These honey cupcakes are made with soft and moist cupcakes, topped with freshly made whipped cream cheese frosting and more honey!
These cupcakes are inspired by my favorite moist honey cake recipe, which I absolutely love and make very often. If you want a fun, hand-held version of that warm, spiced classic, these are perfect.
Each cupcake is incredibly soft, spiced with a touch of cinnamon, and drizzled with warm honey straight out of the oven so it seeps deep into the crumb.
Topped with a cloud of light, velvety whipped cream cheese frosting, they make a stunning and comforting dessert.
For more cupcake recipes, check out my easy chocolate cupcakes, carrot cake cupcakes, red velvet cupcakes, and strawberry-filled cupcakes.
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Why this recipe works
- Simple Pantry Ingredients: No fancy components required. This recipe uses simple baking staples you likely already have in your kitchen.
- Stays Moist for Days: The secret honey drizzle right after baking keeps these cupcakes incredibly tender and soft for 2 to 3 days.
- Dreamy Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting: This frosting combines the tang of cream cheese with the airy lightness of whipped heavy cream for a perfectly balanced topping.
- Quick and Easy: With minimal prep time, you can have a batch of gorgeous, bakery-style cupcakes ready in under 45 minutes!
Ingredients
Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the baking process goes smoothly. Full measurements are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
For the Cupcakes
All-Purpose Flour: Provides the ideal structural base for a tender cupcake crumb. Cake flour works wonderfully as a swap too!
Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the batter and helps keep the cake soft. Caster sugar works great here as well.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda: The leavening duo that gives these cupcakes a beautiful, light rise. Make sure they are fresh and not expired!
Vegetable Oil: Using oil instead of butter guarantees the cupcakes stay completely moist and soft for days. Canola oil works perfectly too.
Egg: You will need a large, room-temperature egg so it mixes evenly into the liquid ingredients.
Honey: Use high-quality, fresh honey for the best, most aromatic flavor.
Strong Black Tea: Brew a cup of strong black tea and let it cool until it is lukewarm. The tea deepens the color of the batter and adds a rich, complex depth of flavor.
Ground Cinnamon: Adds a lovely, warm autumnal spice to the cupcake base.
Vanilla Extract & Kosher Salt: To balance the sweetness and bring out the natural honey flavors.
For the Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
Vanilla Extract: Adds a classic sweet aroma.
Cream Cheese: Use brick-style, full-fat cream cheese at room temperature so it beats smoothly without lumps.
Heavy Cream: Must be ice-cold straight from the fridge so it whips up into stable, fluffy peaks.
Powdered Sugar: Sweetens the frosting smoothly.
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F) and line a 12-cup cupcake pan with paper cupcake liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon until thoroughly combined.
In a separate large bowl, whisk together the room-temperature egg, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and honey until smooth. Slowly pour in the lukewarm black tea and whisk to combine.
Pour the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients. Gently fold with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon just until the flour mostly disappears. Do not overmix, or the cupcakes will turn out dense!
Divide the batter evenly among your cupcake liners (about ⅔ full). Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 18–23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
The very second the cupcakes come out of the oven, drizzle a small spoon of fresh honey directly over the top of each hot cupcake. Use the back of a spoon to smooth it out.
Let the cupcakes sit in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely to room temperature before frosting.
Make the Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
In a large mixing bowl, beat the room-temperature cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract with an electric hand mixer on medium-high speed for 1–2 minutes until completely smooth, creamy, and free of lumps.
With the mixer running on low speed, slowly pour in the cold heavy cream in a steady stream.
Once all the cream is added, increase the speed to medium-high and whip until the frosting is thick, fluffy, and holds stiff peaks that are sturdy enough to pipe.
Assembly
Transfer your whipped cream cheese frosting to a piping bag fitted with an open star tip. Pipe a generous swirl onto each completely cooled cupcake. Right before serving, finish with an extra drizzle of fresh honey over the top!
Expert tips
- Prevent Frosting Lumps: To avoid a lumpy frosting, make sure your cream cheese is completely at room temperature and beaten smooth before you add the cold heavy cream.
- Use Lukewarm Tea: Make sure your brewed tea is cooled down to lukewarm before adding it to the wet ingredients. If it's too hot, it will scramble your raw egg!
- Drizzle While Hot: Don't wait for the cupcakes to cool before adding the first honey drizzle. Adding honey while hot allows it to soak deep into the crumb.
- Don't Overmix: Keep your mixing minimal once the dry and wet ingredients meet. Overmixing develops the gluten, which leads to tough, dry cupcakes.
- Let Them Cool Completely: Never frost cupcakes that are even slightly warm! Whipped cream cheese frosting will melt instantly if it touches a warm cupcake.
Troubleshooting
Why did my cupcakes sink in the middle?
This is typically caused by overfilling the liners (keep them strictly ⅔ full), opening the oven door too early in the baking process, or using expired baking powder/baking soda.
Why is my whipped cream cheese frosting runny?
If you add the cold heavy cream too fast or if the heavy cream wasn't cold enough, the frosting won't whip up properly. If this happens, pop the bowl into the fridge for 15 minutes, then try whipping it again on high speed.
Faq's
These cupcakes are sweet, incredibly moist, and have a rich, warm flavor profile featuring a perfect blend of real honey, black tea, and a cozy hint of cinnamon, all balanced by a tangy, velvety cream cheese topping.
Yes! Honey and nuts are a match made in heaven. You can fold a half cup of chopped walnuts or pecans directly into the batter, or sprinkle toasted sliced almonds over the piped cream cheese frosting.
Insert a toothpick into the center of a cupcake. If it comes out completely clean or with just a few moist crumbs, they are ready to come out of the oven.
Storing
Because of the fresh cream cheese and heavy cream in the frosting, these cupcakes must be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They will stay fresh and delicious for up to 3 days.
Freezing
To freeze, let the baked cupcakes cool completely and wrap the unfrosted cupcakes tightly in plastic wrap, then place them in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Thaw at room temperature, then make the whipped cream cheese frosting fresh when you are ready to serve. I do not recommend freezing frosted whipped cupcakes, as the whipped texture can break down upon thawing.
Substitutes
Gluten-Free: Swap the all-purpose flour for a high-quality 1:1 gluten-free baking flour blend that contains xanthan gum.
Vegan Option: Swap the egg for ⅓ cup of applesauce, and replace the honey with pure maple syrup. Use dairy-free cream cheese and dairy-free whipping cream alternatives for the frosting.
Variations
Alternative Frostings: If you prefer a traditional dense frosting, you can swap this light whipped style for a classic thick cream cheese frosting, maple buttercream, or a rich honey buttercream.
Cozy Autumn Spices: Add a pinch of nutmeg, ground ginger, or ground cloves to the flour mixture for an even deeper, spiced cupcake base.
Equipment
- 12-Cup Cupcake Pan & Paper Liners
- Large and Medium Mixing Bowls
- Whisk & Rubber Spatula
- Electric Hand Mixer (crucial for beating the cream cheese and whipping the cream)
- Piping Bag & Open Star Piping Tip (like a Wilton 1M or 2D)
More cupcake recipes
Nutella Cupcakes- These Nutella cupcakes are made with chocolate Nutella cupcakes, filled with Nutella, and topped with Nutella buttercream frosting.
Black Forest Cupcakes- These black forest cupcakes are made with moist chocolate cupcakes, filled with cherry filling, and topped with whipped cream.
Orange Cupcakes- These orange cupcakes are made with a soft orange cupcake, filled with orange curd, and topped with orange mascarpone frosting.
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📖 Recipe
Honey Cupcakes w/ Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups Flour
- ½ cup Sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 Eggs
- ½ cup Honey
- ½ cup Tea
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- ½ teaspoon Baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
Whipped cream:
- 8 oz Cream cheese full fat
- 1 cup Heavy cream cold
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- ½ cup Powder sugar
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F) and line a 12-cup cupcake pan with paper cupcake liners.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon until thoroughly combined.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the room-temperature egg, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and honey until smooth. Slowly pour in the lukewarm black tea and whisk to combine.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients. Gently fold with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon just until the flour mostly disappears. Do not overmix, or the cupcakes will turn out dense!
- Divide the batter evenly among your cupcake liners (about ⅔ full). Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 18–23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
- The very second the cupcakes come out of the oven, drizzle a small spoon of fresh honey directly over the top of each hot cupcake. Use the back of a spoon to smooth it out.
- Let the cupcakes sit in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely to room temperature before frosting.
Make the Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the room-temperature cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract with an electric hand mixer on medium-high speed for 1–2 minutes until completely smooth, creamy, and free of lumps.
- With the mixer running on low speed, slowly pour in the cold heavy cream in a steady stream.
- Once all the cream is added, increase the speed to medium-high and whip until the frosting is thick, fluffy, and holds stiff peaks that are sturdy enough to pipe.
Assembly:
- Transfer your whipped cream cheese frosting to a piping bag fitted with an open star tip. Pipe a generous swirl onto each completely cooled cupcake. Right before serving, finish with an extra drizzle of fresh honey over the top!
Notes
- Prevent Frosting Lumps: To avoid a lumpy frosting, make sure your cream cheese is completely at room temperature and beaten smooth before you add the cold heavy cream.
- Use Lukewarm Tea: Make sure your brewed tea is cooled down to lukewarm before adding it to the wet ingredients. If it's too hot, it will scramble your raw egg!
- Drizzle While Hot: Don't wait for the cupcakes to cool before adding the first honey drizzle. Adding honey while hot allows it to soak deep into the crumb.
- Don't Overmix: Keep your mixing minimal once the dry and wet ingredients meet. Overmixing develops the gluten, which leads to tough, dry cupcakes.
- Let Them Cool Completely: Never frost cupcakes that are even slightly warm! Whipped cream cheese frosting will melt instantly if it touches a warm cupcake.
mickie says
came out perfect
this recipe is a keeper
J says
Hi there! Could I use brewed coffee instead of black tea?
Ella says
It looks good
Tammy Costain says
Really good flavor and moist. I like I could 1/2 the recipe too.