Sweet Saturday: Pumpkin Brown Butter Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

Happy Saturday, my dear friends! After making the Christmas card I shared yesterday, I was craving a seasonal treat. Are you ready for the first Autumn-inspired confection of the season? :o) If you're ready to fully embrace all things pumpkin, I'm also including links to my favorite pumpkin recipes that I shared last year. :o)

My love of cupcakes has certainly been well-documented. I recently realized with amazement that I didn't make regular pumpkin cupcakes last year... or ever. How is this possible?! I zipped to my favorite baker's blog, knowing that if she had one it would be perfection. Sure enough, my family and I love everything about these Pumpkin Brown Butter Cupcakes. My only change was to pair it with a family favorite frosting, which is Cinnamon Cream Cheese.

Since half of the double batch is going to my mom's coworkers for a Saturday surprise (mere hours from now!), I decided to play with my piping and use festive sprinkles. With my normal 1M pastry tip swirls (on the right), I simply let the Autumn sprinkles flutter down to the ridiculously delicious frosting. The center cupcake was frosted with a French tip, which was my first time using it. I love the tight spiral and gave it a border of sprinkles. On the left is my first time creating the super basic rose swirl. (A view from above was better, but the picture was crazy blurry.) It's so cute! :o)

Frosting playtime aside, I bet you're curious about the cake! It is Autumn in cupcake form. The cake is moist, delicate, and fluffy, as it envelopes the warm spices. The pumpkin and spices harmoniously blend together and are taken up a notch with the inclusion of brown butter. Have you baked with brown butter? I hadn't until yesterday! It is so popular that I decided it was time to give it a whirl. Browning the butter gives it a nutty aroma and taste. I can see why it is often paired with seasonal flavors. :o)

As for the frosting, it continues to be a dream. I first paired it with Snickerdoodle Cupcakes and knew it would be marvelous with this pumpkin perfection. My sweetheart and I do not like buttercream frostings, so I used it in place of the cinnamon buttercream. We couldn't have been more pleased with the results. :o)

Other pumpkin favorites that I previously posted:
 * Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake
 * Pumpkin Muffins with Vanilla Cream Cheese Filling (Like Starbucks, only better!)
 * Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes
 * Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Maple Cream Cheese Filling

Thank you for twirling on by! I hope you're all enjoying a gorgeous weekend of love and blessings. :o) (And pumpkin treats!)

* Recipe note: The frosting recipe creator only uses clear/imitation vanilla extract for her cream cheese frostings, noting that it holds its shape better and yields a brighter white result. I did not have any on hand, so I used pure vanilla extract. I may test her theory one day, so I'm posting the recipe as written.

Pumpkin Brown Butter Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
Yield: Approximately 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
¾ cup unsalted butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons baking soda
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon allspice
1½ cups granulated sugar
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1½ cups pumpkin puree
3 large eggs
½ cup sour cream

For the frosting:
10 ounces cream cheese, chilled
6½ tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3¼ cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
2-2.5 teaspoons ground cinnamon
4 teaspoons clear vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line standard cupcake tins with paper liners.

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 together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and allspice. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk pumpkin puree with the granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and sour cream until well-combined. Stir in the flour mixture just until combined. Whisk in the browned butter until well-blended.

Divide the batter evenly between cupcake liners, filling them approximately half full. Bake cupcakes for 20-25 minutes or until they spring back when pressed in the middle.

To make the frosting, combine the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and add in the confectioners' sugar and cinnamon, mixing just until incorporated. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat an additional 2-3 minutes. Blend in the vanilla. Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired!

Sources: Cupcakes: Sprinkle Bakes; Frosting: Slightly adapted from Annie's Eats