Thesegingerbread muffinscapture all the warm, spicy goodness of traditional gingerbread in a convenient, grab-and-go breakfast treat that’s perfect for busy holiday mornings or afternoon coffee breaks.

A batch of freshly baked gingerbread muffins topped with sugar crystals resting on a cooling rack. In the background, there are decorative, holiday-themed wooden trees and a red, house-shaped ornament.

There’s something magical about the aroma of gingerbread wafting through your kitchen on a crisp morning. The heavenly aroma while they’re baking is reason enough to make them — your whole house will smell like a cozy holiday morning.

These muffins are a beautiful mash up of classic gingerbread flavors and tender, cake-like texture. The combination of molasses, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves creates thatsignature gingerbread tastewe all know and love, while buttermilk keeps themincredibly moist.

The sparkling sugar topping adds a delightful crunch and festive touch that makes these muffins truly special. Plus, they’re perfect formake-aheadbreakfast or brunch since they store beautifully and can even be frozen for later.

Why You’ll Love This Gingerbread Muffin Recipe

Perfect Texture:The texture is absolutely perfect — tender and moist with a slightly crisp, sugary top.
Sweet & Spicy:These muffins strike the ideal balance between sweet and spicy, making themsuitable for both breakfast and dessert. Talk about double duty!
Make Ahead:Storing these muffins in the freezer for up to 3 months won’t make them less moist, and they will reheat beautifully.
BasicHoliday Ingredients:The ingredients forthese muffinsare pantry staples you likely already have on hand during the holiday season.

🫖 When the cool weather moves in, I break out thespicy muffinrecipes! They’re perfect for mornings, afternoon snacks, or dessert — with coffee or tea.

Recipe Ingredients

Buttermilk
Egg
Molasses
Light oil —such as vegetable, avocado, etc.
All-purpose flour
Brown sugar
Ground spices —ginger, cinnamon, and cloves
Baking powder
Baking soda
Salt
Turbinado sugar —or sparkling sugar

See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.

A variety of baking ingredients are displayed on a white wooden surface. These include flour, brown sugar, sugar, oil, buttermilk, molasses, an egg, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Each is labeled.

How to Make Gingerbread Muffins

An assortment of baking ingredients arranged on a light surface, including flour, brown sugar, milk, an egg, honey, cinnamon, ginger, sugar, baking soda, salt, and vanilla extract in various bowls and measuring cups.

A speckled mixing bowl filled with creamy brown batter sits on a light wooden surface. A wooden spoon is partially submerged in the batter, leaning against the side of the bowl.

Step 1:Set out ingredients to get to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line the tin with paper liners.

Step 2:In a medium sized bowl or a large glass measuring cup, add the buttermilk, egg, molasses, and oil. Whisk to combine well and set aside.

A colorful speckled bowl contains flour and brown liquid mixture with bubbles on the surface. A wooden spoon is partially submerged in the mixture, indicating the process of mixing ingredients. The background is a light textured surface.

A vintage muffin tin filled with uncooked muffins topped with sugar, ready to be baked. The tin has an ornate pattern and is placed on a lightly textured white surface.

Step 3:In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add the wet ingredients, stirring stir to combine.

Step 4:Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups; they will be quite full. Sprinkle the sparkling sugar evenly over the top of the muffin batter in the tins.

A baking tray filled with twelve freshly baked muffins with a golden-brown, crumbly texture sits on a lightly textured white surface. The muffins are evenly distributed and sprinkled with sugar crystals.

Twelve freshly baked muffins topped with sugar crystals rest on a cooling rack. Theyre placed on a red and blue plaid cloth with a wooden background, creating a cozy, homemade atmosphere.

Step 5:Bake for 25-30 minutes until the centers of the muffins are set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Step 6:Allow the muffins to cool for 5-10 minutes in the pan before removing to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Recipe FAQs

Can I make these without buttermilk?

You can make a buttermilk substitute by adding 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to regular milk and letting it sit for 5 minutes. However, real buttermilk will give you the best texture and flavor.

Can I freeze these muffins?

Absolutely! They freeze beautifully for up to 3 months. Just wrap them individually in plastic wrap and store in a freezer bag. Thaw overnight at room temperature or warm briefly in the microwave.

What can I substitute for molasses?

While molasses gives these muffins their characteristic gingerbread flavor, you could substitute dark corn syrup or honey, though the flavor will be noticeably different.

A split muffin with a dollop of butter sits on a white plate, placed on a red plaid cloth. Several whole muffins rest on a cooling rack in the background, next to a bowl of butter.

Expert Tips

Don’t Overmix:Stir the batter just until the dry ingredients are incorporated. Overmixing will lead to tough muffins!
Full is Good:The muffin cups will be quite full — this is intentional and gives you those beautiful domed tops.If you’re worried about overflow, place a baking sheet under the muffin tin while baking.
Sparkly Tops:For the most beautiful presentation, reserve a little of the sparkling sugar to sprinkle on top of any batter that might have been smudged while filling the tins. This ensures every muffin has that perfect sparkly top.
Cooling Tip:Let the muffins cool in the pan for exactly5-10 minutesbefore removing them. Too short, and they might fall apart; too long, and they could become soggy on the bottom.

A batch of ten freshly baked muffins on a cooling rack, placed on a wooden surface. Beside the rack is a small bowl with butter and a spoon, and another bowl with sugar. A red plaid cloth is partially visible under the muffins.

My Favorite Muffins For Tea!

I like a muffin full of flavor to go with a cup of tea or coffee — it just makes the perfect pair! Here are some of my spicy muffin recipes I break out when I want to do atea or coffee time treat:

Super easypumpkin spice muffins— only dirties one bowl!
Apple cinnamon muffinsare my go-to early fall muffin.
Fillingcarrot cake muffinsmake a really good snack to see you through until lunch.