Mini Gingerbread House Cupcakes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
Scale
- 1.5 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup molasses (unsulphured)
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- Frosting: 1 cup unsalted butter, 3 cups powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- The Houses: 6-8 graham cracker sheets, 1 cup royal icing (for glue), assorted mini candies, and sprinkles
Instructions
- Step 1: Preheat and Prepare Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. This ensures your cupcakes don’t stick and makes cleanup a breeze.
- Step 2: Whisk Dry Ingredients In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, and salt. Mixing these ahead of time ensures the spices are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
- Step 3: Cream Butter and Sugar In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened butter and brown sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy. This usually takes about 2 to 3 minutes with an electric mixer.
- Step 4: Add Wet Ingredients Beat in the egg and molasses until fully combined. Gradually add the flour mixture alternating with the milk, starting and ending with the flour. Mix only until just combined to keep the cupcakes tender.
- Step 5: Bake the Cupcakes Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake liners. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let them cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.
- Step 6: Make the Buttercream Frosting Beat the butter until smooth, then gradually add powdered sugar, vanilla, and heavy cream. Whip on high speed until it looks like fluffy white snow. Transfer to a piping bag with a large round or star tip.
- Step 7: Assemble the Mini Houses Cut graham crackers into small rectangles for walls and triangles for roof gables using a serrated knife. Use thick royal icing to “glue” the pieces together into tiny house shapes. Let them dry for at least 15 minutes.
- Step 8: Final Decoration Pipe a tall mound of frosting onto each cooled cupcake. Gently press a mini gingerbread house into the center of the frosting. Dust with powdered sugar to look like falling snow and add mini candies to the houses if desired.