pumpkin chai cupcakes with maple cream cheese frosting

pumpkin and chai...two of my favorite parts of fall. when it comes to lattes, i often have trouble deciding between the two. but when it comes to cupcakes, i thought "why not combine the two!?" so i did. and this was the delicious result...

pumpkin chai cupcakes with maple cream cheese frosting

ingredients:

• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp. maple syrup
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ginger
• 1 tsp. cardamom
• pinch of all spice
• 1/2 tsp. salt

for the icing:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 2 tbsp. maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 cups confectioner's sugar (+ more if you want a thicker icing)

heat the oven to 375 F. In a small bowl, mix together the butter, sugar, and maple syrup until smooth. add the pumpkin puree, eggs, and vanilla extract. mix until well blended. in another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, all spice, and salt. fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. mix until fully incorporated. prepare a muffin tin by spray with cooking spray, or lining with cupcake liners. spoon the dough into each muffin compartment. bake in the oven for 20-22 minutes. remove from heat and let cool.

while the cupcakes are cooling, prepare the icing. using a hand mixer, whisk together the butter and cream cheese. next, add the maple syrup and vanilla extract. finally, whisk in the confectioner's sugar until you have a thick consistency. remove the cooled cupcakes from the pan and add the icing.