With mellow yet flavorful warm spices and a super easy method, these Gingerbread Muffins are (dare I say it) perfect. They store really well for days and are an easy holiday breakfast or snack to share with the family.
Cozy spices and a hint of molasses make these muffins a winter favorite—especially since they are easy to make and store. They are a great addition to a make-ahead Christmas breakfast or holiday brunch, whether or not you add the gold sprinkles on top.
I love recipes like this that help introduce new flavors in an approachable way. My kids have really enjoyed these.
We love to eat them plain, with a smear of butter or cream cheese, or alongside eggs and bacon. I particularly enjoy them for my own afternoon snack with a cup of coffee.
As with all of my healthy muffins for kids, I keep the added sugars low, the nutrition varied, and the ingredients approachable. There’s some yogurt in here for extra nutrients and allergy-friendly swaps in the “Notes” section of the recipe at the bottom of the post.
(You may also like my Easy Gingerbread Cookies, Gingerbread Cake and my Gingerbread Pancakes for more cozy gingerbread flavors—and don’t forget my festive Christmas Pancakes.)
Table of Contents
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Ingredients You Need
To make this Gingerbread Muffin Recipe, here’s a look at what you need to have on hand so you know what to get from the store or from the pantry.
- Whole wheat flour: I use this type of flour for a little extra nutrition.
- Baking soda: This ensures the muffins bake through properly, so check to make sure it’s fresh.
- Ground ginger: There is a lot of ground ginger in this recipe which, along with the allspice and molasses, give it the classic gingerbread flavor.
- Ground allspice (or cloves) and cinnamon: These spices add classic gingerbread flavor.
- Brown sugar: This adds just enough sweetness in the recipe.
- Molasses: Molasses, blackstrap or another kind, helps ensure the muffins are both moist and taste like gingerbread. Look for it near the maple syrup in your supermarket. Any kind will work.
- Eggs: Eggs in muffins help them bake through and stay moist and fluffy.
- Vanilla extract: A little vanilla adds an undertone of flavor that’s really nice in gingerbread recipes.
- Plain yogurt: You can use regular whole-milk plain yogurt or Greek style. They work similarly in this recipe
- Unsalted butter: I prefer to bake with unsalted butter so I can control the salt in the recipe, so that’s what I call for here.
Ingredient Substitutions
If you don’t have molasses, you can use honey—though the flavor and color will not be the quite same.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at the process involved in this Gingerbread Muffin recipe. Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe, including the amounts and the timing.
Step 1. Whisk together the wet ingredients, getting any lumps out of the yogurt. It may take a minute.
Step 2. Stir together the dry ingredients. (This helps to make sure the salt and baking soda are evenly distributed.)
Step 3. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet, making sure everything is thoroughly combined.
Step 4. Divide among a prepared standard-size muffin tin. Sprinkle with decorating sugar, optional, and bake.
TIP: Please note this recipe makes 11 regular-size muffins. You can add blueberries for a burst of fresh fruit, and that option will deliver 12 muffins. In my testing, this mixture of ingredients delivered perfect and consistent results and honestly, I didn’t want to mess with it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you’ll just want to reduce the baking time and use a 24 cup mini muffin pan. See the Notes at the bottom of the recipe for the full information.
You can use coarse sugar or a colored decorating sugar. I usually use gold and it shows up beautifully.
If you want them to really taste like gingerbread, then yes. If you don’t care so much and just want the general idea of gingerbread, you can swap in an equal amount of honey.
These homemade muffins are fluffy, just sweet enough, and filled with cozy warm spices. I cannot guarantee that they taste like one from a bakery (that would depend on which bakery we’re talking about too!), but they are delicious.
How to Store
Once the Gingerbread Muffins are cooled, store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days. You can also store them in the fridge if you’d like, though they do firm up a little when cold.
To freeze muffins, let cool fully and place into a zip-top freezer bag. Remove as much air as possible, seal, and freeze for up to 6 months. Thaw at room temperature or overnight in the fridge.
Best Tips for Success
- If you don’t have molasses, you can swap in honey. The muffins will taste less like gingerbread, though.
- Serve at room temperature or slightly warm, plain or topped with butter or cream cheese.
- Dairy-free: Use vegetable or coconut oil in place of the butter and ¾ cup nondairy milk in place of the yogurt.
- Gluten-free: Use a 1:1-style gluten-free flour blend such as the one from King Arthur Flour.
- Egg-free: Omit the eggs. Add ½ cup milk and proceed with the recipe.
Related Recipes
I’d love to hear your feedback on this recipe if you try it, so please comment below to share!
Favorite Gingerbread Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup unsalted butter (melted and cooled slightly)
- ¼ cup molasses
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup brown sugar (lightly packed)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon allspice (or cloves)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Coarse or decorating sugar, optional (gold is pretty here!)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease 11 cups of a standard-size muffin tin with nonstick spray. (They may stick to paper liners.)
- In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, eggs, butter, molasses, and vanilla. (Yogurt can be lumpy so try to whisk it smooth.)
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, ground ginger, allspice, and salt.
- Gently fold the flour mixture into the yogurt mixture.
- Divide the mixture among the prepared muffin tin, using ¼ cup batter in each. Sprinkle the tops with coarse or decorating sugar if desired.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for a minute, then run a knife around the edges and transfer muffins to a wire rack to cool.
Equipment
Notes
- Once cooled, store Gingerbread Muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days. You can also store them in the fridge if you’d like, though they do firm up a little when cold.
- If you don’t have molasses, you can swap in honey. The muffins will taste less like gingerbread, though.
- Serve at room temperature or slightly warm, plain or topped with butter or cream cheese.
- Dairy-free: Use vegetable or coconut oil in place of the butter and ¾ cup nondairy milk in place of the yogurt.
- Gluten-free: Use at 1:1-style gluten-free flour blend such as the one from King Arthur Flour.
- Egg-free: Omit the eggs. Add ½ cup milk and proceed with the recipe.
- Stir in 1 cup blueberries if desired.
Nutrition
This post was first published October 2021.
Wow, these are great! Nice flavor and sweetness—not heavy at all. I love the muffins with yogurt; I’m always needing to use up the last cup. 🙂 Ha!
So easy, and the whole family loved them. I’m definitely going to make them again! Thank you for the recipe 🙂
Sounds perfect for the holidays! Is there anything we can substitute for the sugar for kids under 2 like bananas or applesauce?
I might do applesauce or apple butter (which might be the best!) for the molasses and omit the brown sugar. Though maybe 1-2 tbsp molasses for the flavor (and the sugar would be really minimal spread across the whole batch).
Delicious!!
I substituted the apple sauce as you recommended. I used about 1/2 cup apple sauce, 2 tablespoon molasses and 1 tablespoon brown sugar. I also added a small mix of hemp (for extra protein)and chia seeds as I was worried it was going to be too wet with the extra apple sauce ( decrease flour to 1 and 1/8th cup). Baked in mini muffin pan for 10 minutes and Topped with cinnadust!
As a side note- I have to thank you from the bottom of my heart for introducing me (and now my kids) to ingredients like hemp, flax and chia. We didn’t grow up eating these. My 3 year old is so picky these days and sometimes your baked goods are the only things she eats all day. So I love that your recipes are so nutritious !
Wow – these were amazing! I made them gluten-free and dairy-free using the substitutions suggested and they are delicious. Thank you again for another stellar recipe, Amy!
This is my first time posting a comment, which I had to do because these were SUCH a hit with my 2-year old (and my husband and myself)! Our son hasn’t liked anything gingerbread-flavored all season, but he ate almost an entire one in just a few minutes after taking his first bite. The flavor is exactly as Amy describes: mild but distinctive (don’t skip the molasses!), very approachable for any audience. We’ll be making them again over Christmas (and well after the holiday season is over). Thank you Amy!
You’re so welcome and I’m so glad to hear all of that!
These are fantastic! I made a batch yesterday morning and my family of three has eaten all but 2! They are especially delicious with cream cheese spread on them.
I am so glad to hear it and I agree with the cream cheese! (I’ve seen a lot of people topping with whipped cream which also sounds delish!)
Just made these and they are delicious! Smells delicious too! My girls and I loved them! Will definitely make again!
These came out terrific! I added a bit of flaxseed to the dry mixture. Great for the holiday season.
Made these tonight – they were delicious and all three of my kids loved them!
How do you make these as mini muffins?
Everything is the same but the bake time would be 10-12 minutes.
Is it crazy to attempt replacing the yogurt with pumpkin puree? I just think pumpkin & gingerbread go so well together!
It has a similar consistency so it’s possible it would work similarly!
Loved these!
Wow! These are divine and my house smells like Christmas. Beautiful spices and not overly sweet. Was out of yogurt so I subbed 3/4c applesauce + 1/4c milk and it worked so nicely. My twin toddlers are going to devour these in the morning… if husband and I don’t finish them off tonight. Thanks for all the great recipes!
I’m so glad to hear that and I’m glad to know that that applesauce method worked well!
I just made this muffin, turned out so lovely!!! It tastes so good too!! Thank you so much for this recipe, I love all your recipes as they are healthier too!!!
Muffins are just love. Waiting to try it out.