Halloween Pumpkin Ghost Cupcakes
shared by Nibblore Kitchen
These warmly spiced pumpkin cupcakes are topped with tall, smooth cream-cheese ghosts and tiny chocolate eyes. Using plain pumpkin puree keeps the crumb moist without making it heavy, while a brief frosting chill helps the piped ghosts hold their shape. They are a festive make-ahead treat for Halloween parties. • Use plain pumpkin puree rather than pumpkin pie filling, which contains added sweeteners and spices and would alter the batter. • Weighing the batter into the liners produces 12 evenly sized cupcakes that finish baking at the same time. • Block-style cream cheese is essential for a pipeable frosting; spreadable tub cream cheese contains more moisture. • Keep the frosting and piping bag below 21°C (70°F) so the tall ghost shapes remain stable. • Replace the individual cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg with 2 1/4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice. • Use canola, sunflower, or grapeseed oil as the neutral vegetable oil. • Use 24 small pieces cut from a semisweet chocolate bar if mini chocolate chips are unavailable. • Dark brown sugar may replace light brown sugar for a slightly deeper molasses flavor. Because the frosting contains cream cheese, refrigerate decorated cupcakes in a rigid, tall, airtight container within 2 hours of decorating. Keep refrigerated at 4°C (40°F) or below for up to 3 days, taking care that the lid does not touch the ghosts. Let them stand at room temperature for 15–20 minutes before serving. Undecorated cupcakes may be frozen airtight for up to 2 months; thaw at room temperature before frosting. Do not freeze the decorated cupcakes because the frosting may weep and the chocolate eyes can discolor.
- Total time
- 53 min
- Servings
- 12
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
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Save to my cookbook — freeIngredients
- 160 gall-purpose flour
- 1 tspbaking powder
- ½ tspbaking soda
- 1 ½ tspground cinnamon
- ½ tspground ginger
- ¼ tspground nutmeg
- ½ tspfine salt
- 180 gplain pumpkin puree
- 120 glight brown sugar, packed
- 50 ggranulated sugar
- 2large eggs, at room temperature
- 100 mlneutral vegetable oil
- 1 tspvanilla extract
- 115 gunsalted butter, softened to 18–20°C
- 340 gfull-fat block cream cheese, cool and cut into cubes
- 300 gpowdered sugar, sifted
- 1 tspvanilla extract, for the frosting
- ⅛ tspfine salt, for the frosting
- 24mini semisweet chocolate chips, for the eyes
Instructions
- 1Heat the oven to 175°C (350°F) with a rack in the center. Line every well of one standard 12-cup muffin tin, with wells approximately 7 cm wide at the top, with paper liners.
- 2Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt together in a medium bowl until the leaveners and spices are evenly dispersed.
- 3In a large bowl, whisk the pumpkin puree, brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla for about 45 seconds, until glossy and fully combined.
- 4Add the dry mixture to the pumpkin mixture. Fold with a flexible spatula just until no dry flour remains, scraping the bottom of the bowl; do not continue mixing once the batter is uniform. The batter will weigh about 780 g.
- 5Divide the batter evenly among the 12 liners, using about 65 g or a scant 1/4 cup per liner; each should be approximately two-thirds full. Bake for 17–20 minutes, rotating the tin after 10 minutes, until the tops spring back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- 6Cool the cupcakes in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack. Cool completely for 45–60 minutes before frosting; the centers must feel room-temperature rather than warm.
- 7For the frosting, beat the softened butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer, on medium speed for 2 minutes until smooth and slightly aerated. Add the sifted powdered sugar in three additions, mixing on low after each addition. Add the vanilla and salt, then beat on medium for 1 minute until thick and smooth.
- 8Add the cool cream cheese cubes in four additions and mix on low only until each addition is incorporated. Stop as soon as the frosting is smooth, about 60–90 seconds total; overbeating can make it loose. The finished frosting should be approximately 18–20°C (64–68°F). If it bends or slumps from a lifted spatula, refrigerate it for 15–20 minutes, then stir briefly by hand.
- 9Fit a large piping bag with a 15–18 mm plain round tip and fill it with the frosting. Hold the bag vertically over each cooled cupcake. Pipe one broad mound, ease pressure while lifting, then pipe a smaller mound directly on top and taper it to a curved point, using about 60 g frosting per cupcake. If the bag becomes warm or the ghosts lose definition, chill the filled bag for 10 minutes before continuing.
- 10Press two mini chocolate chips, pointed ends inward, into each frosting ghost to make eyes. Refrigerate the decorated cupcakes uncovered for 20 minutes to firm the frosting, then serve cool or let them stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving. From starting the batter through cooling, decorating, and the final chill, allow about 2 hours 20 minutes total.