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Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brulée Frosting. Autumn in a sweet cupcake, and so good! Extra sweet, chai-spiced cupcakes made with warming spices and brown sugar. Each cupcake is generously frosted with the most delicious creamy caramel-like frosting. Then finished off with a sprinkling of salted caramel brulée candy. Sooo much to love here! You can’t beat these cute little latte cupcakes.

Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting | halfbakedharvest.com

It’s fall, it’s Friday, and I’m sharing my favorite cupcake of the season…well so far anyway! Look, I know I’ve been overly excited about fall this week, but today’s recipe is my favorite. The second I made these, I knew I was going to love them so much.

If a cupcake could scream fall, this cupcake would be screaming it loud and clear. I know, cheesy, but as I said, I’m excited, and well, I really love fall.

Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting | halfbakedharvest.com

Here’s the quick story

Every single fall there are a handful of things I truly crave and get excited over. A good bowl of broccoli cheddar soup, homemade soft pretzels, all the sweet apple desserts, and a warming, steaming latte.

Latte’s just say fall to me. And while everyone mostly thinks of pumpkin spice lattes, I love a good chai latte equally as much.

Last October I created a pumpkin latte cupcake, that was a big fall favorite. But this season I wanted a chai cupcake…with a slight twist…to make it even more exciting. Enter the caramel. It may be a little over the top, but I’m ok with it, these cupcakes are so good.

Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting | halfbakedharvest.com

To make these chai latte cupcakes…

You need vanilla, chai teas, and a good amount of warming autumn spices. Plus butter…lots of butter, and well, sugar.

For the cupcakes, I knew I really wanted the chai flavor to shine. To achieve this, I used a mix of steeped chai milk and a whole lot of chai spice. The chai spice mix is key, it really brings the aromas of fall into the kitchen and into each cupcake.

Before you start the cupcake batter, make the chai spice mix. It’s a blend of cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, all-spice, cloves, and the tiniest bit of black pepper. You’ll be using half of the spice mix in the cupcake batter, and the remainder for the frosting.

Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting | halfbakedharvest.com

Next, make the batter. Bring some milk to a gentle boil, then add a few chai tea bags and allow the tea to steep in the warm milk.

While the tea cools, mix up the batter, then stream the chai milk into the cupcake batter until just combined. Divide the batter up between the cupcake molds and bake.

The smells coming from the oven will have you so excited. It’s like fall in the air, with cozy scents of chai mixed with hints of sweet sugar wafting throughout your kitchen.

Each cupcake is so soft and perfectly sweetened.

Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting | halfbakedharvest.com

The brown sugar “caramel” frosting

This is the perfect frosting for these cupcakes. It’s sweet, but not too sweet, and the rich, warming flavors of caramel pair so nicely with the chai.

The brown sugar melts down adding hints of warm molasses and really deepens the flavor to create an icing that’s perfectly rich and caramel-like. And when you add a touch of vanilla and sea salt? Well, it’s hard to say no to a second cupcake. I highly recommend slathering on more icing than you think your cupcake will need.

Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting | halfbakedharvest.com

Lastly, the caramel brulée

This last step is optional but so good…the caramel brulée candy. It’s going to get very hot, so just make sure to be careful when handling this. This is that extra special fall touch to these cupcakes. It’s very easy to make and requires just two ingredients, sugar, and flaky sea salt.

Simply melt granulated sugar on the stove until it turns deep caramel in color, then spread the caramel out over a piece of parchment paper. Sprinkle the caramel with sea salt and let sit for a few minutes. And then? In almost no time at all, the caramel has hardened. It can then be easily smashed into small shards for sprinkling over your latte cupcakes. Again, be sure you’re being careful when handling this!

Frost each cupcake and then sprinkle with the caramel brulée candy. I love adding a cinnamon stick for cuteness.

These cupcakes are delicious. Each bite is filled with sweet chai-spiced cupcake and light, fluffy frosting. Best kind of autumn weekend cupcake!

Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting | halfbakedharvest.com

Looking for other chai and sweets? Here are a few ideas: 

Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew

Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Cupcakes

Chai Spiced Maple Sugar Cookies with Browned Butter Frosting

Vanilla Chai Old Fashioned

Lastly, if you make these Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!

Watch our how-to video here:

Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brulée Frosting

Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 24 cupcakes
Calories Per Serving: 274 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Watch the How-To Reel

Ingredients

Chai Spice

Cupcakes

Caramel Frosting

Instructions

  • 1. To make the chai spice. In a shallow bowl, combine the cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, all-spice, cloves, and pepper. Reserve the chai spice blend for the cupcake batter and frosting.
    2. To make the cupcakes. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line 24 cupcake molds with paper liners.
    3. Bring the milk to a boil in a small pot. Remove from the heat and add the tea bags, cover, and steep 10 minutes.
    4. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and sour cream, beating until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and 3 teaspoons of the chai spice mix. Stream in the chai milk, beating until just combined.
    5. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans. Transfer to the oven and bake 22-25 minutes, until the tops are just set, and no longer wiggly in the center. Remove and let cool.
    6. To make the frosting. Melt together 1 stick butter, brown sugar, and cream in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook 2 minutes, or until the sugar has dissolved. Add a pinch of salt. Remove from the heat and add to the bowl of a stand mixer. Place the bowl in the freezer (or fridge for longer) for 15 minutes or until cool to touch.
    6. Grab the cooled butter mixture from the freezer and add the remaining 1 stick butter, vanilla, powdered sugar, and 1-2 teaspoons chai spice to the bowl. Beat together until well combined, adding more sugar as needed.
    7. Frost each cupcake and sprinkle with Caramel Brûlée (recipe in notes). Add cinnamon sticks, if desired.

Notes

Caramel Brulée: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium pot, cook 3/4 cup sugar over medium heat, stirring occasionally with a heat-proof spatula until the sugar has melted and turns a golden caramel, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and carefully pour the caramel onto the prepared baking sheet. Spread in a thin, even layer and sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Let sit 5 minutes. Once hardened, crush the caramel into small pieces/shards with the back of a spoon.
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Chai Latte Cupcakes with Caramel Brûlée Frosting | halfbakedharvest.com

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Comments

  1. Hi! These cupcakes look so good I want to try them right away!
    But as I’m not from the United States how many grams are the Chai bags and the sticks of butter?

    Thank you very much. I can’t wait to try it!

    1. Hi Melissa,
      1 stick of butter is equal to 113 grams:) I’m not sure about the grams for the bags of tea, but 1 bag is what you would use for 1 drink. I hope this helps! xTieghan

  2. 5 stars
    Amazing they are delicious and remind me of the holidays I want to make a cake out of this recipe if you have any advice
    Holly

    1. Hi Holly,
      Happy Monday!! Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a go, I am so glad it was a winner:) I’ve not tested this recipe as a cake, but you could definitely need to increase your bake time! Have the best week! xx

  3. 5 stars
    Made these for a friend’s birthday and they turned out great! Added 8 oz cream cheese and made sure the brown sugar mixture was chilled before making frosting. Thank you for another amazing recipe!

    1. Hey Mary,
      Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a try! ?xx

  4. Delicious! I read the comments about the frosting and decided to make the caramel base first, then started making the cupcakes. After the cupcakes cooled the brown sugar, butter and cream base were the right consistency to finish the frosting and it was perfect. Will definitely make again!

  5. 5 stars
    These cupcakes were absolutely divine! I followed the exact recipe and they came out delicious!!!! They taste professional bakery quality.

    1. Hey there,
      Happy Friday!! Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a go, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xxTieghan

  6. 4 stars
    The flavor of these was amazing and they were so fun to make.
    I read a lot of the comments and had similar experiences/preferences …
    The cupcakes, by themselves, did turn out a little dry/dense, but still tasted great with the icing. Next time, I might try adding a little more milk and/or baking them at 335/340 and maybe adjust the time. I did bake them for only 18 min this time bc my oven tends to bake most recipes faster.
    The icing – yes, I had the “runny/liquid” experience but realized the butter was probably still too warm so I just chilled it for a little bit and re-whipped it and it was perfect.
    As for doubling the tea bags in the milk and adding more chai spice to the recipe overall, yes, because I LOVE chai flavor, I will probably try this next time also. However, I thought they were still really good and for people who don’t “love” a stronger chai flavor, the amount of spice would be perfect.

    Looking toward to trying the Buffalo Cauliflower with Tahini Ranch today! It’s another “snow day” here in NC. Just 3” has pretty much crippled our small town. So grateful I’ve got a stocked pantry and fridge and get to spend another day playing in the kitchen!

    1. Hi Sheila,
      Awesome!! Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was a winner! Thanks for sharing your feedback! xTieghan

  7. 5 stars
    I made these for a get together and then someone asked if I would make them for a Christmas party they were going to so I did (and made extra for me)! These are decadent, bakery quality (but better) cupcakes. Pure ecstasy in a cupcake! The frosting came out better the 2nd time so for me there was a learning curve, but I have never made homemade frosting before. But these cupcakes are well worth making…and eating.

    1. Hi Leslee,
      Happy Friday! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed. Thanks so much for making it and happy holidays!❄️ xTieghan

    1. Hey Lisa,
      Yes, you can store these in an airtight container for 3-4 days. I have never tried to freeze them. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan

    1. Hey Bryana,
      I would keep the temp the same, but you will need to increase your baking time to at least 50 minutes. I have never tried this so let me know how it turns out! xTieghan

  8. 5 stars
    SO GOOD, and the smell / taste is better than pictures or a recipe can prepare you for. This is worth the hype.

    I always double flavor so I doubled the chai and the spice, that’s just me though. I don’t know if it was necessary. I chilled the chai tea milk just a tad before adding it in.

    Since comments warned that the icing was a little runny I threw some cream cheese in and that helped – in the future I’d add at least 4 oz cream cheese because the icing is definitely runny. But so, so good! And the details matter, glad I took the time to do the caramel on top as well 🙂 – so simple but such a great touch!

  9. Hola from Quito, Ecuador! I just baked this recipe (practicing for my upcoming Friendsgiving), adjusting it to my altitude of 9530 feet. It worked perfect! Mine turned VERY moist and delicious. This recipe is a keeper, GRACIAS!

    1. Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I’m so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Sending love from Colorado to Ecuador! xTieghan

  10. 3 stars
    The cupcake was dry and dense and the frosting was overpoweringly sweet and runny. I had to add in cream cheese to cut the sweetness and to firm up the frosting. The frosting I could salvage and it turned out good but I don’t know how to make the cupcake not as dry/dense. It was thick when I filled the muffin pan. Was it because the milk evaporated in the process of making the chai? I baked at 22 minutes but perhaps it’ll be better to cut the baking time by several minutes. Maybe bake for 10-15 minutes instead?

  11. 5 stars
    Cooked them for 18 minutes and even that was a smidge too long. I live at 5000 ft for what that’s worth. My initial frosting was too wet, like others have said. So I put back in freezer for a while and it firmed up perfectly. Then I beat with beater to fluff up. These are truly delicious!