Gingerbread spiced cupcakes with a soft sponge cake and a cinnamon & ginger cool whip frosting will make your week so much sweeter. I topped them with the cutest cupcake toppers and wrappers that I can’t wait to tell you about! These are vegan-friendly with all the regular options too!
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Meri Meri Be Jolly Cupcake Decorating Kit (similar) | Copper Fairy Lights
Gingerbread Cupcakes With Cinnamon Cool Whip Frosting
These gingerbread cupcakes though! So Christmas-y, so winter season-y, so spiced, yum. I made them in farmhouse baking kitchen which is all decked out for Christmas. And can I just tell you a huge secret about me? Okay…here we go. I hate buttercream frosting. I can’t bring myself to eat it. Anytime I encounter a cupcake out in the wild, the frosting gets left behind. I’ve always been like that.
I just prefer a lighter frosting (and something that isn’t butter + sugar). Marshmallow, okay. Meringue, okay. Cool Whip, yes please. I do like Cool Whip because it’s not too heavy, so that’s the direction we are heading in today. But you can do buttercream if that’s your thing. I’m so okay with you tailoring my recipes to fit your needs. It’s all good.
Cool Whip does need to be stabilized, so there are some notes on that as you keep scrolling. It does deflate out of the tub, but the good news about that is that it makes the perfect “blanket of snow” on top of your Christmas gingerbread cupcakes. It doesn’t pile high like buttercream, but for this recipe I really love that fresh snow look. I have also provided an easy Vegan friendly buttercream option in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

Meri Meri Be Jolly cupcake decorating kit (similar) | Copper Fairy Lights
INGREDIENTS YOU NEED FOR GINGERBREAD CUPCAKES
Don’t forget, there is a big ‘ole printable recipe at the bottom of this post!
Let me start by saying, there are many ways to do these yummy gingerbread cupcakes. They can totally fit into your lifestyle unless you are The Grinch. Then no. I recently began a plant-based diet journey (more on that soon) and the first thing I was worried about was baking with eggs. This was my first time not baking with eggs, and um…they came out perfect. So I’m not worried anymore. But you can go ahead and use an egg too.
- Flour + Baking Soda + Salt: The base of the cupcake.
- Ginger + Cinnamon + Cornstarch: Powdered ginger is largely responsible to that yummy gingerbread flavor. Cinnamon adds a little something, and cornstarch gives a little extra lift.
- Butter: I used Country Crock Plant butter to make this vegan-friendly, but you can use regular butter.
- Egg: I made a flax egg (1 Tbsp flax meal, 3 Tbsp water), but a regular egg works just as well
- Molasses: Organic Blackstrap Molasses to be exact.
- Sugar: Two options: Swerve (sugar substitute) or regular sugar.
- Milk: I used Unsweetened Vanilla almond milk, you can choose your favorite milk.
- Cool Whip + Cornstarch: The cool whip is thawed and then combined with cornstarch to stabilize it.
- For Vegan buttercream: Country Crock Plant Butter, Sugar or Swerve, Vanilla Extract

Meri Meri Be Jolly cupcake decorating kit (similar) | Copper Fairy Lights
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN GINGERBREAD CUPCAKES (or regular gingerbread cupcakes)
Don’t forget there’s a big ‘ol printable recipe at the bottom of this post!
- Preheat: Preheat oven to 350°F
- Cream Sugar: Whip the butter until creamy, adding sugar until the texture becomes light and fluffy.
- Add Molasses and Egg: Add the Molasses and egg (flax or regular) and continue to stir until combined.
- Combine Flour Mixture: In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, salt, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, and cornstarch.
- Add Flour mixture and Milk: Add flour mixture and milk a little at a time, alternating. Start with flour and end with flour.
- Bake: Bake 20-23 minutes.
- Make the frosting: Simply stir together Cool Whip, cornstarch, cinnamon, and ginger and pipe onto gingerbread cupcakes. OR beat the plant butter until creamy, adding powdered sugar and vanilla.
HOW TO DECORATE CUPCAKES FOR CHRISTMAS

Meri Meri Be Jolly Cupcake Decorating Kit (similar) | Copper Fairy Lights
Meri Meri has THE CUTEST cupcake decorations that make serving the most beautiful, envy-worthy, cupcakes…easy. They are my favorite of all time, and they make so many different designs for all occasions.
I chose this Christmas cupcake decorating set which included 24 wrappers and toppers with Santas, reindeer, and two kids of Christmas trees. The Santa’s are my favorite!
MERI MERI CHRISTMAS CUPCAKE DECORATING KITS I LOVE
Be Jolly Cupcake Decorating Kit
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Meri Meri Christmas Cupcake Decorating Kits
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Meri Meri Nutcracker Cupcake Decorating Kit
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Hey- you’ve made it this far, and now we’re BFFs. If you make these gingerbread cupcakes, I would love for you to give it a star rating below (scroll down to the comments). P.S. What makes me happiest is hearing from you! Make sure you follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook too!
Print

Gingerbread Cupcakes With Cinnamon Cool Whip Frosting
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 12 cupcakes 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Gingerbread spiced cupcakes with a soft sponge cake and a cinnamon & ginger cool whip frosting will make your week so much sweeter. I topped them with the cutest cupcake toppers and wrappers that I can’t wait to tell you about!
Ingredients
1/2 stick butter (country crock plant butter for vegan)
1/2 cup sugar (Swerve sugar substitute for less sugar)
1/2 cup blackstrap molasses
1 Flax egg *(see notes), or large egg
1/2 cup milk (unsweetened vanilla almond milk for vegan)
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp powdered ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
COOL WHIP FROSTING:
1 8oz tub Cool Whip, thawed
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger powder
VEGAN BUTTERCREAM FROSTING:
1 stick of Country Crock Plant Butter
1 cup powdered sugar (or Swerve powdered sugar for sugar free)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat: Preheat oven to 350°F
- Cream Sugar: Whip the butter until creamy, adding sugar until the texture becomes light and fluffy.
- Add Molasses & Egg: Add the flax egg (or regular egg) and Molasses and continue to stir until combined.
- Combine Flour Mixture: In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, salt, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, and cornstarch.
- Add Flour mixture and Milk: Add flour mixture and milk a little at a time, alternating. Start with flour and end with flour.
- Bake: Bake 20-23 minutes.
- Make the frosting: Simply stir together Cool Whip, cornstarch, cinnamon, and ginger and pipe onto gingerbread cupcakes once cooled.
- For the Vegan Buttercream Frosting: Beat plant butter until creamy. Add sugar choice and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
Equipment






Meri Meri Christmas Cupcake Decorating Kits
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Be Jolly Cupcake Decorating Kit
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Notes
Flax Egg: To make a flax egg, combine 1 Tbsp flaxseed meal and 3 Tbsp Water. Let stand in your refrigerator for 15 minutes, or until thickened.
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: North American
Keywords: gingerbread cupcakes, vegan cupcakes, christmas cupcakes, vegan gingerbread cupcakes, easy vegan dessert recipes, easy vegan dessert, easy vegan dessert recipes, vegan dessert recipes, vegan
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