Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Look no further for the perfect pumpkin cupcake! These from scratch Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting are moist and spiced and topped with the perfect cream cheese frosting.

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If you love these pumpkin cupcakes, you’ll also love this Pumpkin Pie Cake or this Pumpkin Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting.

Cupcakes tend to be my go-to dessert. You can go with the classics, or get a little creative. You can use a shortcut recipe or make them from scratch. They come in every flavor and many different sizes.

So it’s no surprise that I have my favorite pumpkin cupcake recipe.

Ok, so I actually have 2. I have one that’s super easy and starts with a cake mix, and I have this one (that is also quite easy) that is from scratch.

How to Make the Best Pumpkin Cupcakes from Scratch

Sometimes I love a good shortcut. Sometimes I need a good shortcut. But when it comes down to it, I prefer the taste and texture of a cupcake from scratch.

And if you are looking for the perfect, from scratch pumpkin cupcake, look no further.

This cupcake has everything you need. The perfect moist texture, the perfect amount of spice, the perfect cream cheese frosting.

But guess what? These are so super simple – almost as easy as a shortcut recipe!

Here’s how you make them:

1. Start by lining a muffin tin with liners. This recipe makes 12 cupcakes, so you’ll just need one 12-cup muffin tin.
2. You’ll need 2 bowls – one to mix the dry ingredients and one to mix the wet ingredients. Start with the dry ingredients and whisk them together with a whisk. The dry ingredients include the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, ginger and nutmeg.
3. In the second bowl, combine the eggs, pumpkin, granulated and brown sugars, and the vegetable oil. You can use a stand mixer or a hand mixer if you want, or you can even just mix it all together with a whisk.
4. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir them together just until they are mixed. You don’t want to overmix, just until they are all combined.
5. Divide the mixture evenly between the 12 muffin cups. Each cup will be about 2/3 full.
6. Bake them in a preheated oven until a tester comes out clean, about 15 minutes.
7. Cool the cupcakes completely before adding the frosting. I like to let them sit in the muffin tin for 5 minutes then remove them so that they will cool faster.

How to Make Cream Cheese Frosting

Cream cheese frosting has to be one of my favorite frostings. This is an easy frosting with only a few ingredients that is so perfect for these pumpkin cupcakes.

• You’ll want to start with room temperature ingredients. You don’t want them warm at all, just softened enough so that if you were to press your finger in the side, there would be a little give.
• Combine the cream cheese and butter in a bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. You’ll want to use some sort of mixer for this for smooth, fluffy frosting. A stand mixer will work, but I tend to prefer a hand mixer for this recipe.
• Beat the cream cheese and butter together until they are completely combined and smooth. Then continue to beat them until they are light and fluffy. I usually beat it for several minutes.
• Start adding in the powdered sugar, a little at a time. You’ll end up needing between 3 and 4 cups of powdered sugar. Add as much or as little as you like for your desired consistency and sweetness. I usually use closer to 4 cups because I like it sweet.
• If the frosting gets too thick or stiff, you can add a bit of milk or cream to thin it out. But be careful because you want to be able to pipe it onto the cupcakes.
• When the cupcakes are cool, use a piping bag to pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. Top with sprinkles, if desired!!

This does make enough frosting to generously frost each cupcake. So if you are like my husband and you only like a small smear of frosting, you can easily halve the recipe.

If you love pumpkin desserts, you’ll love these pumpkin recipes:

Oatmeal Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Baked Pumpkin Donuts
Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
Pumpkin Cheesecake with Caramel Sauce
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

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Author: Deborah Harroun

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes

Cooling Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 12 servings

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

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Look no further for the perfect pumpkin cupcake! These from scratch Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting are moist and spiced and topped with the perfect cream cheese frosting.

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Ingredients

Cupcakes

• ▢ 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ▢ 2 large eggs at room temperature
• ▢ 1 cup (8 oz) canned pumpkin puree
• ▢ 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1/2 cup light brown sugar lightly packed
• ▢ 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Cream Cheese Frosting

• ▢ 8 oz. cream cheese softened
• ▢ 1/4 cup butter softened
• ▢ 3-4 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

For the Cupcakes:

• Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line 12 muffin tins with cupcake liners.
• In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, ginger, and nutmeg. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vegetable oil.
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir just until combined. Divide the mixture evenly between the 12 prepared cups.
• Bake for 20-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool completely on a cooling rack.

For the frosting:

• Cream together the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add in the powdered sugar until you reach your desired consistency and sweetness. Pipe onto the cooled cupcakes.

Recipe Notes:

This makes enough cream cheese frosting to generously frost each cupcake. If you don’t like a lot of frosting, you can easily halve the frosting recipe.

Slightly adapted from Ina Garten via House Beautiful

Nutrition information provided as an estimate only. Various brands and products can change the counts. Any nutritional information should only be used as a general guideline.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1cupcake, Calories: 440kcal (22%), Carbohydrates: 62g (21%), Protein: 3g (6%), Fat: 21g (32%), Saturated Fat: 8g (50%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g, Cholesterol: 60mg (20%), Sodium: 263mg (11%), Fiber: 1g (4%), Sugar: 51g (57%)

Keywords: cream cheese frosting, pumpkin cupcakes