Easy Brown Sugar Cupcakes

These simple brown sugar cupcakes are moist, flavorful, and comforting. Topped with fluffy brown sugar buttercream frosting, this recipe is definitely a crowd pleaser and bakery worthy!

Brown sugar cupcakes are like your classic vanilla cupcakes but with a delicious, deep caramel flavor from the brown sugar. Made with brown sugar, buttermilk, and a little cinnamon, they have a cozy flavor everyone will love.

They have a swirl of delicious brown sugar frosting on top, which silky smooth since the brown sugar is blitzed in the food processor.

Each cupcake is moist because of the brown sugar and buttermilk. The best part is that you can whip up a batch in one bowl in under an hour with minimal equipment! These will be your new go-to dessert for holidays, birthday parties, and other gatherings.

If you love cupcakes, make matcha cupcakes, small batch vanilla cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, or lemon lavender cupcakes!

Key Ingredients

• Brown sugar- Light or dark brown sugar work, adding sweetness and depth of flavor. Make sure it is fresh and moist, not dry or hard.
• All purpose flour- Measure it in grams with a kitchen scale for the best results, or fluff it up before spooning it into your measuring cup so it doesn't get packed in. Flour is very easy to overmeasure!
• Baking powder- Helps the cupcakes rise and become fluffy by adding air bubbles to the batter. Make sure your baking powder is fresh, and don't substitute baking soda because it's way stronger!
• Oil- Use a mild or flavorless oil like canola or vegetable oil. Using oil instead of butter makes the cupcakes stay moist for a long time and slows down gluten development. This results in more moist, fluffy cupcakes!
• Egg- Pull it out of the refrigerator 1-2 hours before baking to get to room temperature. Room temperature eggs and dairy ingredients mix in much more smoothly
• Buttermilk- This adds moisture and fat to the cupcakes while the acidity helps create a tender, soft crumb. Make sure this is at room temperature too.

Substitutions and Variations

• Buttermilk substitute- Plain kefir can be used instead of buttermilk. You can make homemade buttermilk by combining 1 cup milk and 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice. Stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes to curdle.
• Add brown butter- Make the brown sugar buttercream with solidified brown butter for an extra nutty flavor.
• Frosting options- Use a different frosting like salted caramel buttercream, cream cheese frosting, Swiss meringue buttercream, or the cinnamon cream cheese frosting from my apple cider cupcake recipe.

How to Make Them

Step 1: Whisk the dry ingredients. Whisk the brown sugar, all purpose flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a large mixing bowl.

Step 2: Add the wet ingredients. Add the oil, egg, vanilla, and buttermilk to the dry ingredients. Fold with a rubber spatula until well combined. Be careful to not overmix the batter so the cupcakes don't turn out dense.

Step 3: Distribute the batter. Line a 12-well cupcake pan with paper liners and pour the cupcake batter into the liners, filling them ⅔ full so they don't overflow. Use a cookie or ice cream scoop to make sure the batter is evenly distributed.

Step 4: Bake! Bake the cupcakes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

How to Make Brown Sugar Frosting

For more frosting tips and tricks, see my full brown sugar frosting recipe.

Step 1: Cream the butter and sugar. Using your stand mixer with the paddle attachment or electric hand mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar on high speed. Add the vanilla and salt.

Step 2: Add powdered sugar and milk. Beat in 1 cup powdered sugar on low for 3 minutes and then beat in another cup. Mix in the milk.

Step 3: Frost the cupcakes. You can use a piping bag with a large piping tip. You can also snip a corner off a plastic storage bag to use as a piping bag or spread the buttercream on with a butter knife.

Expert Baking Tips

1. Use room temperature ingredients. Cold ingredients don't get mixed in evenly and can mess up the batter.
2. Measure flour correctly. The best way to measure flour is to weigh it in grams with a kitchen scale. If you don't have one, gently spoon flour into the measuring cup (don't pack it in!) and swipe the excess back into the bag with a butter knife.
3. Let the cupcakes cool. Make sure the cupcakes are completely cool before frosting. Transfer them from the muffin pan to a wire rack after 5 minutes- no longer! Leaving them in the tin longer can cause condensation to form inside the wrappers, making the cupcakes soggy.

Storage Instructions

Brown sugar cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Store them in the refrigerator for an additional 3 days after that.

Frequently Asked Questions

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