Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes
I’ve made mention before that I’m not the biggest coffee fan; I’m coming around to it, but I certainly don’t crave it or make a habit of drinking it on a daily basis. However, I do love coffee-flavored baked goods. So weird, right?! It also so happens that I love pumpkin… and sky-high clouds of frosting. It’s been years since I first started seeing versions of Starbucks’ popular pumpkin spice latte in cupcake form. I finally whipped up a batch of my own this week and, seriously, I could eat the entire dozen all by myself. No help required. These taste like spiced pumpkin cupcakes spiked with a shot of coffee and topped with perhaps the most amazing whipped cream frosting to ever touch my lips.
If you’ve made my traditional pumpkin cupcakes, you know they are absolutely bursting with pumpkin flavor; it’s front and center. These pumpkin spice latte cupcakes are a little different in that pumpkin shares the stage with coffee, but the combination of the two is just fabulous together. It’s perfectly balanced and the frosting is the ultimate complement. The traditional drink is usually topped with fresh whipped cream, and while plain ol’ sweetened whipped cream is great for topping drinks, fruit and pie, I like something with a little more substance for my cupcakes.
I wanted a frosting that tasted predominantly like whipped cream, but that had some oomph to it so I could pile it high in pretty swirls on top of the cupcakes. I added cream cheese to the frosting before whipping it into peaks; this turned out to be perfect. You can taste just a hint of the cream cheese (and we all know how perfect it is with pumpkin!) and the heavy cream whipped up into wonderful billowy peaks that stayed perfectly stiff when I piped it. Success!
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Throw a little sprinkle of cinnamon and a drizzle of caramel on top, and you’ve got a serious masterpiece.
I may have just found my favorite fall cupcake. I’m in love… and I don’t want to share!
(I totally got frosting all over my nose when I bit into that cupcake!)
One year ago: Pumpkin Seed Brittle with Vanilla Bean and Cardamom
Two years ago: Creamy Potato and Leek Soup
Three years ago: The Best Chocolate Buttercream for Cupcakes
Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- 1⅓ cups (166.67 g) all-purpose flour
- 4½ teaspoons (4.5 teaspoons) espresso powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) salt
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) ground cinnamon
- Pinch of ground nutmeg
- Pinch of ground cloves
- ¾ cup (183.75 g) canned pumpkin
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (110 g) dark brown sugar
- ½ cup (109 ml) vegetable oil
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup (59.25 ml) brewed coffee, for brushing
For the Frosting:
- 8 ounces (226.8 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) vanilla extract
- 2 cups (476 ml) heavy cream
To Garnish:
- Cinnamon
- Caramel Sauce
Instructions
- Make the Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners; set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves; set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, both sugars and the vegetable oil until completely combined, making sure to break up any chunks of brown sugar so no lumps remain. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time. Add the flour mixture in two additions, folding with a rubber spatula until no flour pockets remain.
- Divide the batter between the baking cups, filling each about two-thirds full. Bake until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, 18 to 22 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack. While the cupcakes are still warm, brush the tops with the brewed coffee. Let each coat soak in before applying the next. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.
- Make the Frosting: On medium speed, beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla extract in a mixer with the whisk attachment until smooth and completely combined, about 3 minutes. Slowly add the heavy cream, scrape the sides of the bowl, then increase speed to medium-high and whip until stiff peaks form.
- Assemble the Cupcakes: Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes, then sprinkle with cinnamon and drizzle with caramel sauce, if desired. Serve immediately, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Wow, those look incredible! I just have one question: is there any substitute to the coffee? I have never cared for the taste of it, and even order my Pumpkin Spice Lattes with cream instead. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Hi Louise, I think you could just omit the espresso powder and skip brushing the cupcakes with coffee.
Thanks! I’m gonna try them tomorrow. :)
I can see how you’d get frosting on your nose with that tall pile of sugary goodness! I love coffee and spice so these sound delish. Yummorama. :)
And of course your pictures are awesome as always.
Just finished making these.. amazing!..
Woo! I love it!
They are so yummy, I like the 1 to 1 cupcake to icing ratio, I used the 1M tip, The frosting at first made me nervous since it was so thin from the whipping cream, but after peaking it became thick and so easy to pipe, and it kept the shape.. I attached a pic, hopefully it worked, i had too much fun drizzling the caramel <3
I would say you nailed it with this one!!
Lovely looking cupcakes, I must bake these soon!
Wow these look amazing! And your description is making my mouth water. I may have to rush home and make these tonight! Or get a Pumpkin Spice Latte on the way home… Nahhhh baking is more fun. :)
OMG, I love these!!!
How do you keep your cream cheese frosting stiff enough to decorate (as you did in the pictures above)? Mine is always very soft and creamy.
Hi Gabby, I just made sure to beat the frosting until it held heavy peaks. It piped up just fine. Be sure to use full-fat cream cheese – low fat cream cheese has a higher water content, which can cause frostings to be runnier.
While I don’t care for pumpkin spice lattes, I love the pumpkin coffee combo in baked goods. These look amazing with all that creamy frosting and caramel on top!
Just took a pumpkin out of the oven. Now I know what to do with it. These looks AWESOME!!
These are baking now :-) I subbed G/F flour blend for the flour, coconut sugar for the dk. brown sugar and honey for the granulated sugar/oil. I knew the espresso powder we have on hand wouldn’t dissolve into the batter bur I used it “cause I had it. I tasted a wee bit of batter and it was delish so I’m thinking good things are coming from the oven today! My teens-on-the-verge-of-being-grown-ups will be super surprised when they get home…
This cupcake looks perfect! The sky high icing with a caramel drizzle – heaven!!
These look amazing! I want to make them this weekend for a party. I do have a question. None of my local stores carry espresso powder. And I don’t have time to order it. Is there any kind of substitution I can use?
Hi Jen, You can substitute instant coffee powder in its place; just be sure not to use regular ground coffee, or it won’t dissolve in the cupcakes.
This looks like one heck of a delicious ice cream, especially that frosting.. I would definitely eat it with a spoon! :)
Love the look of the light, airy frosting!
The frosting on these cupcakes look phenomenal!
Holy crappers these cupcakes look amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!! Such a beautiful presentation!!
I saw your picture of these on Instagram last night. So, so pretty. I’m a cupcake-aholic… so I need to give these a try! I just love the way the frosting looks… I wish I had your talent. Honestly. I read through this again, and I may have missed it…. but what tip do you use when piping the frosting? Not that my cupcakes will look like this, (I can’t bake to save my life).. but I’ll try anyway. It gives my family something to tease me about. :-)
I used the Ateco #827 tip – it’s a jumbo open star tip. Enjoy! :)
I totally agree with you about more frosting being better:-) These look delicious!
Wow! Michelle, these cupcakes are da bombe! Everything about them is just pure perfection! Love the cupcake flavors, the frosting with the cream cheese and whipped cream (saw similar recipe floating around at Pinterest and I can’t wait to make it). Even the topping with the cinnamon and caramel is like a Starbuck’s PSL! Girl, this is your cupcake hat-trick! Thanks for sharing. Pinning (of course)!
Yum! I love the looks of that frosting especially with the cinnamon and caramel.
The swirls look gorgeous and I imagine the cream cheese is divine. I really wanted to try the Starbucks PSL but now its on offer in cake form that might take the lead!
I never thought of putting pumpkin and latte together, but these look delicious :)
This is a 1st for me.. pumpkin & coffee together in a recipe!! I love different.. and this is definitely different.. great idea, thanks for sharing :-) Xx
i had been looking for something new to bake with pumpkin… you are always coming up with fantastic recipes.. gonna try this!
Coffee-flavored baked goods are so good, just a hint of coffee really brings out chocolate flavors especially and the fact these are PSL-flavored, I love the sounds!
And the frosting – whipped creamy-ish with just a hint of the cream cheese sounds stellar. And the caramel drizzle. Wow.
Pinned!
These look delicious! I love pumpkin for autumn, and these look literally perfect xo
That frosting looks AMAZING!! And I love the recipe – perfectly subtle, and not too sweet. These look so great.
So Gorgeous! I NEED to try these right away!:)
These look amazing! I don’t drink coffee but I love coffee flavoured desserts. I recently learned there’s no pumpkin in Starbucks pumpkin spice lattes. Made sense after I thought about it.