Biscoff Cupcakes

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

These Biscoff cupcakes are made with my favorite vanilla cupcake recipe. There is a Biscoff cookie on the bottom, a cookie butter surprise center, and they are frosted with cookie butter buttercream.

Why you’ll love these Biscoff cupcakes

I used my favorite vanilla cupcake recipe as the base. This recipe can also be halved using my small batch vanilla cupcake and half the buttercream.
The vanilla base allows the cookie butter flavor to really shine.
A surprise biscoff chunk filling in the center of the cupcake makes for an extra “mmm”.
Super smooth and silky Biscoff buttercream coupled with a crunch from the cookie bottom.

I also have a Nutella version of this cupcake or a Biscoff layer cake version.

biscoff cupcake with a bite taken out, showing inside

What is the flavor of Biscoff?

Lotus Biscoff is a brand that makes speculoos cookies and cookie butter spread. Speculoos cookies are a crispy caramelized spiced cookie, similar to gingersnaps but less gingery. Cookie butter is a spread made from these cookies, similar to peanut butter and Nutella.

In other words…heaven in a jar. You can find other brands of speculoos cookies and cookie butter, it doesn’t have to be biscoff (it’s just referred to as biscoff the same way chocolate hazelnut spread is referred to as nutella). I like the biscoff brand though and Trader Joes has good ones as well.

If you want to try more cookie butter recipes, I have a biscoff ice cream, biscoff cookies, Biscoff Cheesecake, a brown butter cookie butter sheet cake and biscoff brownies.

Ingredients you’ll need:

Butter: I like to use salted butter for my cakes and unsalted butter for my buttercreams.
- You can also use unsalted butter for the cakes, just add an extra ¼ tsp of salt to every cup of butter used.
- I don’t recommend using salted butter for the buttercream because it’s heavy on the butter and may be too salty for most people.
Oil: any neutral oil like vegetable oil, canola oil, grapeseed oil, etc. will work.
Sugar: I use granulated sugar in my cupcakes and I don’t recommend substituting it or reducing the amount.
Vanilla: I use extract in the cake recipe but I prefer vanilla bean paste for buttercreams. Either works though.
Eggs: always use large, room temperature eggs. Place them in hot water for 5-10 minutes if they’re cold.
- I use one whole egg here but this cupcake recipe also works great with two egg whites if you have some lying around.
Flour: I usually use all-purpose flour for cakes but cupcakes are a different story. I use cake flour for these cupcakes.
- I also HIGHLY recommend using a digital scale, as flour is almost always over measured.
- If you don’t have cake flour, you can substitute the cake flour for equal parts all-purpose flour – 1 Tbsp and then add 1 Tbsp cornstarch. It’s not a perfect substitute but will get the job done. To learn more about this, check out my ebook about ingredients. Use code BAKER for 60% off.
Baking Powder: can sub for ½ tsp baking soda if you don’t have baking powder.
Salt: salt brings out the flavor in all baked goods.
Sour Cream: I use sour cream in almost all my cake and cupcake recipes. It brings and holds a lot of moisture into the cake. Plain greek yogurt or unsweetened regular yogurt also works.
Milk: any fat percentage of milk works, even plant based milk works.
Biscoff Cookies: I use the lotus biscoff brand but any speculoos cookie works.
Biscoff Cookie Butter: I use the lotus biscoff brand, but any brand of cookie butter works.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Make the cupcakes by whisking the cake flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Then cream in the butter and oil with the dry ingredients.

Step 2: Add the egg and vanilla and beat until they’re fully incorporated.

Step 3: Add the sour cream and milk and mix until they’re combined.

mix in the milk — add egg and sour cream

Step 4: Place half of a cookie on the bottom of each cupcake liner and scoop in cupcake batter filling the cupcake liner only about half full (30-32 grams).

biscoff cookie on the bottom of cupcake liner

vanilla cupcake batter on top of biscoff cookie

Step 5: Place a teaspoon size chunk (5-7 grams) of cookie butter in the center of each cupcake and then top with just enough batter to cover the top (another 10-12 grams). The cupcake liners should be about 3/4 full.

cookie butter chunk in the middle of cupcake batter

I make sure everything is accurate by measuring it with a digital scale. It’s not entirely necessary but will ensure more precise cupcakes. This is how much every part of the cupcake weighs.

Half a cookie on the bottom of each cupcake: 3-4 grams
Vanilla cupcake batter: 30-32 grams
Teaspoon chunk of cookie butter in the middle: 5-7 grams
Top with more cupcake batter: 10-12 grams
Total about 55 grams per cupcake

Step 6: Bake for 20-21 minutes, until slightly golden and the center springs back when you press on it.

Step 7: Beat the eggs in a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.

Step 8: Heat the sugar and water until it’s at a 240 F (116 C), then stream it into the beating eggs.

sugar water heating — 3. heat over medium-low heat (with lid on)

eggs beat with hot sugar — 3. heat over medium-low heat (with lid on)

Step 9: Let it whip for 10 minutes and then add the butter.

Step 10: Add the cookie butter, vanilla, and salt to the buttercream after scraping the sides in. Turn the mixer to high speed for another minute. If the buttercream is too soft, refrigerate for 15-45 minutes.

Step 11: Frost the cupcakes with the Biscoff buttercream, drizzle some melted cookie butter over the buttercream and sprinkle some crumbled Biscoff cookies on top. Make sure cupcakes are cooled before frosting.

cupcakes frosted with biscoff buttercream

Expert tips on getting perfect cupcakes

There’s a few things that can make it or break it with these cupcakes.

Don’t swap ingredients unless I mentioned them in the ingredient section above.
Don’t reduce the sugar. I know a lot of people do that for some recipes but I don’t recommend it with this one.
Weigh your ingredients with a digital scale
Weigh all the parts of the cupcake as I mentioned earlier – not entirely necessary but leaves less room for error 🙂
Use a light colored stainless steel muffin tin.

biscoff cupcake cut in half showing the inside

Frequently asked questions

What kind of cookies and cookie butter to use?

I use the lotus biscoff brand but any speculoos cookie or cookie butter works.

How to get that perfect dome on the cupcake?

Usually my secret to perfect cupcakes is my digital scale! If you overfill or under-fill the muffin pans you may get a cupcake with a muffin top or a shriveled sunken cupcake but if you weigh them, you’ll get it right each time.
These Biscoff cupcakes probably aren’t going to have a perfect dome because we baked the filling inside but it should bake up flat. If it sinks in the middle, it was probably under-baked or the cupcakes were overfilled. 50-55 grams per cupcake total (with the cookie butter filling).

Can I make these cupcake dairy free?

You can use dairy free butter, dairy free milk/cream to make these Biscoff cupcakes.

Can I make these cupcakes gluten-free?

I have not tested my cupcake recipes, but all my cake and cookies recipes work well with a 1:1 gluten-free flour like Bob’s Red Mill and King Arthur Flour so this should work fine as well.

How do I know when cupcakes are done baking?

The cupcakes are done baking when they no longer look wet. The edges may not brown too much depending on the oven and the pan so make sure to test it by gently pressing on the tallest area of the cupcake and if it springs back, it’s done. If it feels wet and stays pressed in, give it another few minutes before testing again.
No point in sticking a toothpick in the center because you’ll likely just get a toothpick covered in cookie butter lol.

biscoff cupcakes topped with cookie butter

How to serve and store Biscoff cupcakes

Serve the cupcakes fresh or leave them at a cool room temperature for 1-2 days.

To refrigerate, make sure to cover the cupcakes with a cake dome or store them in an airtight container for up to a week.

To freeze it, place them in an airtight container and then place the container in an airtight bag. Thaw at room temperature before serving.

biscoff cookie on the bottom of a cupcake

If you make these vanilla cupcakes, I’d love it if you left a star rating for me. If it’s less than five stars, please leave a comment with the rating so I know why! 🙂

As always, have a blessed day and happy baking!

Love, B