Ginger Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Yield: 9-12 cupcakes, depending on size
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Tips: Filling cupcake tins 2/3 full will produce 9 traditionally sized cupcakes. Dividing batter equally among 12 cupcake tins will produce 12 smaller cupcakes (which will make it easier to taste some frosting with every bite!). Store frosted cupcakes in refrigerator in an airtight container. When ready to eat, allow cupcakes to sit at room temperature for 15-30 minutes to soften frosting and cake.
Suggestion: Delicious for any occasion, especially around the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays!
If you like carrot cake and/or carrot cake cupcakes, spice cake or even gingerbread cake, you'll love this homemade cupcake recipe! Ginger Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting feature all those wonderful spices and flavors often found in holiday desserts around Thanksgiving and Christmas, such as ginger, cloves, cinnamon, molasses and brown sugar. These festive ingredients give these cupcakes distinctive and deliciously satisfying flavor,
while the cream cheese frosting gives them that melt-in-your-mouth experience!
When it comes to homemade cupcake recipes, those boxes of instant cake mix sold in grocery stores just can't compare. Homemade cupcakes have that authentic flavor and texture that just can't be denied. Honestly, whipping up a batch of homemade cupcakes is incredibly easy, and most of us already have the ingredients in our fridge and pantry.
Most cupcake recipes call for filling the cupcake tins 2/3 full, which allows the cupcakes to rise to a nice height; though as we all have likely experienced, not every bite will include some of the tasty frosting. For this cupcake recipe, if you fill the cupcake tins 2/3 full with the cupcake batter, the cupcakes will rise to a typical cupcake size, though you'll likely only squeeze out about 9 cupcakes. However, if you equally dividing the cupcake batter among 12 cupcake tins, this cupcake recipe will produce 12 smaller cupcakes. The beauty of smaller cupcakes is that with every bite, you'll get to bite into that irresistable cream cheese frosting!
When it comes to homemade cupcake recipes, those boxes of instant cake mix sold in grocery stores just can't compare. Homemade cupcakes have that authentic flavor and texture that just can't be denied. Honestly, whipping up a batch of homemade cupcakes is incredibly easy, and most of us already have the ingredients in our fridge and pantry.
Most cupcake recipes call for filling the cupcake tins 2/3 full, which allows the cupcakes to rise to a nice height; though as we all have likely experienced, not every bite will include some of the tasty frosting. For this cupcake recipe, if you fill the cupcake tins 2/3 full with the cupcake batter, the cupcakes will rise to a typical cupcake size, though you'll likely only squeeze out about 9 cupcakes. However, if you equally dividing the cupcake batter among 12 cupcake tins, this cupcake recipe will produce 12 smaller cupcakes. The beauty of smaller cupcakes is that with every bite, you'll get to bite into that irresistable cream cheese frosting!
Recipe▼
Ingredients
- Cupcakes
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon soda
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1/2 cup boiling water (or heat in a microwave 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until hot)
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4-oz. cream cheese (1/2 of an 8-oz. package), softened
- 1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
- 8 oz. powdered sugar (a little over 1 3/4 cups, but less than 2 cups)
- 1 teaspoons vanilla
Directions
Cupcakes
Preheat oven to 350° F.
Beat butter in an electric mixer bowl until smooth. Add sugar and mix again, then add egg and mix again until well-blended.
In a separate mixing bowl, sift together flour, cinnamon, ground cloves, ground ginger and soda. Set aside. In another mixing bowl, combine water and molasses and stir until well-blended. Set aside.
Add flour mixture to butter mixture in electric mixer bowl alternately with molasses and hot water mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture and stopping once to scrape sides and bottom of mixing bowl to incorporate all ingredients.
Pour batter evenly into buttered (may also spray with nonstick cooking spray) cupcake pans that contain 12 cupcake tins. (Note: To produce 9 slightly larger cupcakes, fill cupcake tins to 2/3 full.) Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center of a cupcake comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before applying frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
While cupcakes are cooling, in an electric mixer bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add butter and beat again to evenly blend. Add powdered sugar and vanilla, then mix until blended and smooth, stopping once to scrape sides and bottom of bowl to incorporate all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate until ready to frost cupcakes. To soften frosting, remove frosting from refrigerator about 15-30 minutes before applying to cupcakes.
Store frosted cupcakes in refrigerator, and allow to sit at room temperature for about 15-30 minutes before serving.
