Pumpkin Cupcakes with Dark Chocolate Frosting.

Halloween. Well, in our minds Halloween goes together with pumpkins and cute kids screaming “Trick or treat?”. So, we want something cute, orange, with pumpkin and kinda fun… What could it be? Pumpkin cupcakes of course! We found this recipe for pumpkin cupcakes with this cocoa frosting here and we decided to give it a try during Halloween! As you can notice in the following pictures we've done a good job with the frosting! It became really smooth, stable and not at all melted. The trick is the right choice of the butter. You have to choose a butter that is ideal for baking. Not the one we use in cuisine or in spreading on bread. This is a rule! In Greece you can choose between Adoro and Lurpak (unsalted). The result is really beautiful as you can see and we had a great time baking and of course decorating them!

And because we wanna be honest with you we are not really sure if this combination between the spices (cinnamon, nutmeg etc) and cocoa is the ideal one! Just sayin’. But it worth a try! They are still really delicious!!

I N G R E D I E N T S for P U M P K I N C U P C A K E S:

1 and 3/4 cups (220 grams) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 cup (100 grams) dark brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup (227 grams) pure pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

1/2 cup (120 ml) vegetable oil

1/3 cup (80 ml) milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup (90 grams) mini chocolate chips

for the D A R K C H O C O L A T E F R O S T I N G:

2 and 3/4 cup (270 grams) confectioners' sugar

2/3 cup (80 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder

6 Tablespoons (90 grams) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

6 Tablespoons (95 ml) heavy cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DiRECTIONS:

- In a bowl whisk the flour (sifted), baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves together until combined. Set aside.

-In another bowl, whisk the brown sugar and eggs together until they are well combined. Add the pumpkin, oil, milk, and vanilla and mix until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Do NOT over mix the batter. Fold in the chocolate chips.

- Using an ice-cream scoop put equal amounts of batter in the cups.

- Bake for 17-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean in a preheated oven to 175 °C. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

- For the frosting: Sift together the confectioners' sugar and cocoa powder to assure there are no lumps and set aside.

- In a mixer, beat the butter at medium speed until it becomes fluffy (for about 2 minutes). Gradually add the sifted sugar and the cocoa powder alternately with the heavy cream and vanilla. Beat on low speed after each addition. Add more powdered sugar if frosting is too dark. Add a pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet. Let the cupcakes cool completely and then add the frosting with a piping bag (ideal) or with a spatula!