If you’ve been to Trader Joe’s lately, you have seen that they are all about everything pumpkin under the sun! Incorporating the above 3 ingredients, I made the most amazing pumpkinlicious treat.

Modifying a recipe I found, I created these moist, fluffy, decadent, but healthier homemade cupcakes. I omitted the chocolate chips, cut the sugar in third, used whole wheat instead of white flour, and pumpkin spice blend instead of just cinnamon.

The Pumpkin Spiced Pumpkin Seeds with their crispy, sugared shell throw these cupcakes from the awesome to out of this world rating. Soft cake, creamy icing, and that crunch at the end of every bite is beyond delicious.

The sugar is so reduced that they could pass as muffins but the icing crowns them the cupcake title.

As I discussed in this post about the glycemic index, I try to use the following two ingredients in all of my dessert baking:

• Whole wheat pastry flour GI 13 – all purpose flour is 66 (I buy it at Whole Foods or Amazon)
• Coconut sugar GI 35 – regular sugar 60 (I buy it at Trader Joe’s or Amazon)

The cream cheese is undeniably processed so I did do some rule breaking there but only 2 tbsp of it are divided by 10 servings as well as only 1 tbsp of grassfed Irish . 80/20 rule as I always preach 🙂 .

The batch of icing is small but sufficient to lightly top the cupcakes. A little goes a long way!

You want to very gently mix the batter so it doesn’t get gummy and result in a dense, firmer cake.

Pumpkin Spiced Cupcakes

Adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero pg. 126

DF, NF

Makes 10 cupcakes or 20 mini cupcakes

 

Ingredients:

1 cup pureed or canned/carton pumpkin puree

1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (can sub soy milk as well as plain flavor)

1/3 cup melted coconut oil OR nonGMO canola oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup coconut sugar

1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp sea salt

1 tsp pumpkin spice

 

Directions:

Preheat oven or countertop/toaster oven to 350 degrees. (love love my Breville)

Mix wet ingredients plus sugar in a large mixing bowl.

Sift in dry ingredients.

Gently whisk until most ingredients are combined and then finish by folding with a silicone/rubber spatula. Do not over mix.

Pour into lined or lightly greased muffin tin filling each compartment 2/3 or so full.

Bake for 25 minutes and allow to cool for 10 minutes. For mini muffins, bake 11-12 minutes.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting

Charlotte Veggie

GF, GRF, NF

Enough for 10 cupcakes 🙂

 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons pumpkin flavored cream cheese (or plain cream cheese + 1/2 tsp pumpkin spice (or cinnamon and dash nutmeg))

1 tablespoon salted or unsalted butter

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup powdered sugar

 

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a bowl and combine with an electric hand mixer on low for 1-2 minutes.

Mini cupcake 🙂