Wow! What a fun month we’ve had so far doing my “25 Bakes of Christmas” series! We’re finishing up today with my delicious Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Buttercream. Aren’t they the cutest? I LOVE these cupcakes and know they’re going to be an instant hit in your kitchens this holiday season. Let’s jump right in because Christmas is only days away and Santa Clause is definitely on his way :).

How to make Easy gingerbread cupcakes

If y’all have been paying attention to my cookbooks and website, you know the drill about my go-to doctored cake mix recipes. This one is no exception! We’re going to start with a boxed spiced cake mix and doctor it up (meaning, we add in a bunch of awesome ingredients to make it taste like scratch, if not better!). So what will we need, exactly?

ingredients for gingerbread cupcakes:

  • buttermilk – always use at room temperature, and if you don’t have buttermilk, you can always make your own with lemon juice/vinegar and milk (let it curdle into buttermilk)
  • sour cream – room temperature again. You can always use plain greek yogurt instead here.
  • large eggs – room temperature – notice a theme? 🙂
  • vegetable oil – you can use melted butter here, too. I do not recommend canola oil.
  • vanilla – I love this brand.
  • molasses – there’s no sub for this, unfortunately.
  • ground ginger – not fresh ginger, please, for this one.
  • ground cloves – a strong flavor, so go easy.
  • 1 15.25oz Spice Cake Mix – the Spiced Mix I prefer the taste and texture of Duncan Hines, but anything you find that’s similar should be fine.

The directions for making these cupcakes is below – super easy, I promise! One bowl, one whisk, and a cupcake pan is all you need!

If you love gingerbread flavored treats, I have the BEST gingerbread white chocolate cake here, and my classic white chocolate dipped ginger cookies here that I know you’ll love.

the best cream cheese buttercream

I have a few different variations of my cream cheese buttercream here on Baking with Blondie, as well as in my cookbook, Cake Confidence (make sure you grab the updated hardback second edition! It’s much better). This time, we’re sticking with the classic cream cheese flavors and letting the ginger and ginger cookie crumble take the lead.

Ingredients for cream cheese buttercream

  • unsalted butter (3 sticks) left out at room temperature for 10 minutes
  • cream cheese – left out at room temperature for 10 minutes
  • salt
  • vanilla
  • heavy cream
  • powdered sugar

The main tip for your cream cheese buttercream is to make sure the butter and cream cheese combine together without any little bits or lumps before you add in the rest of your ingredients. That way you have a smooth and silky buttercream right off the bat.

how to make the ginger cookie crumble

This isn’t essential, but certainly adds in a fun texture and flavor element to these already tasty cupcakes! All you do is pulse some crunchy ginger cookies (ginger snaps is what I used) in the food processor until a crumble forms. Add them to a bowl, and you’re ready to dip the cupcakes upside down in the crumble!

Gingerbread men and sprinkles

I found these gingerbread men (little edible sugar pieces) at Walmart, and although I’ve seen them in stores pretty regularly for a few years, I couldn’t find them this year. However, these gingerbread men cupcake toppers are super cute and would be really fun on these cupcakes instead!

These sprinkles are from one of my favorite sprinkle companies, Neon Yolk, and she has this mix right here that you can order for your holiday bakes!

Here’s a video of the process:

I can’t wait for you to give these fun cupcakes a try this holiday season.

 I’d love to see them in your kitchen! Make sure to tag me, @bakingwithblondie on Instagram, Tiktok, or Youtube so I can join in on all the fun.

Happy Baking!

xo,

Mandy

Get the Recipe: Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Buttercream

Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Buttercream, festive sprinkles, a gingerbread man, and a ginger cookie crumble!
Servings: 24 cupcakes
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Ingredients
 

Gingerbread Cupcakes

  • 2/3 cup buttermilk, room temperature
  • 2/3 cup sour cream , room temperature
  • 3 whole large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 Tablespoon vanilla
  • 1/2 cup molasses
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon cloves
  • 1 15.25oz Cake Mix – Spiced Mix, I prefer the taste and texture of Duncan Hines, but anything you find that's similar should be fine.

Cream Cheese Buttercream

  • 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter (3 sticks), left out at room temperature for 10 minutes
  • 8 oz cream cheese, left out at room temperature for 10 minutes
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 Tablespoon vanilla
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 7-8 cups powdered sugar

Extras

  • 3 cups crushed crisp ginger cookies , about 20 cookies
  • holiday sprinkles , These are NeonYolk brand, but anything similar should be great!
  • edible gingerbread men toppers , I found mine from Wilton

Instructions
 

For the Gingerbread Cupcakes

  • Prep a cupcake tin with cupcake liners, set aside. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees (convection bake. If you aren't doing convect bake, then just leave the cupcakes in the oven a couple extra minutes at the end).
  • In a large bowl, whisk together all the ingredients except for the cake mix. When thoroughly combined, sift in the cake mix and gently stir until just combined (don't overmix!). Use a cookie scoop to evenly divide the cupcake batter into 24 cupcakes. Bake for 12-14 minutes. Cool on a wire rack before frosting.

For the Cream Cheese Buttercream

  • In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, whip up the butter and cream cheese until they're light and fluffy. Add in the salt, vanilla, and heavy cream. Whip up again until everything is thoroughly combined.
  • With the mixer on low speed, slowly add in the powdered sugar and then whip up the buttercream on high speed until it's lightened in texture and color. Add in more powdered sugar if needed to thicken, or more heavy cream if needed to thin. Add the buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1A (large circle) piping tip.

Assembly

  • Add the cookie crumbles to a bowl or plate.
  • Pipe a medium dollop of buttercream in the middle of the cupcake tops, then flip the cupcake upside down and press the buttercream into the cookie crumbles.
  • Pipe a smaller dollop of buttercream on top of the cookie-crumbled cupcake top. Then add on the holiday sprinkles and edible gingerbread man.