Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting

October. The trees along the Platte River are turning, which in Nebraska is a modest affair compared to New England, but we take what we can get: the cottonwoods go gold, the elms go yellow, and the occasional maple does something surprising in red, and together it is enough to make you look up from the road and notice that the world is changing, the way it changes every year, on schedule, without asking permission.

Justin is back at school after his suspension. He was quiet all weekend, which I monitored without commenting on, because commenting on Justin quiet is like commenting on the weather: it does not change it, it just makes you part of the conversation. He went back Monday and had a good day. Tuesday was good too. By Friday, his teacher emailed to say he had a great week, which is the kind of email that makes me sit in the cab of my truck and close my eyes and breathe and say thank you to whatever is listening.

I made pumpkin bread this week, because it is October and pumpkin bread is the law. Canned pumpkin, not fresh, because I am a working mother and not a Pinterest project. Canned pumpkin, sugar, oil, eggs, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves. Two loaves: one for us, one for Gayle, who loves pumpkin bread and will eat an entire loaf in three days and then call me and say she did not need it, the way she says she does not need anything I bring her, which is her way of saying she needs everything I bring her.

The bread bakes at 350 for an hour and the house smells like October: warm and spiced and golden, the smell of a season that is trying its best to comfort you before winter arrives with its gray hands. I sliced a piece for each kid with butter, and we sat at the kitchen table, and the bread was warm and the butter was melting and Josie had pumpkin bread crumbs all over her face and looked like a painting of childhood, and these are the moments I try to hold, the ones that slip through your fingers like flour, the ones you remember years later and think: that was happiness. That was it. It was right there, at the kitchen table, with butter on the bread and crumbs on the face and nothing special happening at all.

After a week that asked a lot of me — the waiting, the watching, the quiet relief of a Friday email that made me close my eyes in a truck cab and just breathe — I wanted to do something with all that feeling, and baking is how I do that. The pumpkin bread went to Gayle, the way things always go to Gayle, but these cupcakes were ours: same warm spices, same October smell in the house, but with something a little extra on top, because Justin had a great week and that deserved frosting.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 22 min | Total Time: 42 min | Servings: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the marshmallow buttercream frosting:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 jar (7 oz) marshmallow creme
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1–2 tablespoons heavy cream or milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Instructions

Preheat & prep. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line two standard 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners and set aside.
Mix dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. Set aside.
Mix wet ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until smooth and combined. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking well after each addition, then stir in the vanilla extract.
Combine. Add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredients and stir gently with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix — a few streaks of flour are fine; they’ll incorporate as you fill the liners.
Fill & bake. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared liners, filling each about 2/3 full. Bake for 20–22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow cupcakes to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Make the frosting. Beat the softened butter with an electric mixer on medium-high speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the marshmallow creme and beat until fully incorporated. Reduce speed to low and gradually add the powdered sugar, then the vanilla and salt. Add heavy cream one tablespoon at a time until the frosting is smooth and spreadable.
Frost & serve. Pipe or spread the marshmallow buttercream generously onto each cooled cupcake. Dust lightly with cinnamon if desired. Serve at room temperature — these keep well covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Nutrition (per serving)

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting — The Smell of October in Every Bite