Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

I am just simply going to say it,
"This is seriously a Really GOOD cupcake!"
If you love pumpkin flavor and have a thing for cream cheese frosting (as I do) you will love this recipe.
I made these heavenly cupcakes for all of the teachers at my 1st grade son's Elementary school.
Today was teacher conference's at our school,
and yours truly was in charge of bringing/making a lot of food to feed all of the wonderful teachers their dinner/dessert.
These pretty little cupcakes were choice 1 of the desserts.
I will post the choice 2 dessert soon, and the yummy Chicken soup that I also made and served to the teachers.



Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Makes 20 cupcakes and about 2 cups of frosting.

Making the Cupcakes:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.

3. In a another large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, oil and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk (hand mix) until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree until just mixed in.

3. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about 1/2 to 3/4 full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.

Making the Frosting:

• 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 cup confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
  
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Place softened cream cheese and softened butter in a medium mixing bowl.

2. Using a hand mixer, blend them together until smooth.

3. Sift in confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar) , and continue beating until smooth. Add vanilla, and stir to combine.

(frosting can be stored in an air tight container the refridgerator up to 3 days)

Makes 20 cupcakes and about 2 cups of frosting.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Bars

This is a classic Pumpkin bar recipe.
I mixed it up a little bit by adding a teaspoon of cinnamon in the frosting.
I also added below the recipe, ways you can make this pumpkin dessert lower in fat.
This recipe makes a whole cookie sheet worth of yummy pumpkin bars, so it is a great party dessert! It is always a crowd pleaser.
Enjoy!


Pumpkin Bars
adapted from Paula Dean

Bars:

• 1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
• 4 eggs
  
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 15-ounce can pumpkin
• 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Icing:

• 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
  

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine the eggs, sugar, oil and pumpkin until light and fluffy. Stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined and the batter is smooth. Spread the batter into a greased 1cookie sheet. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting.

3. To make the icing: Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and mix at low speed until combined. Stir in the vanilla and cinnamon mix again. Spread on cooled pumpkin bars.

4. Cut into bars and serve!

LOW-FAT Options:
-replace half the oil with applesauce
-replaced 2 eggs with fat-free egg substitute
-use splenda sugar blend in place of part of the sugar
- use neufchatel cheese instead of cream cheese
-or instead of frosting use 1/2 cup of Dark Chocolate chips add a spoonfull of fat-free whipped topping

Low-Fat Pumpkin Muffins

I have plenty of fat and sugar filled pumpkin recipes that are so good, but not so great for the waistline.
When I am feeling like serving a guilt-free muffin I go to this recipe!
These muffins are very good and satisfy any pumpkin craving you might be having.
They also bake up really pretty,
and feel your house with a yummy pumpkin spice aroma.

Low-Fat Pumpkin Muffins

-Non-stick Cooking Spray (I like to use Pam Spray)
-2 cups flour (all-purpose OR White-Wheat four I wouldn't use whole wheat flour that would make the muffins to dense)
-Tablespoon baking powder
-1 tsp table salt
-1 tsp baking soda
-1/2 tsp ground cloves
-1 tsp ground cinnamon
-1 tsp ground nutmeg
-2/3 cup unsweetened OR natural applesauce
-1 cup canned pumpkin
-2/3 cup sugar
-1/2 cup fat-free egg substitute
-2/3 cup fat-free milk
-powdered sugar, for making the tops look pretty

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 12 hole muffin tin with cooking spray. If you are using cupcake liners, do not spray the pan but pray very lightly the insides of the cupcake liner.

2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl.

3. In a mixer combine applesauce, pumpkin, sugar, egg substitute, and milk in a medium bowl; mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.

4. Stir the flour mixture into the applesauce mixer until it is all completely incorporated-do not over mix!

5. Pour batter into muffin tins. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

6. Let cool for about 10 minutes. sprinkle on the Powdered sugar (I used a flour sifter).

Enjoy!
-

Pumpkin Crisp

This is a delicious combination of
slightly spiced Pumpkin,
with a sweet, buttery, and crispy topping!
A warming fall desert that makes a lot.
Great for a treat when company is over,
or you can save the leftovers in the refrigerator to heat up at a later time.
Top with a dollop of cool whip or vanilla ice cream. Yummy!



Pumpkin Crisp

-1 can solid pack pumpkin (29 oz)
-1 cup of firmly packed brown sugar
-1 cup of granulated sugar
-3 eggs
-1 Tablespoon of vanilla
-1 can evaporated milk (12 ounces)
-2 tsp of ground cinnamon
-1 tsp ground allspice
-1 box yellow cake mix
-1/2 cup butter, melted
-3/4- 1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

1. In the bowl of a electric mixer, combine the pumpkin, sugars, eggs, vanilla, evaporated milk and spices, mix well.

2. Pour into a 9 by 13 inch pan. Sprinkle the dry cake mix on top and pat down gently. Drizzle the melted butter evenly on top. Sprinkle with nuts.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 45- 60 minutes or until lightly brown and the cake is set.

4. Let cool. Serve with a dollop of cool whip, or vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy!

White Chip Pumpkin Spice Cake

I could not wait any longer to start baking with
Pumpkin.
I LOVE this time of year, and all of the different fall flavors that come with it.
I found this cake recipe on Heather Whites Blog
she always has such wonderful recipes, so I knew that I would not be disappointed.
And I most certainly was not disappointed.
This cake smelled so good while cooking, the whole house was filled of a pumpkin spice aroma.
We ate the cake while it was warm, and it was very yummy!
The leftovers were really good the next day, it almost seemed like the cake was more moist the second day.
I will make this again, we all really enjoyed it.

WHITE CHIP PUMPKIN SPICE CAKE

1 pkg. Duncan Hines Spice Cake Mix
3 large eggs
1 C. pumpkin
2/3 C. evaporated milk
1/3 C. vegetable oil
1 C. white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 12-cup bundt cake pan. Combine cake mix, eggs, pumpkin, evaporated milk and vegetable oil in a large bowl. Beat at low speed until moistened. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes; stir in chocolate chips. Pour into bundt pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 25 minutes; invert onto wire rack to cool completely. Drizzle HALF of glaze over cake; serve with remaining glaze. (HEATHER'S NOTE: I have always made it just like this....but last night, I glazed the cake with ALL of the glaze right after I turned the cake out of the pan after cooling in the pan for 25 minutes. It was HEAVENLY warm!!!)

WHITE CHIP CINNAMON GLAZE:

3 T. evaporated milk
1 C. white chocolate chips
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Heat 3 T. evaporated milk in a small, heavy-duty saucepan over medium heat just to a boil; remove from heat. Add 1 C. white chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Stir in 1/ tsp. ground cinnamon.