Christmas baking doesn’t have to be limited to cookies, and it doesn’t have to be complicated. Today I’m sharing a recipe for Chai Cupcakes with Chai Cream Cheese Frosting that brings the cozy flavor of chai tea to your dessert table. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that if you left this on Santa’s cookie plate, he would also be much appreciative.
Chai spices generally include cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. For this recipe, I used a premade instant mix (like this), but you can also make your own blend at home (like this).
Chai Cupcakes with Chai Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Cupcakes
3 c cake flour
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1 T chai spice blend (* if you don’t want to use the store bought blend, see link above)
¼ t salt
1 ½ c unsalted butter, room temperature
2 c granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 t vanilla extract
1 c buttermilk
Frosting
8 oz cream cheese
4 T butter, room temperature
1 ½ t vanilla extract
2 T chai spice blend (* see above)
4 c powdered sugar
2 T +/- heavy cream or milk
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 F and line cupcake tin.
- Sift together cake flour through salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well between each. Mix in vanilla.
- On low speed, alternately add flour and buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour and making sure each is incorporated well.
- Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full and bake approximately 20 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.
- Transfer to a rack and cool completely.
- While cooling, prepare frosting. Cream together cream cheese and butter until light and smooth. Add chai spices until incorporated. Add powdered sugar, ½ c at a time, until desired consistency is reached. Add milk or heavy cream as needed to thin consistency.
- Frost cupcakes only once completely cooled.
Sweet Jumbles 