These pumpkin cupcakes are a soft and moist and a wonderful fall treat. Packed with pumpkin flavor and topped with a pumpkin spice cream cheese frosting they are perfect for your pumpkin loving friends and family.
Once fall time comes around these pumpkin cupcakes are some of my favorite treats to make for some of my friends that love pumpkin. They are super moist and the cream cheese frosting is flavored perfectly. With just a small hint of maple it will them coming back for more. They are the prefect treat with a nice cup of coffee or apple cider. Since this is made with pumpkin puree you don’t have to wait for fall to come around to enjoy these nice little treats.
In this recipe
This recipe uses very simple ingredients but they all pack a major punch and work perfectly with each other.
Pumpkin puree: you can use store bought or homemade pumpkin puree however you want to make sure that the water content is low for the homemade pumpkin puree.
Pumpkin spice blend:  you can either purchase this or make it yourself. I have a recipe here that you can use. A quick blend would be 1 tablespoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon each nutmeg and ginger, and ¼ teaspoon each allspice and ground cloves.
Maple syrup: compliments the pumpkin and cream cheese well.
Creaming vs All in One
There are a few ways to make cakes and two of my favorites are the creaming method and the all in one. The creaming method is what you are probably thinking. You cream the butter and sugar together and then start adding the rest of the liquid ingredients and then gently mix in the dry ingredients. The all in one method is when you can mix everything all at once in one bowl. This is great for cakes that use oil. Since this cake has oil and butter you can use either method. The instructions will go the route of the creaming method but if you are in a pinch for time the all in one method works like a charm.
The toothpick test
One of the best ways to tell if a cupcake is done is by using a toothpick to test the cakes. You can do this quickly which is very important when cooking cupcakes as oven temperatures fluctuate quickly when you open the oven door. You want to insert a toothpick into the center of at least 3 cupcakes in different locations in the muffin pan. The toothpick should come out clean and there should be no batter on it. This is how you know your cupcakes are done since every other cooks a little differently.
Cooling pumpkin cupcakes in the pan
One of the most important this is to make sure that you cool the pumpkin cupcakes in the pan for at least 10 minutes. Only after that do you want to move them to a cooling rack. If you have ever had a cupcake fall one of the possible reasons that will happen is when a cake is cooled too quickly or is handled quickly after it is removed from the oven. The cooling helps the cupcake maintain its structure. Overmixing, oven temperature fluctuations, undercooked batter, and too much liquid in the batter are also other reason for a sunken cake.
Looking for other pumpkin recipes?
Pumpkin Cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Equipment
- 2 12 cup muffin pans
- Stand mixer with paddle attachment
- 24 Cupcake liners
- Cookie scoop 2 or 4 tablespoon in size
- Piping bag with tip
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cupcakes:
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 15 ounces pumpkin puree homemade or store bought
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup butter unsalted, softened
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1½ tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- ½ cup butter unsalted, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
Making the pumpkin cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, 177°C or gas mark 4. Line 2 muffin pans with paper cupcake liners.
- In a mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin spice. Whisk or sift together and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer add the oil and butter and beat on a medium speed. Add the sugar and increase the speed until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one of the time waiting a minute between each egg. Add the vanilla extract and reduce the speed to low. Add the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Add the pumpkin and mix until just incorporated.
- Using a cookie scoop at 4 tablespoons or ¼ cup of batter to each cupcake well.
- Bake for 20 minutes, rotating the cupcake pans halfway, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes before placing them on a cooling rack. If you are using only one pan allow the pan to cool for another 5-10 minutes before lining and filling the cups to bake.
Making the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat butter, cream cheese, and maple syrup on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Scrape the bowl a few times.
- Add the pumpkin spice and powdered sugar. Blend on low until all of the sugar is incorporated. Once all of the sugar is mixed in increase the speed to high and beat for 30 seconds until light and fluffy. Place into a piping bag with a star tip and pipe over the cooled cupcakes.
Nutrition
