Thanks for this recipe!

I fondly remember the A&P brand Spanish Bar Cake from my childhood, complete with cream cheese frosting. This was one of the few store-bought cakes I could eat since I have an egg allergy and it was made without eggs. I also don't recall there being walnuts in the A&P's cake. The use of cocoa and ginger would certainly seem to do the trick, and I'd use olive oil for the vegetable oil.

I do have a applesauce spice cake recipe, we called it Johnny Appleseed Cake, made without eggs, that served as my traditional childhood birthday cake, so its basic recipe could be modified to make a good Spanish Bar Cake which had a similar heavier consistency.

I also have a good recipe for chocolate cake without milk or eggs that uses vinegar and oil, with baking soda and baking powder for leavening. I like to use chopped Marischino cherries along with their juice substituted as part of the liquid (water).

No eggs? Do you recall the ingredients list not containing eggs? That would have been really strange for that time. Eggs were easy to get, and few people thought of egg allergies in those days.

I remember the A&P spice cake being 2 layers and looking like a loaf cake. But anyway it's made, it was the best!!!

Years ago I bought Spanish Bar Cake.. but Not from the A&P.. I bought mine at ACME markets.. Hadn't had it for ages.. (Like 30 years or more) One day I was at Cooks.com and just for a lark I typed it in.. VOILA! Three recipes for it.. I could hardly wait to make one. My hubby LOVES this cake.. the only thing I do different is this .. I do put on the cream cheese icing but I CHILL mine.. so it is nice and cold.. It just adds something to it.. All the recipes are good.. however this one is the best.. thanks to all for it and thanks Cooks.com!

I just made the real Spanish bar cake.. This is the real deal. Fantastic cake. I purchased these cakes years ago at A&P plus other stores, this recipe has them all beat. Thanks so much for posting this recipe.. I have finally at last, got the recipe I have been looking for... for 25 years. This recipe is great for, Valentine's, Easter, or anytime of the year. Delicious! Thanks again.

For my parents' 60th wedding anniversary, my father requested Spanish Bar Cake. I thought I'd have to fake it with a carrot cake recipe, so was thrilled to find this. My mother said it was probably the best cake I have EVER made. So easy! So many memories! So scrumptious!

My first job as a kid was at A&P in a little Texas town. I dearly loved their Spanish Bar Cakes and ate my share. Now I'm an old man and that cake crossed my mind today after all those years. Can't wait to make it. Thanks for posting the recipe.

Cake was okay, but in no way does it come close to A&P Spanish Bar Cake. I made it exactly as shown, it has a definite chocolate undertone which the original didn't have. The spices were also less flavorful than the original. I was so disappointed because the reviews hinted that it was pretty close. The ingredients also seemed to indicate there would be a similarity. If there was similarity it sure wasn't transmitted to my taste buds. I hate bringing you the bad news but if Spanish Bar Cake is what you really want,don't waste your time. I'll keep searching, now I'm on a mission.

I've tried several different recipes for Spanish bar cake, and I've found in each one the missing ingredient seems to be molasses. About a tablespoonful should do it.

Excellent suggestion with the molasses! I think that will make this perfect!

I too remember this cake fondly. The original A&P cake did not have nuts in it. Also it was a deep rich brown color. Imagine my surprise when a Redner's Grocery store opened her in Baltimore and there it was Spanish Bar Cake for $3.99, so I bought one - lighter in color, but the taste was there. Only problem they had it for only about two months and I haven't found it since. Here's a big hint - use the freshest spices you have to get the taste

Gary, I too remember this A&P Spanish Bar Cake well. The only thing I do not recall is the cake having cocoa in it. I really detest chocolate with raisins, so wouldn't have eaten it then or now if it tasted like it. Was the cocoa strictly for making the cake brown?

It tasted just like the store bought. The variations I might try is to make it into the bar version. Reason for this is because I had to use a glass pan which made the ends a little uneven and crunchy. The recipe is perfect though, my pan was not.

Just made the Spanish Bar Cake for my 50 year old brother who has been talking about this cake for YEARS since we left NY!! It was put in front of him for him to take a taste and he was ECSTATIC!!! He just kept saying..."this is it....this is it!!!" I was so happy to be able to do this for him and he has already ordered more for Christmas!! Thanks Cooks.com!!

Miss Spanish Bar Cake... a standard from my childhood growing up in eastern North Carolina. However, the last one I ate was made as I watched at the Waldensian Bakery in Valdese, NC (western NC), back around 1979 or 1970, I think. They were also still making the coconut bar cakes, with the ladies patting the coconut on the icing by hand.

This cake is just like the cake from A&P, my brothers loved it. This is a perfect cake for the holiday with all of the spices.

I just made this tonight.. It's the closest recipe I've tried. Use the butter cream frosting it's much better then the cream cheese one.Very very good tasting..The only thing l will change in my next batch.. I will cut the clove spice in 1/2.. Just a touch strong on clove.. And make sure you plump the rains it makes a difference.. Love it!

I loved this cake so much when I was young, all the grocery stores used to sell it, then it disappeared, later in the late 90's early 2000's the bread store carried it, I went in one day they said they could no longer carry it, I almost cried.

I have made 4 loaf pans in 2 days. This recipe is fantastic and so much like the A&P Spanish Bar I had as a kid. I had been thinking about this cake and came here and there it was. The first 2 I made were darker than I remembered so the next 2 I made I cut the cocoa from 4 tbsp. to 1 tbsp. This made a big difference in the color of the cake and was more like the cake I remembered getting from the A&P store. Thank you so much Tamari for posting this recipe and bringing back the memories... Debbie