Gingerbread cookies aren’t the only way to enjoy the flavor of ginger during the holidays. These bite-sized cupcakes get an extra zing from candied ginger, and are topped with luscious cream cheese frosting. The small size is great portion control too!

Ingredients
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons sifted cake flour
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons lightly packed, finely grated lemon zest
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
1/2 cup finely chopped candied ginger

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line three miniature muffin pans (with 12 cups each) with miniature paper cupcake liners.

Sift the cake flour with the ground ginger, nutmeg, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Whisk to ensure thorough mixing. Using a hand mixer, beat the butter in a medium bowl on medium speed until smooth, about 1 min. Add 3 tablespoons of the sugar, the vanilla, and lemon zest; beat on medium speed for 1 min. Add the remaining sugar, about 2 tablespoons at a time, beating for a few seconds after each addition. Scrape the bowl and beat for another 2 min. Add the egg and beat on medium-high until very smooth, about 1 min.

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Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, filling each cup about three-quarters full. (Use two regular teaspoons: one to pick up the batter, one to push it off.) Don’t smooth the batter.

Arrange the pans in the oven so that there’s a bit of space between them and bake until the cupcakes are pale golden and spring back when gently pressed in the center, about 17 minutes. Let the cupcakes cool completely on wire racks before frosting (see below for frosting recipe).

Cream Cheese Frosting

This delectable recipe is from my Joy of Cooking cookbook. According to “Joy”, the secret to getting perfectly thick and smooth cream cheese frosting is to use cold cream cheese and not to over-beat it. They’re right!

Ingredients
8 ounces cold cream cheese
5 tablespoons room temperature unsalted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Chopped candied ginger, for garnish (optional)

In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until just blended. Add the powdered sugar, 1/3 cup at a time, and beat just until smooth. Stir in the lemon juice.

I used a gallon-sized freezer Ziploc bag to pipe the frosting onto my cupcakes. Simply cut off a tiny portion of one of the bottom corners of the bag (around 1/4-inch diameter) and then fill the bag with about 2 cups of the frosting. Grip the top of the bag with one hand and gently squeeze the frosting down to the bottom of the bag. Starting at the outside of the cupcake, squeeze the bag while moving your hand in a circle around the edge of the cupcake. Continue making the circle, smaller with each pass, until you reach the center of the cupcake. This should give you that ice cream cone look that you see in my photo. Garnish with chopped candied ginger, if desired.

Be sure to store these cupcakes in the refrigerator, since the frosting is perishable.