George Washington’s Mother’s Ginger Cake Recipe (Recipe Download)
- TWAM Florida
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
George Washington’s Mother’s Ginger Cake: Research to Recipes
By Maggie Beth McGrotha
My lifelong passion for cooking forged with my newfound passion for history in 2016 when I became the venue director of the Tallahassee Garden Club’s historic Rutgers House. My research to determine who occupied the Rutgers House from 1862 until 1893 led me to Charleston and a cookbook, The Carolina Housewife, by Jane Rutgers’ sister’s cousin-in-law, published in 1857. (Yes, we historians embrace these distant connections.) When I saw a recipe in her cookbook for Lafayette Ginger Cake, I was on a mission to find out the connection of this delicacy to Lafayette’s 1825 Tallahassee land grant.
Lafayette Gingerbread was made by George Washington’s mother, Mary Ball Washington, when General Lafayette visited her in 1784. In the summer of 2025 I was honored to spend a week at Mount Vernon learning about George Washington, where I found out that George Washington was a foodie! It must have started as a child and I’m sure he savored his mother’s Ginger Cake.
The addition of orange zest and juice in Mary Washington’s recipe gives a burst of flavor to traditional gingerbread that can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Egyptians. I prefer to use fresh ginger as in the original recipe, but you can substitute ground ginger. Mrs. Washington topped her gingerbread with Fairy Butter. Unable to find orange blossom water, I couldn’t make the concoction mixing it with butter, sugar, and hard-boiled egg yolks. Instead, I topped mine with whipped cream. If you make the Fairy Butter, please let me know how it turns out. Or better yet, bring me a taste.
LAFAYETTE GINGERBREAD
Adapted from Mary Ball Washington’s recipe at Mount Vernon
Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened (1 stick)
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup molasses
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger (or 1 teaspoon ground ginger)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
2 large eggs plus 2 large egg whites
1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
Fairy Butter for serving, or whipped cream
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Butter and flour a 12 x 4 inch loaf pan or 9 inch cake pan.
In an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the molasses and beat until well combined.
Sift the flour with the ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice.
Alternately add the flour and eggs to the molasses mixture, beginning and ending with flour, beating well after each addition.
Add the orange zest and juice and beat until the batter is smooth.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake for 30–40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Serve topped with Fairy Butter or whipped cream.
FAIRY BUTTER
Ingredients:
4 hard-boiled egg yolks
5 teaspoons orange flower water
5 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (1 stick)
Directions:
Mash the egg yolks with the orange flower water.
Add the sugar and mix to a smooth paste.
Work in the butter until smooth.
Let rest for 2 hours.
Press the butter mixture through a strainer into a small serving bowl.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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