healthy gingerbread-flavored recipes!