Perfectly moist and fluffy gingerbread cupcakes topped with the rich, salty sweetness of salted caramel buttercream and adorned with Gingerbread Twix bars!
While Christmas has always been synonymous with those cute little gingerbread cookies we all grew up decorating (and biting the heads off of), I’ve never really liked them. Gingerbread is typically made wth molasses which is a little overwhelming for my tastebuds. I’m also not a huge ginger fan. Although I do have a few red-haired friends that I’m pretty fond of.
This year, however, I decided to give gingerbread a chance by making some gingerbread cupcakes!
My inspiration for the cupcakes came from these Gingerbread Twix bars.
Now, I know I said I don’t really care for gingerbread, but I just HAD to buy at least one bag of these. If I haven’t already mentioned it before, I have a tremendous weakness for “limited edition” or holiday-themed baked goods. I can’t help it.
After trying one of the Twix bars, I was a surprised that both the cookie and the caramel have that subtle gingerbread flavor. Not too overpowering, which is definitely a good thing! They were going to be the perfect little garnish for my cupcakes.
In making these cupcakes, I went back and forth as to how much molasses to use. Like I mentioned earlier, molasses is definitely not my sweetener of choice. However, the cupcakes had to have just enough of that molasses sweetness, or else they wouldn’t truly be gingerbread cupcakes. So I compromised a little by using equal parts molasses and pure maple syrup. I love the luscious, golden sweetness that pure maple syrup lends to baked goods, and I knew it would be able to work its magic with the molasses.
My prayers were definitely answered when I took my first bite. The flavor of the molasses was just enough to remind you of those cute little gingerbread men, and the maple syrup worked its charm with its own subtle sweetness along with the brown sugar.
To get that perfectly moist, yet fluffy crumb, I used Greek yogurt. It’s an ingredient that has never let me down when it comes to keeping cakes or muffins moist, and this time was no different. These cupcakes were PERFECT. Super fluffy, unbelievably moist, ultra light, and not overly dense. Perfect.
As for the frosting? It was kind of a no-brainer. It had to be salted caramel buttercream. I just knew that the caramel would compliment the warm spices of the gingerbread cupcake perfectly. The added salt in the caramel also helped to balance out the overall sweetness.
For the final pièce de résistance, I garnished my little gingerbread beauties with one of the Gingerbread Twix bars (cut in half) and a few shakes of these totally adorbs gingerbread men sprinkles.
Almost too cute to eat.
I said ALMOST…
Twix Gingerbread Cupcakes w/Salted Caramel Buttercream
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 1 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup molasses
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
For the Buttercream
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup shortening*
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- ½ cup caramel sauce
- 9 Gingerbread Twix bars, cut in half
- Sprinkles (optional)
Instructions
To make the Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a 12-count muffin pan with cupcake liners.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice until combined; set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar together on medium speed until lightened and creamy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat in the Greek yogurt, molasses, maple syrup, and vanilla on medium speed.
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Fill cupcake liners 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 19-21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with few crumbs attached. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the Buttercream
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment beat the butter, shortening, and salt together until smooth and creamy. Add 2 cups of powdered sugar and beat until smooth.
- Add the caramel sauce along with the remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar, and beat until lightened and fluffy. Add additional caramel sauce if needed to get the right consistency.
- Frost or pipe buttercream onto cupcakes, as desired. Garnish with Twix bars and sprinkles. Cupcakes keep well covered tightly at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.