Ginger-Lemon Mini Cupcakes

The citrus zing of lemon and the spicy sweetness of ginger truly complement each other, and it’s a combination I love.

In the cooler months, I like to make a dark, spiced gingerbread that I serve warm with a generous dollop of lemon sauce. It’s my maternal grandmother’s recipe, one of my favorites since childhood. It is a warming, comforting dessert for fall and winter.

Warming, however, isn’t right for summer. Luckily, ginger and lemon can also be a refreshing combination! I attended a wedding reception over the weekend with miniature cupcakes and was inspired to bake some of my own featuring ginger and lemon. Tiny bursts of these flavors seems fitting as a late summer treat.

For the cake, I used the Ginger Cupcake recipe from Julie Hasson‘s 125 Best Cupcake Recipes (recipe reprinted online here), which uses both ground and crystallized ginger. I picked up some crystallized ginger from Malko Karkanni Brothers, a Middle Eastern grocery in my neighborhood. I chopped it to bake into my cupcakes and cut strips to use as garnish.

I whipped up some lemon frosting based on the standard cream cheese buttercream I make. It went something like this:

Lemon Frosting for Ginger Cupcakes

3 ounces cream cheese
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
l lb. powdered sugar
zest from 1 small lemon
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice

Beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Slowly add sugar, then lemon zest. Add lemon juice a little at a time until you reach desired consistency.

Interested in how these cupcakes were shot? Click here for info on the photography.