• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/4 cups brown sugar, lightly packed
• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 Tbsp vanilla paste (use 2 tsp vanilla extract instead)
• 3/4 cup buttermilk ( use whole milk or half and half instead)

dry ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup finely crushed gingersnap crumbs, plus a few more for garnishing the cake
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp` ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1/4 tsp salt

cream cheese frosting

• 1/4 cup whipped cream cheese
• 1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted (sift after measuring)
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice, I used a Meyer lemon (you might need a little more or less juice)