Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with Espresso Spiced Frosting {Semi-Homemade}

It happened again… I had a last-minute “make & take” opportunity….

What to make? Hmmm.

Recently on Pinterest, people have been sharing recipes for 2 ingredient cupcakes using store-bought cake-mix and canned pumpkin puree. It reminded me of a posts that I did last year for Chocolate Coated Pumpkin Gingerbread Bon Bons where I made cake balls with Gingerbread cake-mix and pumpkin puree.

So, I decided to make Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with Espresso Spiced Frosting. For this recipe, I opted for a semi-homemade approach and spiced up store-bought frosting. (If you want a homemade recipe for a sweet spiced buttercream frosting, check out my post for Spicy Mocha Cupcakes).

This recipe is not only easy….most likely you already have the ingredients in your pantry.

Enjoy!

Denise

Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with Espresso Spiced Frosting

Yield: 16 Cupcakes

1 Box Butter Fudge Cake Mix ( I used Duncan Hines “Moist Deluxe”)

1 15 oz. can Pumpkin Puree

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1 tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 teaspoon Cardamom (optional but recommended)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line cupcake pan with baking cups and set aside.
Add the cake mix, pumpkin puree, vanilla extract, pumpkin pie spice and the cardamom to a large bowl.
Mix on low for 30 seconds. Adjust the setting to medium and beat for an additional 4 minutes.
Pour batter into the baking cups (2/3 full).
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean when inserted into center of cupcake.
Cool for 15 minutes and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Frost with Espresso Spiced Frosting (recipe below).