This weather has been really throwing me off!
One day, its the dead of winter, then the next its a breezy, sunny Autumn wonderland and I can take a 3 mile walk in shorts.
Well, you can take the winter, I’ll take the sunny Fall-fest, mm’kay?
It just shows, hopefully, that Spring is just around the corner. I’m ready!
In the meantime, the cold nights have me snuggling up with a warm cup of tea and a comforting dinner. The other night, I made a big pot of comfort curry, thickened with pumpkin! It was SO good and just what I needed.
These cupcakes are inspired by the lovely flavors of what I find so comforting about winter nights: warm tea and slightly sweet pumpkin.
Thus, the Pumpkin Chai Cupcake was born. The ingredients are all pretty healthy too: oat flour, coconut sugar and oil, pumpkin…all good to me! Even the frosting isn’t something to run from! It’s a whipped, creamy dollop of coconut milk, flavored with more chai spices.
Perfect.
And, because the recipe only makes 4 standard cupcakes, after a night of enjoying this treat with someone you love, there’s no more left to tempt you (no midnight cupcake binge for you). Strategy here.
- ½ cup oat flour
- ¼ cup + 2 Tbs. white whole wheat flour (or a gluten-free blend)
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- ¼ cup coconut sugar (or raw sugar)
- 2 Tbs. coconut oil (firm form, not melted)
- 1 egg white
- ¼ cup pumpkin
- ¼ tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 Tbs. unsweetened almond milk
- 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
- 1/8 tsp. cardamom
- ¼ tsp. cinnamon
- 1 can of coconut milk (Thai Kitchen, unsweetened)
- 2 Tbs. powdered sugar
- Sprinkle of each: cinnamon, ground cloves, cardamom
- Prep: Place your can of coconut milk in the fridge, unopened, at least 4 hours before you'll need to use it. Overnight is best.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line 4 cups of your muffin tin with paper liners.
- In a mixing bowl, cream the coconut oil and coconut sugar. After well mixed, add the egg white. Then, add the pumpkin. After fully incorporated, add all of your dry ingredients and spices. Mix the ingredients together until there are no lumps.
- Pour the batter into the muffin liners (I use a 1/4-cup ice cream scoop). Bake for 20-25 min, until a test stick comes out clean. Let the baked cupcakes cool on a wire rack before frosting them.
- Frosting: carefully open your chilled coconut milk can (don't shake it). Spoon the cream off of the top, which is the solid white coconut milk before you get to the more clear part of the liquid. You'll use 1/2 of this cream.
- In a bowl, combine 1/2 of the cream, the powdered sugar, and spices. Use a hand mixer (or your powerful muscles) to whip the cream, starting from low and increasing to medium speed, until the coconut cream becomes a very thick "frosting,"
- Dollop the frosting on your cooled cupcakes. Enjoy!
Strike up a conversation: Do you still use pumpkin past December? I know that the whole Pumpkin Spiced Latte binge probably has you burnt out by mid-October, but pumpkin is an awesome source of vitamins and nutrients…and cupcakes 🙂
PS: Thank you for all of your entries in my GNC Vitapak Giveaway and my Breakfast for Dinner Cookbook Giveaway! 🙂
OMG OMG! Whoa baby! Those cupcakes bring me back to October, right before the holidays! Aw, now I am kind of sad, I really miss the holidays! How many months until Thanksgiving again? LOL!!
Pumpkin knows no season.
These look amazing! I tried the coconut milk whipped cream once before and it didn’t work for me. This looks so heavenly, I might have to invest in a new can and try again…
P.S. How did you know about my midnight cupcake binges?
Oh I just had a feeling about you and those binges… 😉
And the frosting is a different consistency. Not semi-solid like butter frostings and not as stiff as whipped cream, but in the middle. Creamy fluff 🙂 try it again!!
love pumpkin cupcakes!! these sounds amazing!!
This looks like a delicious recipe to try out. I found your blog through the Grow Your Blog hop. 😉 I’m a new follower. Megan