Gingerbread is definitely the flavor of the holidays, which comes in many different baked goods like; cookies, cakes, pastries and of course, gingerbread houses. On Christmas morning, I like to bake up these amazing gingerbread muffins because the combination of molasses, cinnamon, cloves, along with a bit of ground ginger and candied ginger gives them the perfect amount of spice, but you don’t necessarily need to wait for December 25th.
During the holiday season, I often bake a gingerbread house to stage on the Christmas buffet, however muffins are a much easier way to enjoy gingerbread, trust me. The warm baked, aromatically spiced treat will give you the same satisfaction as a gingerbread cookie drizzled with icing, but with a softer crumb.
These muffins are great for a holiday brunch, or left out for Santa on Christmas Eve, instead of cookies right under the stockings. The taste is so reminiscent of the season that you can be anywhere in the world and know it’s Christmastime.
Ingredients
1 stick butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup molasses
2/3 cup milk
1/3 cup crystallized ginger or candied ginger
1/2 cup powdered sugar, for dusting
(Makes 1 Dozen)
To Prepare:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with paper cups and spray with cooking oil.
2. In a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar on high speed for 2 minutes. Drizzle in vanilla extract and mix together for another minute.
3. Add eggs one at a time on high speed until incorporated, about 2 minutes.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk flour, salt, baking powder, powdered ginger, cinnamon and cloves. Add dry mixture to batter and mix on low speed for 1 minute. Add molasses and mix on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds. Add milk and continue to mix batter on low speed for 1 minute.
5. Chop candied ginger and add it to batter. Mix on low speed to combine, about 30 seconds. Remove bowl from mixer and stir batter by-hand to make sure all ingredients are combined. You can cover and refrigerate batter at this point and scoop out in the morning, or go ahead and bake.
6. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop batter into paper-lined cups. Bake muffins for 18-22 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove muffins from pan and dust with powdered sugar. Serve with your favorite hot beverage. Enjoy!
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