Scotchkin Cupcakes

These delightful confections feature a moist, spiced pumpkin cake generously studded with rich butterscotch chips, filled with a luscious spiced pumpkin butterscotch sauce, and topped with a velvety butterscotch cream cheese frosting - a perfect blend of warm spices and sweet, buttery goodness.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword buttercream, butterscotch, cupcake, nut free, pumpkin

Prep Time 1 30

Cook Time 18

Servings cupcake

Calories 554kcal

Equipment

muffin tins
measuring cups
measuring spoons
mixer electric, hand or stand
bowls large and small
saucepan or double boiler
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.candy thermometer
piping bags and tips

Ingredients

Cupcakes

2 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup brown sugar firmly packed
¾ cup sour cream room temperature
⅓ cup water
⅓ cup oil
¼ cup heavy cream room temperature
3 eggs large, room temperature
4 tablespoon butter melted
1 tablespoon vanilla
½ teaspoon salt
3 cup flour all-purpose
2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon cinnamon ground
½ teaspoon nutmeg ground
2 teaspoon ginger ground
1 ⅓ cup butterscotch baking bits

Filling

1 cup butterscotch sauce
⅓ cup pumpkin puree
¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Frosting

1 package cream cheese 8 oz, room temperature
1 pound butter room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup butterscotch baking bits melted and slightly cooled
⅓ cup butterscotch sauce
1 ⅓ cup brown sugar packed
4 egg whites large
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
butterscotch baking bits for garnish

Instructions

For the cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease or line muffin tins.
In a large bowl blend together the pumpkin, sugar, sour cream, water, oil, heavy cream, eggs, butter, and vanilla smooth and creamy.
2 cup pumpkin puree, 1 cup brown sugar, 3/4 cup sour cream, 1/3 cup oil, 1/4 cup heavy cream, 3 eggs, 4 tablespoon butter, 1 tablespoon vanilla, 1/3 cup water
Add in all dry ingredients and mix just until combined (do not over mix).
1/2 teaspoon salt, 3 cup flour, 2 teaspoon baking soda, 2 teaspoon baking powder, 1 tablespoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 2 teaspoon ginger
Stir in the butterscotch baking bits.
1 1/3 cup butterscotch baking bits
Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins, filling each cup about 2/3 full. Place in the oven and bake 15-18 minutes or until the tops are lightly golden and a tooth pick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out with a few moist crumbs.
Remove from oven and cool completely.

For the Filling:

In a small saucepan, warm the butterscotch sauce until it is a loose and pourable consistency.
1 cup butterscotch sauce
Add in the pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk until fully combined.
1/3 cup pumpkin puree, 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Set aside to cool.

For the Frosting:

In a small bowl blend together the cream cheese and butter until fluffy.
1 package cream cheese, 1 pound butter
Add the melted butterscotch bits, butterscotch sauce and vanilla and blend until fully integrated. Set aside.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1/2 cup butterscotch baking bits, 1/3 cup butterscotch sauce
Put the egg whites and brown sugar in a heat safe bowl over a double boiler. Whisk until the sugar is fully dissolved and the mixture is 140° F.
1 1/3 cup brown sugar, 4 egg whites
Remove from heat and add the cream of tartar. Beat on high speed using a whisk attachment until the mixture is thick, glossy, holds stiff peaks and is cooled to ~85-90° F.
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Add the butterscotch cream cheese mixture to the mixing bowl in small batches, beating thoroughly between each addition, until all of the mixture has been added.
Continue to beat until the frosting is silky smooth and the consistency of a very thick whipped cream.

For assembly:

Using a piping bag fitted with a nozzle tip or an injection syringe fitted with a large diameter needle, inject a couple teaspoons of the filling into each cupcake. (The cupcakes will have a perceptible weight change and the filling will ooze slightly from the top when the nozzle/needle is removed)
Use a small spatula or a piping bag to frost the tops of the cupcakes.
Garnish the top of each cupcake with a few butterscotch baking bits.
butterscotch baking bits
Store the cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator, but allow them to come back to room temperature before eating.

Notes

This recipe can be made as mini cupcakes as well, although, unless you need a really large batch (~72) you may want to scale the recipe down to 1/2 or 1/3. When making mini cupcakes, I would recommend that you look for mini butterscotch chips, or pulse the regular butterscotch chips in a food processor until roughly mini chip sized. Finally, adjust the baking time down to only 10 minutes.

In my original version of this recipe, there was no filling and the cupcakes were delicious without it so you can treat the filling as optional if you wish. But, I do think it adds that little bit extra that puts these cupcakes over the top.

Nutrition