for me - pumpkin is not just for thanksgiving. it is a flavor i crave all year round.
i am not quite sure where my love of pumpkin came from but i am sure that it had something to do with my Great Aunt Betty's chiffon pumpkin pie. it was not like any pumpkin pie i had ever tasted. it was light in texture and the spices were perfect. i looked forward to thanksgiving because it was the only time i got that awesome pie.
a couple years ago i made it for the first time on my own. it is not the easiest pie to make - it is a long process - but i just love the flavors so i overlook the difficulty. but i am always on the lookout for other baked goods that can mimic that flavor without all of the work.
when i saw this recipe on
smitten kitchen - i knew i had to make it. i knew i could create the flavors of Aunt Betty's pumpkin pie in a cupcake.
the pumpkin cupcake itself was moist with an excellent crumb and had just the right spice. i was a bit freaked out by the addition of black pepper in the cupcake - but it added that extra spice that make these cupcakes a favorite of mine. the maple cream cheese frosting was the perfect finishing touch - not too sweet. i sprinkled the tops with a bit of cinnamon for decoration but it was a nice flavor addition as well. a vanilla buttercream would be equally wonderful but would probably up the sweet factor.
pumpkin cupcakes with maple cream cheese frosting
adapted from
David Leite via
smitten kitchenYield: 17 to 18 cupcakes
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for greasing pans
1 cup firmly packed dark-brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk mixed with 1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cups canned solid-pack pumpkin
Frosting
Two (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
cinnamon to sprinkle to tops of cupcakes
Make the cupcakes:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cupcake pan with 18 liners.
2. In a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugars on medium speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and pepper into a medium bowl.
3. Add the eggs 1 at a time to the mixer, scraping down the sides after each addition. Alternate adding the flour and milk mixtures, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat in the pumpkin until smooth. Scoop the batter among the cupcake liners - you're looking to get them 3/4 full. Rap the filled pans once on the counter to release any air bubbles. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool the cupcakes on racks completely.
Make the frosting:
In a stand mixer beat all the ingredients on medium until fluffy. Decorate the cupcakes however you like. I used a plain circle tip.
Refrigerate the cupcakes for 30 minutes to set up frosting.
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these carrot cake cookies almost converted me from a pumpkin lover to a
carrot cake lover. yes, they are that good. the cookie itself is soft
and moist - yet strong enough to hold up as a sandwich cookie. i added
more spice to the mix because that is how i roll. i think it is a major
improvement over the original recipe. i usually could leave the frosting
out of the equation but in this case - the frosting makes these
cookies. the cookie itself is not very sweet and the creamy sweetness of
the cream cheese frosting balances out the cookie with the perfect
amount of sweetness to compliment the spices in the cookie. these carrot
cake cookies would be the perfect picnic or backyard barbecue dessert. 
i love the idea of using rice krispies in a cookie. i have adapted the
recipe a bit by adding toffee and cinnamon but i think the rice krispies
are what make them special. the cookie itself is crisp but the middle
is still chewy. the toffee melts the perfect amount to be chewy but
still hold that toffee texture i love. ever since i made 
these cookies are INCREDIBLE! i am not exaggerating - they are
perfection. the crispy cookie and the white chocolate would be amazing
on their own but the addition of the sea salt - oh my! the salty crunch
on top makes these cookies one of the best i have ever made.Session dataSession data 
these peanut butter and jelly bars fit the bill perfectly. not only are
they simple to make - you can easily double the recipe for a large
crowd. i need my peanut butter to be chunky - the smooth stuff just
doesn't feel like peanut butter to me - so i substituted chunky for
smooth. any kind of berry jam will work great and for those of you
grape jelly fans - that would work as well. i added a bit on honey to
the batter and honey roasted peanuts to the top because i think peanut
butter and honey are naturals together. 
the mixed apple pie was probably one of my favorite pies i have
made because each apple was so different - different flavor and
texture. they combined perfectly. the all butter pastry crust was flaky
and i had a lot of fun making up the top crust. i have done lattice - i
have done full crust - i have done crumble topping. i wanted something
special this time. i took the top crust and cut out circles with a
biscuit cutter and overlapped the circles. it looked like a flower. i
will be using that one again - it makes a traditional pie new again. 
this cake met every expectation i had and then some. i used a different
recipe for the cake because i have one i love and the baked recipe makes
a three layer cake which i thought was overkill. i made everything else
from the baked recipe. this was not an easy cake for me to make as i
seem to be cursed when it comes to caramel but it was worth all the
effort. the balance of the sweet & salty flavors is perfection. the
cake itself is pure decadence but with fleur de sel and caramel it puts
it into a whole other world.
i get why people love these brownies and i am sure they are equally
fabulous on their own but i am telling you they are a little slice of
heaven when marbled with a cream cheese swirl. i upped the amount of
espresso powder and decreased the sugar by a bit because i do that in
most recipes. both adaptations worked really well and i think they
enhanced the deep chocolate flavor in these brownies. 
