Candied Ginger Spice Mini Muffins Recipe

These Candied Ginger Spice Mini Muffins are a cozy, bite-sized treat that brings all the warmth of the holiday season into every nibble. Imagine a soft, tender muffin with a hint of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves – the kind of flavors that instantly make you feel like curling up under a blanket with a cup of tea. But here’s the twist: each muffin has tiny flecks of candied ginger throughout, adding a delightful chewiness and little bursts of sweet heat that keep you coming back for “just one more.”

These muffins are perfect for fall mornings, holiday brunches, or even as a little snack tucked into a lunchbox. They’re easy to whip up, and because they’re mini, they bake in no time. Plus, the ginger really shines through – it’s like a warm hug, with a little zing! If you’re looking for a recipe that brings together the spices of the season with something a little unexpected, these mini muffins are just the thing.

The holidays wouldn’t be the same without the fresh aroma of baking ginger in the kitchen. We always have a batch of soft and chewy gingerbread cookies on our cookie platter, our gingerbread bars make sharing at work so easy, and baking can be easy with a wow factor. Just look at the gingerbread bundt cake!

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A few items we used to make Candied Ginger Muffins

• Mini Muffin Pans – This pan has 48 cups which makes baking these mini muffins a breeze.
• Muffin papers – I buy this brand now for all my muffin baking. They’re of great quality.

We love to make mini muffins. They’re great because you can have just one (yeah right) or two (getting warmer) and it’s still less than a whole muffin. Plus, they can provide just the right amount of sweetness to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Ginger Mini Muffin Ingredients

Candied Ginger – Also referred to as crystallized ginger is a little hot to just sit around munching on so I was concerned that if anyone bit into a muffin and got a big ole piece of ginger that it wouldn’t be a pleasant experience. Wrong! The ginger became much milder once it was baked and being paired with the spices was a match made in culinary heaven.

Spices – Spice combinations make our ginger muffins taste like warm gingerbread. We use ground ginger in addition to crystalized ginger, ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon, and ground cloves. These cookies are perfectly spiced. Don’t overdo it. Too much spice can cause baked goods to have a “hot” flavor, not a smooth, perfectly balanced, softly spiced flavor.

Unsalted Butter – We use real butter but you can substitute it with a butter substitute. That may affect the flavor, however. If you use salted butter reduce the salt to 1/4 teaspoon.

Eggs – Using fresh grade A large eggs creates structure and stability within the batter and adds moisture to cakes and other baked goods.

Buttermilk – We use full-fat buttermilk. It adds richness to the recipe and the additional fat makes baked goods soft and tender. If you don’t have any, sub yogurt or sour cream or make your own using our instructions found here.

Sugar – We use white granulated sugar and brown sugar in this recipe. The brown sugar adds the slight flavor of molasses which we love. You can use light or dark brown sugar.

How to Make Ginger Mini Muffins

Start by preheating your oven so it’s good and hot for baking. Line your muffin pan with paper cupcake liners or spray with cooking spray.

In a large bowl add the dry ingredients, flour, spices, baking soda, and baking powder.

In a separate bowl combine melted butter, vegetable oil, sugar, brown sugar, buttermilk, and vanilla. Mix thoroughly and then add the eggs one at a time.

Combine the buttermilk mixture with the flour ingredients with a spatula or wooden spoon. Don’t overmix.

Fill your muffin pan 3/4 full and bake.

Variations

There’s so many ways to make these muffins your own. They can be left as is or you can add dried fruit and nuts to the batter.

The tops of our muffins are dusted with powdered sugar. You can add chopped nuts, rolled oats, a sprinkle of ground cinnamon, or a drizzle of vanilla glaze.

These mini muffins can also be made into standard-sized muffins.

How long does it take to bake ginger muffins?

You do not want to overbake your muffins and the best way to ensure they are perfect is to preheat your oven, measure the batter with a cookie scoop to make sure they are properly sized, and bake for the exact amount of time listed in the recipe.

The recipe card says 14-16 minutes so you would check them at 12 minutes and see if a knife, toothpick, or cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs. If they aren’t quite done, add thirty seconds more and continue checking them until the muffins are perfectly baked.

Hostess Tips

Do not overmix the muffin batter. I recommend using a Danish dough whisk, wooden spoon, or a spatula to mix them. This gingerbread muffin recipe comes together so quickly that I don’t use an electric mixer.

To avoid chewy, almost rubbery muffins mix the dry ingredients separately and then combine the dry and wet ingredients gently. This helps prevent overmixing. If you’ve ever taken a bite of a muffin and get a mouthful of salt or baking soda it’s because the dry ingredients weren’t mixed together thoroughly.

I have two mini muffin pans but if you don’t and have to reuse your pan make sure it’s cool before filling and baking.

Serving Suggestions

These soft and airy muffins are the perfect addition to our Italian Sausage and Potatoes for breakfast or with a bowl of our amazing 13 bean soup for dinner. They also make the perfect snack for the kiddos on their way to after school functions.

I hope you enjoyed this delicious recipe as much as we do. Drop me a comment below, and don’t forget to give it a star rating. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. Your comments and ratings help others decide if this recipe is for them too.

If you’re a muffin lover like me here are a few more you’ll LOVE!

• Muffin Recipe Easy
• Rhubarb Muffins
• Mango Muffins
• Lemon Pistachio Muffins
• Harvest Muffins
• Cherry Almond Muffins
• Vanilla Muffins

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Originally released on December 14, 2018, this ginger spice recipe has undergone updates to enhance our readers’ experience. No changes were made to the actual recipe.