I think I am subconsciously going for a record for the most gingerbread themed baking before Christmas. I mean, it’s purely coincidence due to my love of gingerbread, but seriously, it is getting out of control! I probably should have changed my blog name to something about gingerbread with the amount of recipes that revolve around it. I hope that you all love gingerbread as much as me, otherwise you might not be enjoying the recipes as much as I am. It’s most certainly making my blog very Christmassy that’s for sure!
On a Sunday afternoon my partner needed to finish of some work, and so I was left with the choice between blobbing out and watching TV, or baking something tasty! I actually took the first option for a little while, but then I decided it would be more fun and productive for me to bake. I figured not only would it be a great chance to test out a recipe, but it would also make my boyfriend’s day a little better. Working on a Sunday sucks, but baked goods can make it a little bit better!
So I was trying to decide what to make, and going through some delicious recipes on Pinterest, and I came across a delicious sounding recipe for gingerbread muffins. I can’t believe I’ve never made them before, given my obsession with gingerbread. What could be better than a deliciously spiced muffin fresh out of the oven? I was sold. So I set about baking them, but decided to add my own little twist. I figured the muffins could be made that much better with the addition of some dark chocolate, because who doesn’t love a muffin that you crack open to gooey melted chocolate? It pretty much combines my two favourite things into one delicious muffin.
I was a little skeptical of using as much spice as the recipe called for, because it did ask for a lot more than I’ve ever seen in a gingerbread recipe before. However, I’m glad that I did because these muffins really delivered on flavour! They were the perfect treat straight out of the oven while they were still warm! That’s the best way to eat muffins in my opinion, I swear cold muffins never taste as good as those that are still warm and freshly baked.
- 125 grams of cubed butter room temperature
- ½ cup of dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon of mixed spice
- 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of ground ginger
- A pinch of salt
- ¼ cup of milk
- 1 cup of self-raising flour
- 200 grams of dark chocolate chopped into chunks
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Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius and line a muffin tray with muffin cases.
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Beat butter, sugar, vanilla extract and salt in a large bowl until light and fluffy.
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Add eggs, mixed spice, cinnamon and ginger and beat for one minute.
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Add the flour and milk and beat until well combined, and then put the chocolate in and mix through until evenly distributed through the mixture.
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Scoop the mixture into the muffin cases and fill each one about 2/3 of the way full. Sprinkle the tops with a bit of cinnamon.
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Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes or until the muffins are cooked through and golden brown on top. Remove from the oven and cool in cases on a wire rack.
These muffins were full of flavour and the best part was that when you broke them apart you got gooey, delicious chocolate throughout! Just make sure you evenly spread the chocolate, because the first muffin I had was full of delicious chocolate, but sadly my boyfriend ended up with one that had no chocolate in it! Good thing I baked more than one!
If you aren’t a fan of strong gingerbread flavours, you could halve the amount of spice you put into the cupcakes. The spices were quite strong, but I think the addition of chocolate really helped to balance it out. If you love gingerbread, these are certainly the baked goods for you! What’s more, they were really quite simple to make, and after only 15 minutes you’ll have delicious, gooey muffins ready for eating straight out of the oven! Make sure that you taste test them fresh for optimal deliciousness!
These little muffins would make for great gifts if you are willing to share! I can imagine putting them in some cute Christmas themed muffin cases and wrapping them up to give as simple but delicious gifts for family and friends. I’d be pretty chuffed to get such delicious muffins for a gift!
Until next time, Happy Eating!
Ella xx
