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Gingerbread Latte Cupcakes

These Gingerbread Latte Cupcakes bring together two cold-weather favorites: warm gingerbread spice and a shot of coffee. With a moist, molasses-rich crumb and tangy cream cheese frosting, they’re like your favorite holiday drink — but better, because you can eat it.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time16 minutes
Total Time36 minutes
Servings: 12

Ingredients

For the Gingerbread Latte Cupcakes:

  • 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • 2 ½ tsp ground ginger
  • ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp ground cloves
  • 1 stick 4 oz unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 tbsp fresh ginger grated
  • ½ cup hot coffee
  • ½ cup unsulphured molasses
  • ¾ cup light brown sugar packed
  • 1 large egg + 2 egg yolks room temperature

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • 8 oz full-fat cream cheese very soft
  • 1 stick 4 oz unsalted butter, very soft
  • 3 ½ cups confectioners' sugar more if needed
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 3 tsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tsp lemon zest

Instructions

Make the Cupcakes:

  • Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a standard muffin tin with 12 paper liners.
  • In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.
  • In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine melted butter, grated fresh ginger, and hot coffee on low speed.
  • Add molasses and brown sugar; beat until smooth.
  • Beat in the egg and yolks, mixing for 30 seconds.
  • Slowly add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. Do not overmix.
  • Divide batter evenly among cupcake liners, filling each about ¾ full.
  • Bake for 14–16 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Make the Frosting:

  • In a stand mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth and creamy (about 4 minutes).
  • On low speed, slowly add the confectioners' sugar, then beat in salt, lemon juice, and zest.
  • Once combined, increase speed to medium-high and beat for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
  • Adjust consistency if needed: more sugar to thicken, more lemon juice to thin.
  • Pipe or spread onto completely cooled cupcakes.

Notes

Substitutions & Variations

  • No fresh ginger? Use 1 tsp extra ground ginger.
  • No coffee? Hot water or black tea can sub in a pinch, but coffee brings out flavor depth.
  • Want stronger coffee flavor? Add 1 tsp espresso powder to the dry ingredients.

Make-Ahead & Storage

  • Cupcakes can be baked 1–2 days in advance and stored (unfrosted) in an airtight container.
  • Frosted cupcakes last up to 4 days in the fridge.
  • The frosting can be made ahead and kept refrigerated for 3 days — just rewhip before using.

Pro Baking Tips

  • Don’t overmix the batter — it should be just combined for a tender crumb.
  • Use an oven thermometer. Molasses-heavy batters can brown too quickly if heat is off.
  • Room temp eggs and ingredients help everything blend smoothly.