A moist pumpkin spice cupcake full of warm spices is topped with coffee cream cheese frosting to make these pumpkin spice latte cupcakes a wonderful complement to the sweater weather beverage.
Sweater weather and pumpkin spice lattes go hand in hand. It’s almost as if once those sleeves cover those knuckles, a pumpkin spice latte needs to be in hand to complete the ensemble.
Add an extra touch to that ensemble by adding a pumpkin spice latte to the other hand. Who knew food and beverages would ever become fashion accessories?
These pumpkin spice latte cupcakes begin with my pumpkin spice cupcakes. Those cupcakes are moist and full of warm spices, making them the best base to begin these pumpkin spice latte cupcakes.
The latte portion comes from the coffee cream cheese frosting that is used to top the cupcakes. If you are a coffee lover, you’re going to LOVE this frosting and will be licking it off of the beaters. Just as long as you have enough to frost the cupcakes, lick away!
How to Make Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes
Begin by sifting together the dry ingredients into a large bowl. I bought the sieve pictured below from a company that is no longer in business, but here’s the link to one that’s VERY similar.
Then, whisk together just to combine.
In a small bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients – pumpkin puree and sour cream.
When roaming the grocery store aisle, make sure to buy pure pumpkin puree and NOT pumpkin pie mix. They are not the same thing. If you’re unsure, check the ingredients list. The ingredients list should only contain one ingredient – pumpkin.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy and pale in color.
Add in the eggs, one at a time. As a general rule, when working with cake batter, the mixer should be reduced to low speed once eggs are added. This prevents over mixing, which can destabilize the protein in the eggs and result in a dense and flat cake.
Pro-tip: To make sure the eggs are evenly distributed in the batter without running the risk of over mixing, make sure to use room temperature eggs. To quickly bring eggs to room temperature, submerge them in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes before using.
To the butter mixture, add half the flour mixture, followed by the pumpkin mixture, and finally, the remaining flour mixture.
Divide the batter among a lined muffin tray, filling each well about ¾ full.
Bake at 350°F for 22 to 24 minutes and allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to completely cool.
Make the coffee cream cheese frosting by beating together cream cheese, butter, salt, vanilla, powdered sugar, instant coffee granules and milk.
The frosting recipe as written will keep the coffee granules for the most part intact. If you prefer not to have visible coffee granules, see the notes section below the recipe.
Frost the cooled cupcakes and enjoy!
Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes
Ingredients
Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
- 1/2 cup full fat sour cream, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs, room temperature
Coffee Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 3/4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 3/4 teaspoon instant coffee granules
- Up to 3 teaspoons milk
Instructions
Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a standard muffin pan with paper liners.
- Into a large bowl, sift together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, baking powder and salt. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix the pumpkin puree with the sour cream until combined. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs, one at a time, adding only the next egg once just a streak of the last egg remains. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the vanilla, and mix on low just to combine.
- With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the pumpkin mixture, and beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Once the last addition of the flour mixture has been added, mix until just a few streaks of flour remain. Remove bowl from the mixer and mix by hand using a rubber spatula until no flour streaks remain.
- Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin pan (about 3/4 full). Bake for 22 to 24 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack to completely cool.
- Frost with cinnamon cream cheese frosting (recipe follows).
Coffee Cream Cheese Frosting
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the cream cheese and butter on medium speed until combined and smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat to combine. Add the salt and vanilla and beat to combine.
- Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the powdered sugar. Once all the sugar has been added, increase the speed to medium and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add the coffee and 1 teaspoon of milk and beat on medium until combined. Stop here if you're happy with the consistency. For a thinner consistency, add more milk.
Notes
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