The holiday season calls for healthy gingerbread cupcakes with homemade chai cream cheese frosting! These cupcakes are made with whole wheat pastry flour, sweetened with dates, and have the best gingery flavor. They’re soft and not overly sweet – easy to make and perfect to share with friends and family!
Healthy Gingerbread Cupcupcakes Recipe Sweetened with Dates
I’m a sucker for gingerbread cookies, gingerbread men, and gingersnaps. I just love that ginger and spiced flavor so much!
I knew I needed to bring those flavors into a cupcake/muffin and this recipe hit it out of the park – the flavors and textures are spot on!
Plus that cream cheese chai frosting… oh my goodness, yum!
I used my healthy cream cheese frosting as the base for that frosting but did a little swap and added the chai spice I use in my chai hot chocolate recipe. The result? A creamy, slightly spiced, lightly sweetened frosting that pairs perfectly with the cupcake base.
Report back when you try these, I think you’re going to love them!
Why you’ll love this date-sweetened cupcake recipe
Lower in sugar – The main sweetener in the cupcakes is dates! I love using dates as a sweetener because they add more fiber & vitamins to treats and allow me to use less refined sugar. Plus the caramel flavor you get from dates pairs really well with the ginger and dark molasses.
Mixed in one bowl – I love a good one-bowl recipe! Once the wet ingredients are mixed together, we’ll simply add the dry ingredients on top, give it a quick mix and the cupcake batter is ready to go! Easy peasy, with fewer dishes (huge win!).
Nourishing ingredients – There are many swaps we are making from a traditional cupcake recipe to bring more nourishing ingredients into the mix. Instead of all-purpose flour, we’re using whole wheat pastry flour. Dates are the main sweetener, and blackstrap molasses is added, which is a good source of iron, too! The cream cheese frosting is also sweetened with honey and no powdered sugar.
Wholesome ingredients you’ll need for this delicious recipe
Scroll down to view the recipe card below for the full ingredients list, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions.
- medjool dates
- unsweetened almond milk
- egg
- unsalted butter
- black strap molasses
- vanilla extract
- whole wheat pastry flour
- natural cane sugar
- baking powder
- baking soda
- cinnamon
- ground ginger
- clove
- sea salt
- Batch of chai cream cheese frosting
How to make gingerbread cupcakes
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake pan with 10 cupcake liners (paper or silicone muffin liners work great!).
Step 2: Heat water to a boil and pour 1 cup of hot water over the dates to soak for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, blend the dates and water to make a date paste.
Step 3: Add the date paste, milk, egg, butter, molasses, and vanilla into a large bowl. Whisk until smooth.
Step 4: Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and sea salt into the same bowl. Gently mix the dry ingredients and then mix them with the wet ingredients.
Step 5: Scoop the cupcake batter into the prepared pan and bake for 18-20 minutes, until the tops of the muffins spring back when gently pressed. Allow them to fully cool before topping them with chai cream cheese frosting! Top with a star anise or cinnamon!
Watch me make fluffy healthy gingerbread muffins into cupcakes!
The full how to video can be watched below, or on my YouTube channel!
Can you make these without frosting?
Absolutely! The muffin part of the cupcake is delicious on its own and makes super nourishing breakfast muffins.
Bake the muffin batter in your muffin tin, let it cool slightly, and enjoy!
By opting not to add the frosting, you’ll be keeping this spiced muffin even lower in sugar than the cupcake option.
How to store
Because the cupcakes are topped with a cream cheese frosting, you’ll want to store cooled cupcakes in an airtight container in the fridge for 5-7 days.
If you choose to make fluffy muffins without frosting, they can be stored on the counter at room temperature in a sealed container for 5 days or up to 7 days in the fridge.
Both the cupcakes and the muffins can be frozen!
Freeze individual cupcakes on a sheet pan in the freezer, and once frozen solid transfer them to an airtight container or a freezer bag. They will keep frozen for up to 6 months.
Defrost your cupcakes at room temperature on the counter or overnight in the fridge.
Substitutions, optional variations & dietary adjustments
Below you’ll find a list of substitutions that will work well in this lightly sweet healthy gingerbread muffins recipe.
If you try something different out, please leave a comment below letting us all know how it turned out!
Medjool dates – Use any type of date here! Honey or maple syrup are good alternatives as well.
Unsweetened almond milk – Any non-dairy milk will work in this recipe. You could also use regular cow’s milk.
Butter – Melted coconut oil works great here too!
Whole wheat pastry flour – A combination of oat flour and almond flour would work wonderfully in this recipe. You can also swap and use regular flour if needed.
Natural cane sugar – Coconut sugar or brown sugar can be used here.
Chai cream cheese frosting – My no-butter cream cheese frosting would be lovely on these cupcakes! Honey buttercream works as well, and for a chocolate twist, try using my chocolate ganache frosting.
More healthy cakes & cupcake recipes you’ll love
- Chocolate almond flour cupcakes with sweet potato frosting
- Applesauce cupcakes
- Spinach pistachio cake
- No sugar banana cake
Healthy Gingerbread Cupcakes Recipe Sweetened with Dates
Ingredients
- 1 cup medjool dates pitted
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted
- 1/4 cup black strap molasses
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1.5 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/4 cup natural cane sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp clove
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake pan with 10 cupcake liners (paper or silicone muffin liners work great!).
- Heat water to a boil and pour 1 cup of hot water over the dates to soak for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, blend the dates and water to make a date paste.
- Add the date paste, milk, egg, butter, molasses, and vanilla into a large bowl. Whisk until smooth.
- Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and sea salt into the same bowl. Gently mix the dry ingredients and then mix them with the wet ingredients.
- Scoop the cupcake batter into the prepared pan and bake for 18-20 minutes, until the tops of the muffins spring back when gently pressed. Allow them to fully cool before topping them with chai cream cheese frosting! Top with a star anise or cinnamon!
Nutrition
If you try this easy holiday cupcake recipe, I’d love it if you left a star rating and comment below letting me know how it turned out!
XO
Heather
2 comments
we love these! baked great
Yay, I’m so glad!