Sparkling gingerbread muffins have beautiful crackly tops, robust spice flavor, and are finished with zippy lemon glaze. The combination of ginger and lemon is totally underrated and works SO well in these festive holiday muffins.
Today I’m bringing one of my favorite muffin recipes back into the spotlight. I spruced up the photos and switched an ingredient to make the muffins a little more moist. I know you’ll love them even more now!
Meet the wonderfully spiced and extra moist gingerbread muffins with lemon glaze. Have you ever had the combination of lemon and gingerbread before? Perhaps a gingersnap cookie with a lemon creme filling? Or a spiced gingerbread cupcake with a fluffy lemon buttercream? The pairing may seem odd, but this combination of flavors WORKS. Spicy sweet gingerbread paired with bright & fresh lemon make an unbeatable pair and if you haven’t tried the two together, you are in for a real treat today. Promise.
These Gingerbread Muffins Are:
- Festive for the holiday season
- Like spiced gingerbread loaf in muffin form
- Deep brown and rich in robust gingerbread flavor
- Spiced with ginger, cloves, and cinnamon
- Crackly on top, just like soft molasses cookies
- Easier than making individual gingerbread waffles
- Topped with sparkling sugar for crunch
- Garnished with lemon glaze. YUM!
I love making muffins because they’re quicker than bread, cake, scones, cookies (if you need to chill the cookie dough), and basically easier than any other baked good. Prepare the batter, spoon into muffin liners and bake. No need to wait hours for them to cool, either. Just EAT them. Whenever I need a homemade treat for make ahead baking or bringing to a neighbor, friend, etc—I make muffins 99% of the time.
How to Make Gingerbread Muffins
- Warm molasses and butter together. This is an extra step, but takes about 1 minute in the microwave. We need melted butter for this muffin batter, so I always warm it with the molasses. Why warm the molasses, you ask? Same reason why I warm water and molasses together for my gingerbread cake. Because molasses is really thick and heavy right out of the bottle. We need to thin it out so it combines with the other ingredients. The warm molasses and butter need to slightly cool before adding the egg, so prep the dry ingredients next.
- Whisk the dry ingredients together. Nothing weird here—just flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ground ginger, and cloves.
- Mix in the other wet ingredients. Whisk brown sugar, 1 egg, milk, and yogurt into the butter/molasses. My original recipe called for 3/4 cup yogurt and 1/4 cup milk and, quite frankly, it made a pretty heavy muffin. Delicious, sure, but last year I began thinning out the batter with a higher ratio of milk. You need 1 cup total, so I use 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup yogurt. If you don’t have yogurt, use sour cream.
- Combine wet & dry ingredients. Smells good already!
- Spoon into muffin liners. If you don’t have muffin liners, grease your 12-count muffin pan. Fill the cups all the way to the top—filling is easy because the batter is thick and spoon-able.
- Add crunchy sugar. Sparkling sugar is my favorite secret ingredient for topping scones and pies because it adds sparkle and crunch. Just as we coat molasses cookies with granulated sugar, coat the muffins with coarse sugar. Coarse Sugar in the Raw is a wonderful option, too!
- Bake: The muffins take a little over 20 minutes.
- Top with lemon icing: More on that below!
Baker’s Tip: The muffin batter is thick—this helps create a denser muffin-like texture. Gingerbread cupcakes batter, on the other hand, is a little thinner because we’re looking for a lighter cupcake texture.
What Else Makes These Muffins So Special?
The muffins themselves aren’t overly sweet, so they’re perfect for breakfast, snack, or even a light dessert. We need 1/2 cup of brown sugar for the whole batter, plus 3/4 cup of molasses. Molasses isn’t nearly as sweet as regular sugar, so don’t expect a cloyingly sweet treat. Sometimes I skip the glaze and sparkling sugar on top—and guess what? The muffins are still perfectly flavorful and well-loved.
Use dark brown sugar if you have it. It has more molasses flavor than light brown sugar. Don’t make a special trip to the store if you don’t have it, though. Light (regular) brown sugar is totally fine in this recipe.
Need a snack as you bake Christmas cookies, open gifts, or sip coffee with your friends? These jolly gingerbread muffins fit literally any and all holiday occasions. 😉
Lemon Glaze
Let’s move on to that sweet and tangy lemon glaze—a drippy coating that pairs perfectly with the deep, dark, spiced muffin underneath.
Grab your confectioners’ sugar, a touch of milk, and the juice of a lemon. You can control the lemon flavor and the thickness of it—use more/less lemon juice, more/less sugar, and more/less milk. If you’re not feeling the lemon/ginger combination, keep the muffins plain or use vanilla icing instead.
The Trick for Tall Muffin Tops
And one more thing before I leave you with the recipe! Fill your muffin tins all the way to the top. Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425°F degrees, then for about 15-16 minutes at 350°F degrees. This initial high oven temperature lifts the muffin top up quickly and creates a tall crust, which is why filling the muffin tins to the top is imperative.
Most muffins bake between 350°F – 375°F for the entire time. Setting the oven to 425°F initially and then lowering the temperature after 5 minutes guarantees muffins with tall, sugar-crusted, crackly tops. I do this with all my muffin recipes!
More Gingerbread Recipes
- Upside-Down Pear Gingerbread Cake
- Chocolate Gingerbread Bundt Cake
- Gingerbread Cookies
- Homemade Gingerbread House
- Soft Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls
- Gingerbread Waffles
- Gingerbread Cookie Bars
- Gingerbread Cake
- Gingerbread Latte Cookies
Gingerbread Muffins with Sweet Lemon Glaze
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 12-14 muffins
- Category: Muffins
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These gingerbread muffins have beautiful crackly tops, robust spice flavor, and are finished with zippy lemon glaze. Feel free to skip the glaze for plain gingerbread muffins. See last step for freezing instructions.
Ingredients
Gingerbread Muffins
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup (180ml) unsulphured or dark molasses (do not use blackstrap; I prefer Grandma’s brand)
- 2 and 2/3 cups (334g) all purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 and 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120g) plain yogurt or sour cream, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120ml) milk, at room temperature*
- optional: coarse sugar for sprinkling
Lemon Glaze
- 1 cup (120g) confectioners’ sugar (or more, as needed)
- 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Generously grease a 12-count muffin pan with butter or nonstick spray or line with muffin liners. Set aside.
- Cut the butter into smaller pieces so it melts easier. In a large microwave-safe bowl, heat the butter and molasses together in the microwave on high for about 1 minute. Whisk until thoroughly mixed together. Set aside to slightly cool as you mix the dry ingredients together.
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves together.
- Into the molasses/butter mixture, whisk the brown sugar, egg, yogurt, and milk until all wet ingredients are combined. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and whisk until *just* combined. Do not over-mix. Batter will be thick and a little lumpy.
- Divide batter among prepared muffin pan, filling all the way to the top. Sprinkle with coarse sugar (for added crunch, recommended!), if desired. Bake at 425°F for 5 minutes, then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C) and continue to bake for 15-16 minutes until the tops are cracked and centers are set. Use a toothpick to test. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes in pan before glazing and serving.
- Make the glaze: As the muffins cool, prepare your lemon glaze by mixing all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl. If desired, add more confectioners’ sugar to thicken or more milk to thin out. Drizzle on top of warm muffins. Icing will set as the muffins cool, so these are great for storing and/or transporting.
- Cover leftover (iced or plain) muffins and store at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week. Muffins (iced or plain) freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or on the counter.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-count Muffin Pan | Muffin Liners | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Coarse Sugar | Citrus Juicer
- Molasses: I prefer Grandma’s brand dark molasses, but you can also use a light or mild molasses. I do not recommend blackstrap because of its extremely intense/bitter flavor.
- Milk: I use whole milk in these muffins, but you can use lower fat milks or nondairy milk if needed.
- Jumbo Muffins or Mini Muffins: For 6-7 jumbo size muffins, bake in a 6-count jumbo muffin pan, increase baking time to 26-30 total minutes: 5 initial minutes at 425°F and 21-25 minutes at 350°F. For about 50 mini muffins, bake for 11-12 minutes at 350°F the entire time.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I’m pretty sure these are the best muffins I have ever had! The perfect Winter muffin!! I have been baking for over 30 years, so I’ve seen a few muffin recipes in my time, lol. I have never tried the tip of baking at 425 for 5 minutes to start. Works like a charm! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!
I made these muffins today, and was somewhat disappointed. I found them to be very dry, and even my hubby who will eat anything, thought they were very dry. I’m not sure what I may have done, but I followed the recipe to the letter. I use Nordicware bake ware, I don’t if that would cause a problem, and I do have a convection oven, so I know things will cook quicker, do to the even heating. Any help would be appreciated.
Hi Wendy! Did you follow the recipe exactly? They’re definitely denser muffins, but they shouldn’t taste dry. They could have been over-baked, which quickly dries out muffins and quick breads. Or I’m wondering if the flour was over-measured. Make sure you are spooning and leveling it into the measuring cup, not packing it down.
Thank you for your response. I did measure as per your instructions in the recipe, the taste is phenomenal, it was just the dryness. I’m wondering if it was the oven heat. They were not over baked because I tend to set my timer for a less amount of time, because it is a convection oven. Other than that, I’m completely befuddled. Like I say, flavour is amazing, they are just very dry. I used all purpose flour, would that make a difference?
If you are using a convection oven did you lower the temperature? I always bake on conventional settings but the general rule is that if you are using a convection heat you should lower the temperature by 25 degrees (and it might also take a shorter amount of time to bake). If you have the option next time you try them try a conventional oven!
How would you modify this recipe for jumbo muffins? Would you just adjust baking time? I’d love to try this but really prefer the jumbo muffin size. 🙂
Hi Elizabeth! You can definitely use this recipe to make jumbo gingerbread muffins. I recommend following the same baking time/temperatures for my jumbo blueberry muffins.
Was wondering if a crumb topping like your pumpkin muffins would work on these muffins
Absolutely! You can use the crumb topping from my pumpkin crumb muffins and replace the pumpkin pie spice with cinnamon.
Oh my goodness! These are the best muffins!!! Thank you for sharing the awesome recipe!
These turned out great! Thanks for the weight measurement, I like to weigh my flour. Saving this recipe! The nurses at work loved these muffins. It made their day today:) Happy Thanksgiving!
I made the gingerbread muffins first thing this morning. I had been craving gingerbread for a while when I came upon your recipe. I didn’t glaze them, and I couldn’t wait unil they were cooled, so I threw one in the fridge for a couple of mins. It was heaven in my mouth! Thanks for sharing your wonderful recipe.
These are in my oven right now! I’m planning to put them in the kids lunch boxes (they love all things gingerbread!) so I skipped the glaze to avoid sticky fingers and just put the white sugar on top (regular, I didn’t have the coarse kind)…they look amazing, which is not unexpected because even the batter tasted so good! Thanks for another amazing recipe!
Ok…so help. My husband is allergic to cinnamon! There are soooo many things I don’t bake bc of this. For this recipe, could I substitute allspice and still get the flavor? I love gingerbread and these would be great Christmas morning.
Hi Kelly! Sometimes allspice contains cinnamon, so I would avoid that. Simply leave out the cinnamon and add a pinch extra of ginger and/or cloves. Or even add 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg, too!
These are delicious! The lemon glaze totally makes them! I doubled the recipe to feed my hungry boys and it turned out just fine. Definitely my new go-to gingerbread muffin recipe for fall!
I’m a huge fan if molasses and everything gingerbread. However I also like to be more gluten free
Any idea how much almond flour and /or gluten free flours I could substitute? I’ve made my own substitutions on smaller recipes but this one I don’t want to waste all the good ingredients by getting it wrong.
Hi Susan! While I haven’t personally tried it, you can try using a cup for cup gluten free flour for the all-purpose flour. I do not recommend almond flour.
This is such a FANTASTIC gingerbread muffin recipe!! Loved the crispy tops when they were fresh out the oven, and then the next day, wow they are so fudgy and even tastier! Thanks Sally! 🙂
Hi Sally
I haven’t made these yet because I have a question before I make these- I love this time of year!! You are the best !! I have apple butter that I would love to use in this recipe- how would I incorporate apple butter in these wonderful muffins! Looking forward to hearing from you!!
Warm Regards
Elisabeth Wasvick
Hi Elisabeth! You could try swirling apple butter into the muffin batter after everything is mixed together. Start with about 1/2 cup. 🙂
These were absolutely delicious, easy to make, and a hit with everyone who’s tried them. The lemon glaze is the perfect counterpoint to the warm spices. Thanks for the great recipe, and for the new-to-me tip of an initial hot blast in the oven. My muffins were loftier than usual!
I have always had success with your recipes, however, this one was a fail for me. I double checked ingredients and I added everything. The muffins were dense, and needed more sweetness. I’m not sure what I did wrong. My husband are them anyway! Is 3 cups of flour correct? That’s the only thing I can think of that made them so dense.
Hi Laurie, If they turned out dense make sure you are using full fat yogurt or sour cream and milk, and also make sure you are spooning and leveling (and not scooping) the flour.
Thank you reply. It was totally MY fail! I went back and retraced my steps twice and figured out I forgot to add the baking soda. I knew something was wrong because I’ve never had a problem with your recipes. Thank you for your continued support.
This muffin just hit the spot. I think it may be my favourite muffin ever. Perfectly soft with the perfect amount of sweetness. I’m not sure it really even needs the glaze 🙂
Great recipe, Sally! Thank you.
I’m already baking these as I write these. they look very good in the oven. rising beautifully … After the ‘master muffin recipe’ (cranberry/orange), I just had to try a new muffin recipe! 🙂
Just wanted to add: I sprinkled some slivered almonds on top as well (and the recommended sugar). I figured it would pair well with the autumnal flavours …
These muffins are so good and packed with so much flavor! They smelled so wonderful while they were baking this afternoon. I absolutely love these muffins ♥️.
Can yellow raisins be added?
Absolutely. I recommend anywhere between 1 – 1 and 1/2 cups.
Looks absolutely delicious! I think I’m gonna make some this morning. I do not have any yogurt in the house but I have sour cream. Can I substitute for sour cream for the Greek yogurt?
Absolutely. Same amount!
Anyone tried Greek yogurt for this?
I usually use non-fat greek yogurt!
Molasses is also called Treacle in the UK. Maybe in India it is called Treacle too.
My favorite gingersnap cookie recipe calls for a small amount of finely ground black pepper. I think I might add it to this recipe when I try it, maybe only about 1/4 tsp for the first time. Those who can’t get molasses might try any kind of dark syrup or honey with some ground anise added — if they can get those things…
Hi Sally! Love your recipes and would like to try this one. I would like to make mini muffins, could you please advise on what temp and how long to bake for those?
Thanks so much!
-Kay
Hi Kay! About 11-13 minutes, 350F. 🙂 Let me know how you like the gingerbread muffins!
The same thing happened to me as Julie. I had too much batter for the 12 muffin tin so I had to pack a lot of it in. I also have an electric stove. The muffins turned out dry, more toward the bottom of the muffin. Everyone loved the glazed though. Maybe if you have an electric stove, just cook for 25ish minutes at 375.
I made these today, couldn’t wait! I had a lot of batter left after filling the cupcake tin (12 muffins). Since the recipe said it makes 12, I made sure to put all of the batter into the 12 cavities, almost packing it in. I did the 450 then lower. The cupcakes came out very dry and dense. I am wondering if you use an electric stove or gas stove? I have an electric stove, and even though the temp gets lowered it takes a bit for it to actually lower, unlike a gas stove. Also was the batter supposed to be packed in or put in loosely? Thanks!
Hello Sally! Just out of curiosity, could I follow this entire recipe but put the batter into a bundt cake pan? Will everything set and maintain a soft and caky texture like the muffins? Thank you!
There won’t be enough batter for a Bundt. You may have to 1.5x the recipe. I’m unsure of the bake time.
I made these Christmas Eve morning and loved them! I am a huge fan of gingerbread and couldn’t resist tasting one while they cooled – the flavor was spot on and seriously could be served as is. Well, I thought that prior to adding the glaze. I now know that the glaze enhanced the flavor of the gingerbread and made them even more amazing!
I made these last weekend and they were a hit! As I was mixing them up I realized I only had about 1/3 cup molasses and they still turned out super yummy! I also didn’t have cloves because I wasn’t willing to pay the outrageous price our store had them as. I will definitely be making them again when we need another gingerbread fix!
Hi Hamsa! I actually have a gingerbread loaf recipe AND gingerbread cake recipe– both developed from this muffin batter. I know you’ll enjoy both!