Recipe courtesy of
Matthew Skrincosky
for
Food Network Kitchen
Recipe courtesy of
Matthew Skrincosky
for
Food Network Kitchen
Watch how to make this recipe.
Thanksgiving Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes
Getting reviews...
- Level: Intermediate
- Total: 2 hr 30 min
- Active: 1 hr 30 min
- Yield: 12 cupcakes
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 12 servings
- Calories
- 473
- Total Fat
- 28 g
- Saturated Fat
- 17 g
- Carbohydrates
- 53 g
- Dietary Fiber
- 2 g
- Sugar
- 36 g
- Protein
- 4 g
- Cholesterol
- 103 mg
- Sodium
- 248 mg
These charming cupcakes capture all the flavors of pumpkin pie in easy-to-follow steps for a showstopping dessert. Made with a full 15-ounce can of pumpkin purée and nicely spiced for warmth, the cupcakes are exceptionally moist and tender. They're topped with a simple pumpkin spice buttercream for extra fall flavor, then decorated to resemble miniature pumpkin pies. For a smooth, even surface, the flat-top frosting technique is used by inverting the iced cupcakes onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and chilling until firm. The smooth surface is finished with a piped whipped-cream-style dollop and a buttercream border that mimics a fluted pie crust. The result is a festive treat that's fun to serve and delicious to eat.
- Level: Intermediate
- Total: 2 hr 30 min
- Active: 1 hr 30 min
- Yield: 12 cupcakes
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 12 servings
- Calories
- 473
- Total Fat
- 28 g
- Saturated Fat
- 17 g
- Carbohydrates
- 53 g
- Dietary Fiber
- 2 g
- Sugar
- 36 g
- Protein
- 4 g
- Cholesterol
- 103 mg
- Sodium
- 248 mg
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
Frosting:
Decoration:
NEW: You can now switch to Cook Mode to keep your screen awake.
Directions
Special equipment:
a piping bag fitted with a small star tip; 2 small disposable piping bags; a small offset spatula- For the cupcakes: Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and set aside.
- For the cupcakes: Whisk the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. Whisk the pumpkin purée, granulated sugar, melted butter, eggs, milk and vanilla together in a medium bowl. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture and gently fold until just incorporated (it's okay if there are some lumps). Divide evenly among the prepared paper liners, about 6 tablespoons in each.
- Bake the cupcakes until the tops spring back when pressed, 24 to 28 minutes, rotating the pan about halfway through. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
- For the frosting: Cream together the butter, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed for 1 minute to whip the butter. With the machine on low, begin incorporating the confectioners’ sugar. Slowly bring the speed up to medium-high and whip for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the milk and the vanilla and return the machine to medium-high speed. Whip the buttercream until light and fluffy, about 2 more minutes.
- Fit a piping bag with a small star tip. Remove a heaping 3/4 cup frosting to a small bowl and set aside. Transfer another 1/4 cup buttercream to a small disposable pastry bag. Snip open the pastry bag and insert the entire bag into the star-tipped piping bag and set aside. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and put it in the refrigerator.
- To the large bowl of frosting, add 7 drops of red food gel, 6 drops brown food gel, 4 drops orange gel and 4 drops yellow gel food coloring. Mix, adding more colors as necessary until you have a deep copper color that looks like baked pumpkin pie.
- To the heaping 3/4 cup of frosting, add 2 drops of brown gel coloring and 1 drop of yellow. Mix, adding gel color as needed until you have a color that looks like a golden crust to pipe around each cupcake. Place the golden buttercream in a disposable piping bag and set aside.
- Ice the 12 cupcakes with the copper-colored frosting using a small offset spatula. With the edge of the spatula, clean up the sides of the cupcakes for smooth, clean edges. Invert the cupcakes onto the chilled, lined sheet pan. Gently press the iced side of the cupcakes flat onto the baking sheet, spacing them evenly apart. Place the inverted cupcakes back in the refrigerator until the icing is firm, about 30 minutes. Once very cold, gently peel each cupcake off. Use the edge of the small offset spatula to smooth out any imperfections, aiming for a perfectly flat surface.
- Using the white frosting in the star-tip piping bag, gently pipe a star directly in the center of each cupcake. Remove the inserted white buttercream frosting pastry bag, squeeze the remaining white frosting into the golden crust frosting piping bag. With your fingers, blend the white into the golden color, leaving white streaks swirled around in the pastry bag. Snip the tip of the pastry bag to open it and insert it into the star-tipped piping bag. Pipe around the perimeter of each cupcake in a shell pattern, creating a pattern that looks like a crimped pie crust.
Cook’s Note
When measuring flour, we spoon it into a dry measuring cup and level off excess. (Scooping directly from the bag compacts the flour, resulting in dry baked goods.)
