![](https://cdn.sprinklebakes.com/media/2011/10/sprinklebakespumpkinbrownbuttercupcakes.jpg)
![](https://cdn.sprinklebakes.com/media/2011/10/sprinklebakespumpkinbrownbuttercupcakes2.jpg)
I’m aware that the food world has no shortage of pumpkin cupcake recipes, but I’m sharing this one anyway. It’s my favorite because it doesn’t err on the “muffiny” side. It is truly a pumpkin cupcake, and I cannot recommend them enough. Make them! Need some convincing?
- Sour cream. It does magical things to cake batter. Any cupcake with sour cream as an ingredient is my favorite cupcake, and this one has it.
- Brown butter is pretty amazing in anything, but mix it up with pumpkin and spices… swoon.
- You won’t even have to break out the electric mixer for the cake batter. If you have a whisk, a large bowl and a spoon – you’re good to go.
- Cooked cinnamon frosting. From the Red Hook guys, no less.
And what about those postage stamp cupcake banners? My intentions were to fill this post with fall reminders (leaves, pine cones, & gourds) but the muse led elsewhere.
Elsewhere just happened to be in a bag of international postage stamps.
![](https://cdn.sprinklebakes.com/media/2011/10/sprinklebakespumpkinbrownbuttercupcakes3.jpg)
Used international postage stamps can be purchased inexpensively at bookstores. They usually hang out in the collectibles section with the coin portfolios, and come in a bag of 300 for about six dollars. If you can’t find them at a bookstore, there are plenty to be had on Etsy for just a few dollars. I think they are so beautiful! The bags are full of duplicates so you won’t mind using a few for crafting purposes. Cut a triangle-shaped notch from the end of two stamps that are attached (or one large one) and glue it to a toothpick. Easy!
Pumpkin Brown Butter Cupcakes
with Cinnamon Frosting
Yield: About 24
cupcakes [click for printable version]
![](https://cdn.sprinklebakes.com/media/2011/10/Fallenleavescake-17.jpg)
Cake:
¾ cup unsalted butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp. baking soda
3 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. allspice
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 ½ cups pumpkin puree
3 large eggs
½ cup sour cream
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line cupcake tins with papers. - Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, swirling the pan occasionally until the
butter turns golden brown. Pour the browned butter into a small bowl and let
stand until cool but not solidified. - In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon,
ginger, salt and allspice. Set aside. - In a large bowl, whisk 1 ½ cups of pumpkin puree with the
granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs and sour cream until well combined. Stir in the flour mixture until just
combined. Whisk in the browned butter
until well blended. - Divide batter between cupcake liners. Fill them about half full.
- Bake cupcakes for 20-25 minutes, or until they spring back
when pressed in the middle.
Cinnamon Frosting
From Baked: New Frontiers in Baking
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, soft but cool, cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons cinnamon
- In a medium saucepan, whisk the sugar and flour together.
Add the milk and heavy cream and cook over medium heat, whisking occasionally
until the mixture comes to a boil and has thickened, about 20 minutes. - Transfer the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted
with the paddle attachment. Beat on high speed until cool. Reduce the speed to
low and add the butter; beat until thoroughly incorporated. Increase the speed
to medium-high and beat until the frosting is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla
and cinnamon and continue mixing until combined. If the frosting is too soft,
transfer the bowl to the refrigerator to chill slightly, and then beat again
until it is the proper consistency. If the frosting is too firm, place the bowl
over a pot of simmering water and beat with a wooden spoon until it is the
proper consistency.
![](https://cdn.sprinklebakes.com/media/2011/10/sprinklebakespumpkinbrownbuttercupcakes4.jpg)
I'm going to say this entire recipe makes me swoon…although you're right, brown butter anything wins every time!
oh my does THIS sound so good…anything w/ brown butter and frosting all in the same line….umm ya, winner
Looooove… I think I need to make these this weekend… and the toppers are darling!
Everything about these I.LOVE. Especially that they are truly a cupcake, none of this muffiny stuff, I want a legit cupcake!
ohhhh heather these look amaaaaazing!!!! i haven't been able to decide on which pumpkin cupcake to make (there are so many) & this looks just perfect! not to mention, the stamp toppers are ridiculously cute & such a great idea! thanks!!
These look AMAZING!!!! Mine will probably not turn out to be as photogenic 🙂
You had me at brown butter.
Really tho – can you please gush some more about that frosting? It sounds fab. I've wanted to try a cooked-flour-&-milk frosting again but didn't think it lasted over night and hadn't seen one that looked "pipeable". More info please!
I thought I was satisfied with my pumpkin cupcake recipe…until I saw these. My "cupcakes" do lean on the muffin-y side. I'll have to try these out 🙂
Gorgeous cupcakes! They are so pretty and tempting.
Cheers,
Rosa
Ohhhh la la.. I was about to go hunting for a fabulous pumpkin recipe.. Now I'm set!! Thanks!
YUM!!!! And wow at your photos. You get better and better 🙂 The girls said… "Oh Man!" When they heard about these cupcakes.
Love Ya
Seguro que son deliciosos, esa rica magdalena especiada y la crema combinan de maravilla.
Un beso,
How do you think this cake would be as an 8' round? Any tips?
legally baked – maybe the term I should have used is "cooked" frosting. Some people refer to the egg whites/7 minute frosting as boiled frosting. This frosting is boiled, but it is definitely stable at room temperature. Mine are still perfect after 2 days. It is really good and silky like Swiss buttercream, and it does not "crust" like the powdered sugar buttercream. Anonymous – you could probably get two 8" rounds out of this batter. The original recipe was for cake layers instead of cupcakes. You'd need to increase the bake time to 40-45 minutes. It is definitely sweet… Read more »
OOO la la yummy!
These sound yummy! I am going to make them for a Halloween dessert table!
You had me at cooked cinnamon frosting. There's something magical about a cooked frosting, especially one with cinnamon!
I just really think these need to happen in my kitchen immediately.
I love that you made flags out of stamps. You've got serious skillz.
freaking amazing! I think sour cream is a magical ingredient too!
Beautiful! The cooked frosting is reminiscent of one my Grandmother used for Red Velvet Cake many years ago. This is another great choice for Thanksgiving dessert.
Those look gorgeous. Bookmarking this for some weekend baking.
Oooh lovely, sounds like just what I need for breakfast right now 😉 Thanks for the frosting recipe, I'm gonna try that one.
You are so right that SO many pumpkin cupcake recipes are actually muffins! And I LOVE the stamp idea. Just added it to my cupcake board on Pinterest. 🙂
You had me at pumpkin and brown butter. But throw in some frosting from the Baked guys??? Oh yeah, baby!!
What tip do you use to pipe?
Wow. These are simply beautiful. I'm hosting a pre-Thanksgiving dinner in about a month…this might just be my dessert of choice to serve!
I was just searching for a pumpkin cake recipe. Hoping this should work for a cake. Going to try it today.
@Anony – I used a large open star tip.
How do you get your frosting so perfectly piped? I've tried doing it with my cupcakes, but it never ends up looking very good. What tip do you use?
Doh, I didn't even see that you already posted that!
That's okay Lissa – this is how I pipe – and you can tell on the cupcake with the green flag.
I pipe one circle of frosting on the cupcake top and then pipe a second "tier" on top of that – it is a slightly smaller cirlce – and I move the bag in circular motion as I pipe it closed and pull the piping bag strait up.
That might sound confusing. I really should make a video.
I have to try this… absolutely!!! 😀 hugs, Flavia
Oh, I'm so happy I found your blog… so inspiring.
Those sound fantastic. I'm so trying them!!
So excited to try this and very happy that it does not err on the *muffiny* side. Looks lovely.
Do we get to find out who won the stand mixer contest? 🙂
You can find it here on my Facebook page.
http://www.facebook.com/SprinkleBakes/posts/206810936056277
Heather,
I'm looking for a pumpkin based cake that can be used under fondant (non-stacked). Is this batter dense enough to support fondant? Would it cook well as a cake instead of cupcakes?
Your creations are always so innovative and beautiful!
Stephanie
Hi Stephanie!
This was once a cake recipe that I made into cupcakes- so yes, it can be baked as a cake. You'll get two 8" layers from this recipe.
Increase the bake time to 40-50 minutes.
Thank you for the kindness 🙂 xoxo
Heather, I love the stamps, what a great idea! The cupcakes sound delicious, especially with that cinnamon frosting! So pretty!
Thank you for this! I've been wanting to make pumpkin cupcakes but every time I saw one or tasted one it did taste more like a muffin. Totally trying these! 🙂
Mm. I love the taste of brown sugar, but I've never had it in frostng form. And it sounds perfect with the pumpkin cupcakes. Also, I like the little postage stamp flags, they are so adorable and creative 🙂
A video would be awesome! I love baking more upscale desserts that look professional and so I'm learning more about how to ice cakes and decorate cookies and things like that. Presentation is everything 😉 Thank you for the tips!
I agree with you on so many things! Sour cream really does transform cakey baked goods. I will never not use it again. And browned butter… just fantastic. Those postage stamps make adorable flags! Thanks for the tip on where to get them!
Those look gorgeous. I love that they are true cupcakes of the non-muffiny variety!
Oh I needed a pumpkin cake recipe for Halloween. Will it work on a larger cake scale?
These look so beautiful, and the flavors all work together for a perfect fall indulgence:) I love your little postage stamp banners…to use stamps for such a thing would never enter my mind!
Estaba esperando una buena receta de cupcakes de calabaza con un frosting espectacular y en tu receta encuentro todo lo que busco. Gracias.
That is just delicious & those postage stamps are an amazing idea. But, what I fell completely in love with is that wire stand…
I'll probably dream about these tonight. 🙂
Love that cinnamon frosting!