Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes (Gluten & Dairy Free)
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These pumpkin spice cupcakes are the perfect fall treat! They’re gluten and dairy-free and taste like you got them from a bakery.
If you can’t get enough pumpkin spice in the fall, you’ve come to the right place! I’ve been experimenting with more bakery-style pumpkin spice treats this fall, and these cupcakes are the ultimate bakery-style treat. They both look and taste like you got them from a bakery, but they’re pretty simple to make at home. They’re made with a dairy-free cheesecake frosting and are topped with the cutest little pumpkins for extra fall feels.
Why You’ll Love Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
- Bakery taste, but made it home! These cupcakes have the look and taste of being straight from a bakery, but you can pretty easily make them at home!
- Pumpkin! I can’t get enough of the fall flavors and love another pumpkin recipe.
The Ingredients for Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
-
- Coconut Sugar and Maple Syrup.
- Egg. You can also sub a flax egg.
- Avocado Oil and Vanilla Extract.
- Almond Flour and Tapioca Starch. This combo gives the cupcakes the right bakery-style texture.
- Baking Soda.
- Pumpkin Puree and Pumpkin Pie Spice. For that fall pumpkin flavor with real pumpkin!
- Dairy-Free Cream Cheese, Palm Shortening, and Powdered Sugar. These are the ingredients to make the delicious cream cheese frosting.
- Mini Pumpkin Buckeyes. Optional, but so cute for decorating and topping the cupcakes!
How to make Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
- Step One. Combine the wet ingredients and then add the dry ingredients and stir.
- Step Two. Scoop the batter into the muffin tin and bake.
- Step Three. Make the frosting.
- Step Four. Frost the cupcakes and top with mini pumpkin buckeyes and enjoy!
Tips & Tricks
- Just prep a ton of the pumpkin buckeyes while you’re at it! I made like 30 at a time to add to these cupcakes and all of my pumpkin desserts this season! They freeze great.
- When making your frosting, make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature and the sugar is sifted. These are the two keys to making great cream cheese frosting. If the cream cheese is too cold, it won’t blend properly, and if the sugar isn’t shifted it’ll make for clumpy frosting.
Can you omit the frosting?
These cupcakes are just as good without the frosting! They’d be more like muffins, but that was actually the original intention of the recipe, so feel free to forgo the frosting.
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Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes (Gluten & Dairy Free)
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Ingredients
- ¼ cup avocado oil
- ¼ cup pumpkin puree
- ⅓ cup coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 egg, sub a flax egg, see notes
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup almond flour
- ⅓ cup tapioca starch
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- 1 ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
For the frosting and topping
- 4 oz dairy-free cream cheese, room temperature (I use this)
- ½ cup palm shortening
- 1 cup powdered sugar, I use this
- Mini pumpkin buckeyes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F and lightly grease 6 spaces of a muffin tin.
- Using a large bowl, combine the avocado oil, pumpkin puree, coconut sugar, maple syrup, egg, and vanilla extract. Add the dry ingredients and stir until a batter forms.
- Using a cookie scoop or ladle, scoop the batter into the muffin tin, filling about three-quarters of the way. Bake in the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcakes comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to fully cool while you make the frosting.
- To make the frosting, add the frosting and shortening to a bowl. Sift in the powdered sugar. Use a hand mixer to whip the frosting until smooth and light. Alternatively, you can use a stand mixer, but a hand mixer helps to keep the frosting from getting overwhipped and splitting!
- Frost the cupcakes with the cream cheese frosting, adding the mini pumpkin buckeyes on top for decoration if desired! Serve fresh or keep chilled in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Notes
These were such an easy and delicious treat! The whole family enjoyed them. This recipe is a keeper, will make again. Thanks! (Ps- used Lankanto powdered in icing and worked great.)
Would a gelatin egg work in these? Would they stand up as well, or be more low profile?
I am allergic to grains And tree nuts. Any thoughts as to what I can sub the almond flour with? I have cassava flour and tiger nut flour, but no clue as to how to substitute. It’s not a perfect match. I can’t just use 1 cup of either of those instead. Any advice?
I have pumpkin muffins that are made with tigernut flour on the blog that I would recommend making instead! https://unboundwellness.com/paleo-pumpkin-muffins/
Any recommendations for subbing almond flour?
I have pumpkin muffins that are made with tigernut flour on the blog that I would recommend making instead! https://unboundwellness.com/paleo-pumpkin-muffins/
Any suggestions for subs for the almond flour???
I’d recommend making a different pumpkin muffin recipe I have on the blog with tigernut recipe! https://unboundwellness.com/paleo-pumpkin-muffins/