Gingerbread Latte Muffins

All of the flavors of the seasonal spiced latte in a moist, sweet muffin.

By
Mark Beahm
Mark Beahm
Mark Beahm
Mark is the head baker at Hjem Kensington, a Danish café in London. He has been developing recipes for home bakers for the last two years.
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Published December 02, 2023
Mark Beahm
Coffee glaze spooned onto gingerbread latte muffin sitting on a wire rack

Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm

I'm sad when pumpkin spice latte season ends, but I can rejoice in the next seasonal flavor: gingerbread latte. As much as I love a PSL, I love its spicier cousin more. Even better is doubling up with a gingerbread latte and a slice of gingerbread loaf cake.

On dark winter mornings, I don’t always feel like leaving the house, braving the cold, and standing in line at my local coffee shop. My comforting compromise is a baked good based on the drink: a batch of easy, one-bowl muffins, ready in less time than it'd take to get to the café and back.

These gingerbread latte muffins are bold and intensely flavored with molasses, gingerbread spices, and espresso powder. I like them topped with sparkling and crunchy coarse sugar, but you can upgrade them to dessert status with an optional coffee glaze.

Gingerbread latte muffins are a wonderful snack to have waiting for visiting family members that endured stressful holiday travels to get home. I might bring a batch of them to my family’s Christmas brunch so the adults can have a delicious boost of caffeine to power through the ensuing excitement of toddlers trawling through gifts.

Gingerbread latte muffins topped with coffee glaze and coffe sugar mixture stacked on a plate

Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm

Coffee and Gingerbread, a Cold-Weather Combo

Coffee and gingerbread may be intense flavors, but they're surprisingly complementary. The gingerbread blend of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and molasses enhances the toasted flavor of coffee and vice versa. In fact, one of my favorite tricks when baking a gingerbread cake is to replace the liquid in the recipe with strong coffee.

To get the most coffee flavor, I add both espresso powder and brewed coffee to the batter, then top the muffins with a coffee glaze and a sprinkling of coffee sugar. The muffins' gingerbread and coffee flavors are bold but balanced, with neither overpowering the other. 

Substitute With What You Have On Hand

Sometimes, I get a last-minute urge to bake something special for breakfast, only to find that I don't have everything I need. Luckily, you can make a few easy swaps and adjust these muffins to what you have on hand.

  • You can swap Greek yogurt for buttermilk, sour cream, whole milk, or even plant-based milk. If you use milk, add 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar.
  • If you don’t have any leftover coffee, make some instant coffee. Or you can substitute it with more Greek yogurt, buttermilk, sour cream, or whole milk. If you substitute the coffee, you may want to increase the espresso powder to 1 1/2 teaspoons for the coffee flavor to come through. 
  • Use 1 tablespoon of your favorite gingerbread spice blend instead of adding each spice individually.

Instead of sprinkling the glaze with coffee sugar, substitute the espresso powder with ground cinnamon, gingerbread spices, or even cocoa powder.

Gingerbread latte muffins topped with glaze and sugar mixture on the counter with a bite missing, and in the background, more on a plate

Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm

Muffin Mania

Gingerbread Latte Muffins

Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 40 mins
Servings 12 servings
Yield 12 muffins

Ingredients

For the muffins

  • 1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, melted

  • 1/2 cup (113g) plain Greek yogurt

  • 1/2 cup strong brewed coffee, cooled to room temperature

  • 1/3 cup (113g) unsulphured molasses

  • 1/2 cup (106g) dark brown sugar

  • 2 large eggs

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger

  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

  • 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder

  • 2 1/2 cups (300g) all-purpose flour

  • Coarse sparkling sugar or turbinado sugar, for sprinkling

For the optional coffee glaze

  • 3/4 cup (90g) powdered sugar

  • 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • 1 to 2 tablespoons water

For the optional coffee sugar

  • 1 tablespoon coarse sparkling sugar or turbinado sugar

  • 1/2 teaspoon instant espresso powder

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.

    Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.

  2. Make the batter:

    In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the melted butter, yogurt, coffee, molasses, dark brown sugar, and eggs. Add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and espresso powder, and whisk until thoroughly combined.

    Add the flour and stir just until combined. Don’t overmix. It’s okay if the batter looks a bit lumpy.

  3. Portion the muffins:

    Use a cookie scoop or two spoons to scoop the batter into the paper liners, filling them about 3/4 full. You may get a few extra muffins depending on your muffin pan. Sprinkle the tops with coarse sugar or turbinado sugar.

  4. Bake:

    Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the middle muffins comes out clean, about 20 minutes.

    Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling.

  5. Make the glaze (optional):

    While the muffins cool, whisk together the powdered sugar, espresso powder, vanilla extract, and 1 tablespoon of water to make a thick paste in a small bowl. Add more water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until smooth and you reach your desired consistency. It should be pourable, but not runny, and hold its shape when drizzled.

  6. Make the coffee sugar (optional):

    In a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon of coarse sugar with 1/2 teaspoon of espresso powder and stir.

  7. Decorate the muffins:

    When the muffins have cooled completely, drizzle the tops with the coffee glaze and sprinkle on the coffee sugar before the glaze sets. Allow the glaze to set for 10 minutes, then serve.

    The muffins will keep in an airtight container on the counter for up to 2 days. For longer storage, they can be frozen for up to 2 months in a reusable freezer container or freezer bag. Let the muffins defrost at room temperature for about 1 hour before eating.

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Nutrition Facts (per serving)
240 Calories
9g Fat
36g Carbs
5g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12
Amount per serving
Calories 240
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 9g 11%
Saturated Fat 5g 25%
Cholesterol 52mg 17%
Sodium 204mg 9%
Total Carbohydrate 36g 13%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Total Sugars 16g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 73mg 6%
Iron 2mg 11%
Potassium 212mg 5%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.