Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cardomom Cream Cheese Frosting

If you love gingerbread..these cupcakes are for you!
The molasses and brown sugar give these little cakes a rich deep flavor and the spiced frosting take them over the top..really!
The recipe comes, again, from "The Spice Kitchen". It's hard to move away from this book. Each recipe sounds better and better! I made the Jamaican Jerk Chicken the other day and it was great. ( AndThey have a Macaroni and Cheese recipe that's made without boiling the pasta first. That one will be next.)

The frosting for these cupcakes is an easy cream cheese and confectioners' sugar mix using either green cardomom ( which is the one that's widely available) or you can switch to another spice such as allspice or, what I used, cinnamon. You can also use orange zest rather than the lemon zest , it's up to you. Which ever spice you choose, it's delicious.

Sift or whisk together the flour, spices, zest and salt into a small bowl.
Set aside.

Cream the butter and brown sugar in a mixer bowl til light and fluffy.

Beat in the molasses, egg and vanilla.

In a small bowl ( or a small measuring glass), stir together the boiling water and baking soda.

Blend this mixture into the creamed butter/molasses mixture on low speed.

Then whisk in the flour mixture til combined.

Spoon the batter into your prepared muffin cups, filling about 2/3 full.

Bake about 20 minutes or til a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Now make the frosting.

Cream together the cream cheese and confectioners' sugar in a medium bowl til it's light and fluffy.

Beat in the vanilla. Add the lemon juice, lemon zest ( or orange) and cardamom (or other spice you're using)and beat til fluffy and smooth.

Chill the frosting til ready to use.

Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cardamom Cream Cheese Frosting ( from "The Spice Kitchen")
Makes 12 cupcakes

Cupcakes:

8 tbsp. ( 1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp.

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar ( I used light brown)
1/2 cup molasses

1 egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup boiling water

1 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 cups AP flour

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. ground ginger

1 tsp. ground cloves

1 tsp. dried lemon zest ( I used 2 tsp. fresh zest)
1/4 tsp. salt

Frosting:

8 ozs. cream cheese, room temp.

1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice ( or orange)

2 tsp. dried lemon zest ( or orange) (I used about 3 tsp.)

1 tsp. ground green cardamom ( I used cinnamon)

To make cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease or line with paper liners a standard size muffin pan.

1. Sift or whisk the flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, lemon zest ( or orange), and salt into a small bowl. Set aside.

2. Cream the butter and brown sugar in a mixer bowl til light and fluffy.

3. Beat in the molasses, egg and vanilla.

4. In a small bowl, or glass measuring cup, stir together the boiling water and baking soda.

5. Sti the mixture into the creamed butter/molasses mixture.

6. Whisk the flour mixture into the creamed mixture til combined.

7. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling 2/3 full.

8. Bake about 20 minutes, or til a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

9. Allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting:

1. Cream together cream cheese and sugar in a medium mixing bowl til light and fluffy.

2. Beat in the vanilla.

3. Add the lemon juice ( or orange), lemon zest ( or orange) and cardamom ( or cinnamon or allspice) and beat til fluffy and smooth.

4. Chill the frosting til ready to use.