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Gingerbread Cupcakes

Gingerbread cupcakes are the perfect way to get into the holiday spirit! With seasonal flavors like ginger, cinnamon, and molasses these cupcakes are a delight.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 22 minutes
Total Time 37 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 24

Ingredients
  

Cupcakes

  • 2½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1½ teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1½ teaspoons ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon ground cloves
  • ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
  • ½ cup dark brown sugar
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg room temperature
  • 1 cup unsulphured molasses
  • 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup boiling water

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
  • ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
  • 3 cups powdered sugar sifted
  • 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  • ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

Optional Garnish

  • Holiday sprinkles
  • Miniature gingerbread men cookies

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place 24 cupcake liners into 2 standard muffin pans. Set aside.
  • In a medium bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg, and ground cloves. Set your dry ingredients aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the unsalted butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on low speed for 1 to 2 minutes or until light and fluffy.
  • Beat in your egg until fully incorporated. You may need to scrape down the sides of your mixing bowl, and the paddle attachment, before proceeding to ensure that all the ingredients are incorporated.
  • While your mixer is on low, slowly add your unsulphured molasses and vanilla extract to the mixer and continue to mix until all your ingredients are fully incorporated. You will need to scrape down the sides of your bowl and paddle attachment again before moving on.
  • Next, add the dry ingredients to the batter, a little at a time, allowing the flour to incorporate before adding more while you continue to stir on low. You will want to stop your mixer once all the flour has been incorporated. You do not want to overmix your batter. You will need to scrape down your bowl again at this point.
  • Lastly, while your mixer is on low speed, you will slowly pour the boiling water into the batter until all the water has been added. You will need to increase your speed to medium-low for 30 to 45 seconds just to make sure that you have a fully incorporated and smooth batter.
  • You will need to remove your paddle attachment from the bowl to scrape down the sides and fold your batter a few times to ensure that all of the batter is evenly combined.
  • Using a 2-inch cookie scoop, fill each of the prepared muffin pans no more than ⅔ full. This batter will rise a lot in the oven, so you do not want your cupcakes to overflow in the pan.
  • Bake for 22 to 24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  • Allow these gingerbread cupcakes to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely on the counter.

Frosting

  • While your cupcakes are baking, you can make your frosting by adding the room-temperature cream cheese block and unsalted butter to a medium-sized mixing bowl.
  • Using a handheld mixer on medium speed, beat together the cream cheese and unsalted butter for 2 to 3 minutes or until the mixture is smooth and fluffy.
  • Add the heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt to the butter and cream cheese and beat until fully incorporated.
  • Add the sifted powdered sugar, ½ cup at a time, to the cream cheese mixture and beat on low speed. Continue to add the powdered sugar, ½ cup at a time, until all the powdered sugar has been added and your cream cheese frosting is thick and smooth. You can add your cream cheese frosting to a large piping bag fitted with a large decorative tip to pipe out your frosting onto your cupcakes.
  • Frost each cooled cupcake with the cream cheese frosting and garnish with the optional holiday sprinkles and mini gingerbread cookies.

Notes

Make sure your butter is not too soft or warm. This makes a huge difference in the final outcome of your cupcakes. If it is too warm or soft, you risk your cupcakes sinking in the center once they start to cool.
When adding your boiling water, make sure that you do so very slowly and in a continuous stream while your mixer is on low. This helps ensure your batter has the proper consistency and bakes up correctly. I like to use filtered or tap water that I have microwaved, in a microwave-safe spouted measuring cup, for this recipe. Two minutes in the microwave, on high, always works great for me for this recipe.
Oven temperatures vary and may need to be recalibrated periodically to ensure they are accurate. Make sure to check your cupcakes at the lower end of the recommended baking time.
If your frosting is too loose for your preference, you can add additional powdered sugar, starting with a ¼ cup at a time until you reach your desired thickness. You can loosen it up if it is too stiff by adding a little extra heavy cream. Start with just a splash (about 1 teaspoon), then mix it, and if that does not get you to your desired consistency, you can add an additional teaspoon.
I like to pipe the frosting onto my cupcakes. Place a large piping tip (I like to use a Wilton 2A tip) into a large piping bag or a heavy-duty zip-top bag with a corner snipped off of it, then transfer the cream cheese frosting into the piping bag. The cream cheese frosting pipes a little easier if you allow it to firm up just a little bit by placing it in the refrigerator for about 15 to 20 minutes before decorating your cupcakes. Be sure that your cupcakes are completely cool before frosting them, or your frosting will just melt right off the top of your cupcakes.