Hello everyone. As promised here is another lactose free Christmas recipes. This time I wanted to take a class Christmas flavor and give it a delicious twist. Instead of making gingerbread cookies I thought why not make some cupcakes.
I will be the first to admit I am not a huge fan of gingerbread or anything ginger related. I find ginger can be overpowering at times depending on the recipe. This recipe has just the right balance of ginger and spices, which I find quite delicious. Even my father who refuses to touch anything ginger related found this recipe tasty.
My tolerance for ginger is quite low so when you have finished mixing the cupcake batter, grab a spoon and give it a quick taste. If you find that there isn’t much ginger simply add in a little bit more until it reaches your liking.
Something which helps balance out all the spices and ginger is the caramel frosting. I decided to try out a new flavour of Over The Top icing. This brand is my favourite go to icing because it is dairy free and top quality. You can find the caramel icing at many different retailers and baking suppliers.
As always, this recipe is lactose and dairy free providing you use the right ingredients. Make sure you check and double check every ingredient to make sure it is safe
Ingredients
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Gingerbread Cupcakes
- Caramel Drizzle
- Decorating
Instructions
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Gingerbread Cupcakes
- Preheat your oven to 160°C and line a muffin tin with cupcake cases. Batter will make 12 cupcakes.
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In a large bowl place the flour, ginger, mixed spice, cinnamon and brown sugar. Mix well.
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Add in the butter, eggs, milk and vanilla. Mix the cupcake batter until there are no lumps.
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Spoon the mix into the prepared muffin pan. Try to fill them halfway.
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Bake for 20 minutes. Test the cupcakes by inserting a skewer into the center. If it comes out clean, then the cupcake has finished cooking.
- Let the cupcakes sit in the hot pan for a few minutes then transfer onto a wire rack to cool. The longer the cupcakes are sitting in the hot pan the more they will cook. So it is better not to leave them in for too long. The cupcakes need to be cooled completely before we can move onto icing them. You can prepare the cupcakes ahead of time and store them in the fridge in a airtight container. Caramel Drizzle
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Place the water, sugar and salt in a saucepan. Cook on a medium heat until the sugar has dissolved.
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Increase the heat to high. The mixture will clarify and start to bubble. Don’t stir.
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Over time the mixture will start to turn yellow. Eventually it will turn a light brown color. When the mixture has turned a light brown take the mixture off the heat completely. Please keep in mind the color change will happen quickly even after you take it off the heat so I recommend to bring it to a light brown and then take it off rather than wait for it to become completely golden brown.
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The next step is a little bit dangerous. You will need a spoon with a long handle. As soon as you take the sugar off the heat add the cream and margarine. The mixture will quickly bubble up. Use a spoon with a long handle to stir the mixture until the margarine dissolves.
- Pour the caramel into a small bowl and place in the fridge to cool completely. Decorating
- Grab a piping bag and fit it with a Wilton 1M piping tip. Spoon some caramel icing into the bag.
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Get the cooled cupcakes slice the top of the cupcake off to make a flat surface.
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Hold the piping tip straight above the center of the cupcake. Pipe a star in the center, keep piping and bring it around the middle spot to create a basic rose. When you want to stop piping simply ease off the pressure on the bag and keep dragging.
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Grab a small amount of Christmas sprinkles and decorate the tops of the cupcakes focusing on the top of the icing.
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Grab the caramel and spoon it into a piping bag fitted with a small tip(or just cut a small part of the tip off). Pipe the caramel in a zig zag pattern over the cupcake.
- I finished my cupcake by place a little sprinkle gingerbread in the center.
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Serve and enjoy. Happy holidays.
