pumpkin spice latte cupcakes with cream cheese frosting

nothing says autumn like pumpkin spice lattes

and so.. what could be better than pumpkin spice latte CUPCAKES!

my mom saw my friend kara post this on Facebook.. so, she passed it on to me, and now i have made them. yum.

ingredients:

2 2/3 cups flour

3 tbsp espresso powder

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp salt

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree (equals 1 3/4 cups - basically about half the can i found at the store)

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup canola or vegetable oil

4 large eggs

1/2 cup coffee or espresso, for brushing

preheat the oven to 350 degrees. line cupcake pans with paper liners.

in a medium bowl, combine the flour, espresso powder, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt. stir together and set aside.

in the bowl of an electric mixer, blend together the pumpkin, sugar, brown sugar and oil. add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

with the mixture on low speed, add the flour mixture in two additions, mixing just until incorporated.

fill the cupcake liners about 3/4 full. bake until the cupcakes are golden and a toothpick inserted into the censer comes out clean, 18-20 minutes. transfer the pans to a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes then remove the cupcakes from the pans.

while the cupcakes are still warm, brush them two or three times with the coffee or espresso, allowing the first coat to soak in before repeating. let cool completely.

*the recipe called for whipping cream topping, but i decided to make cream cheese frosting on the suggestion from my sister leah. and i think it was a wise choice!

Cream Cheese frosting:

1 pkg cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 cups icing sugar

mix in an electric mixer until well blended. pipe onto cupcakes once they are cooled, and sprinkle with cinnamon. enjoy!!