Anyone who has cooked or baked a recipe from one of Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa cookbooks or her Food Network shows knows her recipes all share the same traits: They’re utterly delicious and absolutely reliable — thoroughly tested, clearly explained and creative, but still approachable.
We have yet to find a Garten dish that didn’t wow the crowds — and this one, for spiced pumpkin cupcakes, topped with maple-cream cheese frosting and crushed toffee, is no exception. The recipe, a Thanksgiving dessert alternative that’s sure to delight all autumn long, hails from Garten’s “Barefoot Contessa Foolproof” cookbook (Clarkson Potter, 2012).
Consider it a delicious way to pass the time as you wait for her new “Ina Garten Cook Like a Pro” (Clarkson Potter, $35) to land in bookstores on Oct. 23.
The Barefoot Contessa’s Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Maple Frosting
Makes 10 cupcakes
Ingredients:
½ cup vegetable oil, plus extra for greasing the pan
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup canned pumpkin purée (not pie filling)
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
Maple Frosting (recipe follows)
½ cup coarsely chopped Heath bars, for serving (two 1.4-ounce bars)
Directions:
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Brush the top of a muffin pan with vegetable oil and line it with 10 paper liners.
- Into a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. In a larger bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin, sugars and the ½ cup vegetable oil. Add the flour mixture and stir to combine.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared tins (Garten uses a 2¼-inch ice cream scoop) and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely, then spread the cupcakes with the Maple Frosting, and sprinkle with the chopped Heath bars.
Maple Frosting
6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups sifted powdered sugar
Directions:
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the cream cheese, butter, maple syrup and vanilla on medium-low speed until very smooth. With the mixer on low, slowly add the powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
— “Barefoot Contessa Foolproof” by Ina Garten, © 2012, reprinted with permission from Clarkson Potter/Publishers, All Rights Reserved
