Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Place cupcake liners in 16 muffin cups.

In a small bowl, combine the ground ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and black pepper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and the vanilla, scraping down the bowl as needed. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the reserved spice mixture. Alternate adding the flour mixture and the milk, beating just until combined after each addition.

Fill the prepared cups 2/3 full of the batter. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes the remove from the pans to cool completely on a cooling rack.

To make the frosting, in a large bowl beat the butter until fluffy. Slowly beat in the powdered sugar, vanilla and remaining spice mixture. Beat until smooth. Add enough of the milk to reach your desired consistency. Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes, and if desired, sprinkle with cinnamon.