Salted Caramel Pumpkin Cupcakes

Pumpkin cupcakes with white frosting, caramel drizzle and chopped pecans on a brown plate.

5 from 2 votes

Salted Caramel Pumpkin Cupcakes

These soft and fluffy salted caramel pumpkins cupcakes are the best way to celebrate autumn. Filled, frosted and topped with gooey caramel sauce, tangy cinnamon flavored cheese frosting and crunchy toasted pecans, these are simply irresistable!

Prep Time20

Cook Time18

Decorating time20

Total Time58

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: cupcakes

Calories: 446.4kcal

Author: Priya Maha

Ingredients

Cupcakes

200 g self raising flour
100 g butter (salted)
200 g granulated sugar
2 eggs
200 g pumpkin puree
100 ml milk
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Salted Caramel Sauce

160 g white sugar
200 ml heavy cream
80 g butter (salted)
¼ teaspoon sea salt flakes

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

600 g powdered sugar
220 g cream cheese
30 g butter
⅓ teaspoon cinnamon powder
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping

50 g pecans

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Prepare the nuts and the cupcake liners

Preheat oven to 175°Celsius.
Toast the pecans on a baking sheet for 3-5 minutes. Check and flip the nuts half way through (see Note 1 for toasting in a skillet).
Remove from oven and let them cool completely before chopping into small pieces. Set aside.
Leave the oven turned on (to keep it preheated). Line your cupcake tin with cupcake liners.

Mix the cupcake batter

Combine and sift the flour, baking powder, salt and spices into a bowl. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (for approximately 2 minutes on medium speed). Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl half way through.
Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Each time, beat until all the traces of the egg are no longer visible before adding the next (see Note 2).
Add the pumpkin puree and beat again until well combined. Scrape the bowl again in between. The batter will curdle at this stage and that is fine.
Gradually fold the dry ingredients (sifted flour mixture) to the creamed wet ingredients in 2 batches and alternate it with the milk (see Note 3).
Fill each cupcake liner about three quarters full and bake for 15 - 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes rest in the tin for 2 to 3 minutes before placing them on a wire rack to cool completely, before frosting. (see Note 4)

Make the salted caramel sauce

Measure sugar into a medium saucepan. Turn on the heat to low and let the sugar melt completely to amber shade. Stir to help the sugar melt (see Note 5).
Once the sugar is all melted, add the butter. Use a whisk to stir until the butter is completely melted. The caramel will start bubbling rapidly when the butter is added. Keep the heat low.
Next, pour the cream into the caramel in a thin stream. Whisk continuously with a hand whisk until the cream is well combined. The mixture will start bubbling again.
Continue to cook over low heat until the sauce thickens slightly. It will continue to thicken considerably as it cools down (see Note 6). Sprinkle the salt and give the sauce a good mix.
Let it cool completely to room temperature before transferring into a piping bag. Secure the top with a clip for easy handling.

Make the cinnamon cream cheese frosting

Sift powdered sugar and cinnamon into a large bowl. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, beat together the cream cheese and butter until smooth and creamy.
Add the sifted sugar and mix it lightly into the creamed cheese and butter mixture with a spatula to moisten it (see Note 7).
Cream the ingredients with a mixer until they turn smooth and creamy. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl half way through. Add vanilla and beat again until well combined.
Transfer the frosting into a large star tip (tip #865) fitted piping bag (see Note 8).

Assemble the cupcakes

Core each cupcake with a cupcake corer or using the back of a large piping tip (see Note 9). Set the cored pieces aside.
Snip the tip of the caramel filled bag and fill the cupcakes. Make a small hole instead of a large one as you will be using the same bag of caramel to drizzle the cupcakes.
Cover the holes with the cored pieces set aside earlier (use only the top part).
Pipe a large star on the top of each cupcake with the cream cheese frosting.
Drizzle it with the salted caramel sauce and sprinkle the top with the chopped toasted nuts.

Video

Notes

To toast the pecans over the stove, add them to a skillet and dry toast over low fire for about 3 to 5 minutes until fragrant. Stir constantly.
Break the eggs in a separate cup or bowl before adding to the batter to prevent any egg shells from falling into the batter.
Overmixing will make the cupcakes tough. Fold the batter by hand, with a spatula. If using cake mixer, keep to very low speed and mix only until the ingredients are well combined. Scrape the bowl.
Using a spring attached ice cream scoop or cookie scoop to fill the liners will give you consistently sized cupcakes. It is also a neater way to fill the liners.
Keep close watch as the sugar turns amber as it has a tendency to burn very quickly at this stage. Turn off the heat if necessary to better control the heat.
You can also use a candy thermometer to assist in cooking the caramel. Cook until it reaches 105°Celsius (or 220°Fahrenheit). At this temperature, the caramel will have a drizzling consistency. If you want a thicker consistency, cook it further.
Mixing the sugar lightly by hand before using the mixer will avoid the sugar from flying all over as you turn it on.
If the frosting is too much to fill into a single bag, fill it into 2 separate bags. Fit the piping tip into a separate piping bag on its own. To use the frosting, simply snip the tip for the first frosting bag and insert it into the bag with the tip attached. Once the frosting is used up, remove the bag, and replace with the next frosting bag.
Do not core all the way to the bottom of the cupcakes, halfway is sufficient.
The cream cheese frosting is on the sweeter side in terms of taste (for better piping consistency). For more tangy taste, add between one quarter to half a teaspoon of grated lemon rind to it.
Use a light-colored saucepan when making the caramel so that you are able to clearly see the color of the sugar as it caramelizes.
To keep the cupcakes moist, cover them with a kitchen towel as they cool down and store them in an airtight container after that to keep them moist. Avoid overbaking the cupcakes. Check for doneness at least 2 to 3 minutes before the baking time is up by inserting a toothpick in the center of the cupcakes, if there are no wet batter sticking to the toothpicks, they are done.
This recipe makes slightly more caramel sauce than required. You can keep the sauce refrigerated and use it for other treats like these salted caramel cheesecakes, Snicker cheesecake or this chocolate peanut butter cheesecake. You can also use it as a sweetener for your teas and lattes.
These cupcakes are baked in cupcake casings measuring approximately 5 cm in diameter (at the bottom) and 3.5cm high (at the sides) and the recipe makes approximately 14 cupcakes. If you use large or smaller liners, adjust the baking time accordingly.

Nutrition