Ingredients
-
For Cupcakes
-
1½ cups all-purpose Flour
-
2 tablespoons ground Ginger
-
2 teaspoons ground Cinnamon
-
¼ teaspoon freshly grated Nutmeg
-
¼ teaspoon ground Cloves
-
1½ cups (3 sticks) Unsalted Butter
-
1½ cups Sugar
-
3 tablespoons unsulfured Molasses
-
4 large Egg
-
1 teaspoon pure Vanilla Extract
-
For Decorating
-
Gingerbread Cookie Cutouts
-
½ recipe Royal Icing
-
Blue and pink gel-paste Food colouring
-
Fluffy Vanilla Frosting
Directions
Gingerbread is the most recognizable Christmastime flavor; the scent of its signature spices baking in the oven fills a home with holiday cheer. These cupcakes are made with the same mixture of spices nutmeg, clove, cinnamon, and ginger as the tiny gingerbread-cookie boys and girls they are topped with. The recipe for the cookie dough will yield more cutouts than you need to decorate twenty-two cupcakes; serve extra cookies alongside.
Steps
|
1
Done
|
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together flour and spices. |
|
2
Done
|
With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the molasses, and beat until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Gradually add flour mixture, beating until just combined. |
|
3
Done
|
Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool 10 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored up to 2 days at room temperature, or frozen up to 3 months, in airtight containers. |
|
4
Done
|
Tint ¼ cup icing pale pink with gel-paste food color; tint remaining icing pale blue. Transfer tinted icings to pastry bags fitted with small plain tips. Pipe three blue dots on the front of each gingerbread cookie boy; pipe two pink dots on gingerbread girls. |
|
5
Done
|
To finish, use an offset spatula to spread each cupcake with a smooth layer of frosting. Place a gingerbread boy or girl upright on each cupcake before serving. |
