Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

It's "what do I do with all this leftover pumpkin?" season! Here's one answer: my Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting! There are so many fun ways to decorate them! I created this recipe for PIX11 (NYC TV) so you won't see it in my best-selling cookbook, but there are of course plenty of other irresistible desserts, especially in the Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas chapters!

💝 ☘️ 🐰 🇺🇸 🤡 🐈‍⬛ 🎃 🦃 🎅🏼

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes

1 1/4 cups cake flour

1/2 teaspoon arrowroot or corn starch

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons gound cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar (no clumps)

2 large eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup pumpkin purée (from can, or pie pumpkin)

1/3 cup buttermilk

Heat oven to 350°F. Prepare a 12-muffin pan with paper liners.

Whisk together flour, starch, baking powder and soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves.

In large bowl, beat together butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beat in vanilla. Mix in pumpkin. Mix in half dry ingredients then half buttermilk, repeat.

Fill each liner almost to the top.

Bake 22 minutes or till toothpick comes out clean. Transfer to cooling rack. Frost and/or decorate!

Cream Cheese Frosting

Generously frosts 12 cupcakes, easily frosts 24

½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

24 ounces (about 6 cups) powdered sugar

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

In large bowl, mix together butter and cream cheese. Add sugar a cup at a time, mixing in thoroughly. Mix in lemon juice and vanilla.

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Of course, my vintage Halloween cupcake picks go perfectly on top of these. After you pipe on the cream cheese frosting (using gel coloring: I use Chefmaster neon brite orange and avocado, and AmeriColor violet and super black) you can dress them up with handy frosting and sprinkle kits like these: here, and here! Let's get spooktacular! 👻 🎉

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💝 ☘️ 🐰 🇺🇸 🤡 🐈‍⬛ 🎃 🦃 🎅🏼