Pumpkin White Chocolate Cupcakes (GF)

This is the season for everything pumpkin and today’s Pumpkin White Chocolate Cupcakes will satisfy everyone’s cravings. Filled with the spices that make your mouth water and have you dreaming of the holidays, these will fill your home with tantalizing aromas when they are baking.

This recipe only makes 12 to 14 cupcakes, so if you are serving a larger crowd, go ahead and double it. If you need more than 24, I suggest you make two double batches instead of quadrupling the recipe. It is much safer and you will get better results.

Also, you can make these into miniature cupcakes perfect for showers, luncheons, and other celebrations where you are serving more than one type of dessert.

When you are mixing the batter, you can use either a stand mixer or a hand mixer. Both will work but this takes time to whip the butter and cream cheese together so I would recommend using a stand mixer if you have access to one.

A shortcut in these cupcakes is to use pumpkin pie spice in place of individual spices. It combines the most common spices used for sweets during the fall and winter. You will find it in the spice aisle of your grocery store. I still have all the individual seasonings for custom baking, but this is a good way to streamline the recipe a bit.

I decorated these cupcakes for Halloween today but if you are making them for Thanksgiving, I would use a variety of orange, yellow, and brown cupcake liners for a really festive display on your buffet. You could put tiny turkeys on top for even more fun!

You can decorate them any way you like, with piped frosting and sprinkles like I did today or using a round piping tip to create a snowman-like shape. Then you can use googly eyes to make an adorable winter treat.

I increased the amount of frosting so I would have plenty to generously cover all the cupcakes. I hate to run short, LOL. See the PRO Tip below for the 1.5 amounts of the frosting ingredients if you want more to work with.

I found these adorable Halloween sprinkles on Amazon. They are the perfect decorations for all your holiday sweets. With a collection of white ghosts, orange pumpkins, and black bat wings, I love how festive they make these cupcakes!

If you are looking for a perfect sweet treat for Halloween parties or dessert after your Thanksgiving meal, these cupcakes are the ideal addition. Super moist and tender with the slight tanginess of the cream cheese frosting. Your crowd will love them!

I hope you make these luscious Pumpkin White Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting for your upcoming festivities and special occasions. They are beautiful and so delicious that people will be going back for seconds! Enjoy your Halloween celebrations and have fun in the run up to the holidays. Happy Chocolate Monday!

If you try this recipe, let me know! Please leave a star rating in the recipe card, comment below, and don’t forget to snap a pic and tag it @theheritagecook on Instagram! Seeing your creations makes my day and I love hearing from you!

 

Ingredients needed for Pumpkin White Chocolate Cupcakes:

• Cupcakes: GF flour or regular flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, cardamom, xanthan gum (if using), applesauce, vegetable oil, eggs, brown sugar, pumpkin puree, vanilla, white chocolate chips
• Frosting: full-fat cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and salt

 

PRO Tip:

If you cannot find pumpkin pie spice in your grocery store you can make your own blend. Combine together: 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground allspice and 1/2 tsp ground ginger plus 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg and 1/4 tsp ground cloves. Whisk together to blend and use 1-1/2 tsp in this recipe. Save the extra in a jar in your cupboard with the other spices.

 

PRO Tip:

If you are making cupcakes in a second muffin tin, line with paper and fill as you did the first pan. Then add about a tablespoon of water to the open, unfilled cups which will protect the pan and even the baking temperature. 

 

How to make Pumpkin White Chocolate Cupcakes:

1. Prepare the Cupcakes: Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners and set aside. Whisk the dry ingredients together and set aside.
2. Beat the oil, eggs, brown sugar, pumpkin and vanilla together until smooth. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and beat until thoroughly combined. Stir in the white chocolate chips.
3. Using a cookie scoop, fill each lined muffin cup 2/3 full. Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 20 to 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool 10 minutes, then move the cupcakes from the pan to the rack and finish cooling them completely.
4. Make the Frosting: Beat together the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy. Add in the sugar, vanilla, and salt and beat on low for 30 seconds. Increase speed to high and beat for 2 minutes. If you are piping the frosting, add another 1/4 cup of the sugar to stiffen the frosting enough to hold designs.
5. Frost the cooled cupcakes and decorate as desired. Store, covered, in the refrigerator up to 5 days. Return to room temperature before serving.
6. For Mini Cupcakes: The recipe makes about 30 mini cupcakes. Bake them for 12 to 13 minutes at 350°F (180°C). Frost when cooled.

 

PRO Tip:

Once the cupcakes have cooled a little you can use a mini offset spatula to help lift the cupcakes out of the muffin pan. It slides easily down the side of each one without scratching your pan.

 

PRO Tip:

If you will be doubling the recipe for the cupcakes, you may want to increase the frosting amounts by half again to be sure you have plenty for bountiful pipped designs. You will need:

• 12 oz (1-1/2 bricks; 341g) cream cheese
• 3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks; 170g) butter
• 4-3/4 cups + 2 tbsp (596g) confectioners’ sugar
• 3 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt

Use a stand mixer if possible to handle the increased volume of ingredients. The cream cheese and butter need to be at room temperature. Follow the directions in the recipe below.

 

Recommended Tools (affiliate links; no extra cost to you):

• Kitchen scale
• Muffin pan
• Stand mixer or hand mixer
• Medium cookie scoop
• 1M piping tip and piping bags
• Mini offset spatula

 

Gluten-Free Tips:

* You can adjust any baking recipe to gluten-free by using 120 grams per cup of my favorite gluten-free flour blend. If you are using another brand of flour or regular flour, whisk it, spoon it lightly into a measuring cup until mounded, level off the top with a knife, and weigh the flour left in the cup. Use that weight as your standard per cup of that specific flour. Do this for each flour blend you use. Commercial gluten-free blends such as Pamela’s All-Purpose Artisan Blend, Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1, or King Arthur Measure for Measure are all good choices.

You will get the best and most consistent results by using a digital kitchen scale and weighing your ingredients, especially when you are baking.

All recommended ingredients are gluten-free as of the writing of this article. Always check to be sure the products haven’t changed and are still safe to consume.