Gingerbread Cupcakes With Chocolate Icing

Up your cupcake game with these sticky gingerbread sponges

Posted by Mima Sinclair

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Recipe from Gingerbread Wonderland, Kyle Books. Photography © Tara Fisher.

Sticky dark English gingerbread cupcakes topped with chocolate buttercream.

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You Will Need (18 things)

  • 150 g Butter
  • 225 g dark Muscovado Sugar
  • 150 g black Treacle
  • 1 Orange(s) zested
  • 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground Ginger
  • ½ tsp ground Nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp ground Allspice
  • 3 Medium Eggs
  • 100 g Apple Sauce
  • 150 g Plain Flour
  • ½ tsp Baking Powder
  • ¼ tsp Salt

  • Icing and decoration

  • 250 g Butter
  • 250 g Icing Sugar
  • 100 g Dark Chocolate melted
  • 30 g Crystallized Ginger or mini gingerbread men

Steps (7 steps, 70 minutes)

  1. 1

    Heat the oven to 180°C/fan-assisted160°C/gas mark 4. Line a 12-hole muffin tray with cupcake cases.

  2. 2

    Pour the butter, sugar, treacle, zest and spices in a medium saucepan and melt over a low/medium heat. Stir frequently until the sugar has dissolved. Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl and leave to cool for 10 minutes.

  3. 3

    Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with a handheld or stand mixer after each addition. Beat in the apple sauce. Sift over the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt then mix on a slow speed until just combined.

  4. 4

    Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases. Use a large ice cream scoop to make the cakes even sizes. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, until risen and a skewer emerges clean. Leave to cool for 10 minutes in the muffin tray, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

  5. 5

    Beat the butter and icing sugar together with a handheld mixer until light and fluffy. Add the cooled chocolate and beat until smooth and combined. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a large open star nozzle.

  6. 6

    Hold the bag vertically and pipe in a spiral pattern working from the outside edge inward keeping a constant pressure on the icing bag. Continue in a spiral motion creating another layer of icing working gradually toward the centre. To finish, release the pressure on the bag, press down lightly then draw up sharply. Decorate with the crystallised ginger or mini gingerbread men.

  7. 7

    Tip - Mix up your icing options with the variations ideas below.
    Orange – Scatter with orange zest or add a little orange juice to the buttercream
    Vanilla – Remove the chocolate and add a teaspoon of vanilla extract to the buttercream
    Spiced – Add a pinch of ground ginger or cinnamon to the buttercream