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Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Latte Cupcakes with Cinnamon Brown Sugar Frosting…autumn in a sweet cupcake, and so good. Extra pumpkiny, chai-spiced pumpkin cake cupcakes made with warming spices and brown sugar. Each cake is generously frosted with the most delicious creamy cinnamon brown sugar frosting, and finished off with a sprinkling of chai sugar. Sooo much to love here! You can’t beat these cute little latte cupcakes.
I’ve been waiting to share these cupcakes for weeks…and weeks. Originally, I was going to share a version of this cupcake back in September. The first version didn’t include any pumpkin. But then, me being me, I began to play with the addition of potential ingredients in my head. I started to wonder about adding pumpkin to my chai cupcakes. Once the idea of a pumpkin chai latte cupcake was in my head, there was no going back.
It sounded way too good and way too perfect for fall. I had to make these cupcakes.
But not in September, because we all know how I feel…apples in September, pumpkin in October and November. So, here we are today in mid-October. We have a couple of weeks left before Halloween and about a month and a half before Thanksgiving. It’s the heart of fall and the perfect time for the sweetest little chai pumpkin latte cupcakes. Or at least that’s my thought, I hope you guys are all on the same page!
And really, it’s Friday (whoop, whoop). Fridays need something sweet, and today that something is going to be these cupcakes. I couldn’t love them more. If you could see me, I am smiling ear to ear. Something about these cupcakes, they’re just fun and make ya feel good…cheesy, but true.
To make these Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Latte Cupcakes…
You need pumpkin, vanilla, and a good amount of warming autumn spices. Plus butter…lots of butter.
For the cupcakes, I knew I really wanted the pumpkin flavor to shine. To achieve this, I used a whole lot of pumpkin, and a whole lot of chai spice. The chai spice highlights the sweet flavor of the pumpkin, while also adding that extra special touch that makes these little pumpkin cakes better than any other. And if you’re curious about the inspiration to mix pumpkin with chai? Well, of course…Starbucks.
We all love their pumpkin spice latte and we all also love their chai latte. Combine the two and you get the very best of both.
Before you start the cupcake batter, make the chai spice mix. It’s a blend of cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, all-spice, cloves, and the tiniest bit of black pepper. You’ll be using half of the spice mix in the cupcake batter and the other half is mixed in with the sugar to make a chai sugar. The chai sugar is used for topping each cupcake.
Now, make the batter, it comes together in no time. This is a one-bowl kind of cupcake batter. Once poured into molds just bake and wait patiently. The smells coming from the oven will have you so excited. It’s like Thanksgiving, with cozy scents of pumpkin mixed with hints of sweet sugar wafting throughout your kitchen.
Each cupcake is incredibly moist, so soft, and perfectly sweetened. The secret is truly in all that pumpkin. It makes for the best sweets.
On to the frosting…
This frosting is everything and has to be one of my favorites. I drew inspiration from a few of my older recipes, but especially from these sweet brown sugar cookies and also these butter pecan frosted fudge brownies.
There are two simple secrets to this frosting.
One, use a mix of brown sugar and powdered sugar. Powdered sugar adds practically zero flavor. The brown sugar adds hints of warm molasses and really deepens the flavor to create a frosting that’s perfectly rich and sweet.
The second secret, vanilla and cinnamon swirled throughout. SO GOOD. Think creamy, buttery, and hinted with brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Honestly? It’s addicting, and you should slather on more than you think your cupcakes will actually need. Because people always want more.
It’s the perfect pairing with the warming chai spices.
Now, frost, decorate…and eat.
I didn’t do anything fancy here. I simply dolloped a generous swirl of the brown sugar frosting, then sprinkled with that sweet chai sugar. Finish off each cupcake with a cinnamon stick (my favorite fall decoration has got to be cinnamon sticks) to mimic our favorite fall beverage…that pumpkin spice latte.
And that’s it. Honestly, these are really pretty simple to put together. The frosting is a little annoying because you do need to melt the brown sugar on the stove, then let it cool before using, but it’s all still very easy.
And so very good. Each bite is filled with sweet pumpkin and light, fluffy frosting. Best kind of autumn weekend cupcake.
I know it’s hard to believe, but Halloween is two weeks from Saturday and Thanksgiving is only getting that much closer. I’m thinking ahead and already planning to include these on my Thanksgiving menu.
My recommendation? Bake these cupcakes this weekend, then again on Halloween. Then one more time in November. Yes, these cupcakes will be perfect for Thanksgiving too! Fall is always such a short season, live it up while it’s here and enjoy every sweet minute of it…preferably with a cupcake in hand!
Looking for other chai and or pumpkin sweets? Here are a few ideas:
Cinnamon Swirl Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Butter Bread
Gooey Chocolate Chip Cookie Pumpkin Pie
Chai Spiced Maple Sugar Cookies with Browned Butter Frosting
Lastly, if you make these Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Latte Cupcakes with Cinnamon Brown Sugar Frosting be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Latte Cupcakes with Cinnamon Brown Sugar Frosting
Servings: 16 cupcakes
Calories Per Serving: 300 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Chai Spice
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon all-spice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
Pumpkin Chai Cupcakes
- 1/2 cup melted coconut oil (melted butter or canola can be used)
- 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Brown Sugar Frosting
- 8 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- 1. To make the chai spice. In a shallow bowl, combine the cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, all-spice, cloves, and pepper. Divide the mix in half. Mix one half of the spice blend with the granulated sugar and set aside for topping the cupcakes. Reserve the remaining chai spice blend for the cupcake batter. 2. To make the cupcakes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 16 cupcake molds with paper liners. 3. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand-held mixer) beat together the coconut oil, brown sugar, vanilla, eggs, and pumpkin until combined. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and remaining chai spice. Mix until smooth and no lumps remain in the batter.4. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pan. Transfer to the oven and bake 18-22 minutes, until the tops are just set, and no longer wiggly in the center. Remove and let cool. 5. To make the frosting, melt together 2 tablespoons butter, the cream, and brown sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook for one minute or until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and add to the bowl of a stand mixer. Place the bowl in the freezer (or fridge for longer) for 15-20 minutes or until cool to touch.6. Grab the cooled butter mixture from the freezer and add the remaining 6 tablespoons of butter, the vanilla, cinnamon and the powdered sugar to the bowl. Beat together until well combined. 7. Frost each cupcake and sprinkle with chai sugar. Add cinnamon sticks, if desired.
Making these literally right now and realizing I have no cream. Can I sub whole milk for the frosting brown sugar mixture?
Hi there! Yes, that should work just fine 🙂 xTieghan
This is my 2nd time making because so yums but how do I get the frosting to be stiff or fluffy. The 2nd time the frosting separated. Still yums but struggling with the frosting.
How does the frosty in the picture come out so white? Mine is more of a light beige and I can’t see how it could ever be this white with the dark brown sugar in it
Hi there! It’s just the lighting of the photo, but mine is more of a light beige as well 🙂 xTieghan
I rushed home after a hard day’s work dying to make these because the recipe sounded so dang good (and I wanted to cash in on the Fall vibe before Christmas swoops in and takes over). They are absolutely worth my tired feet! Yum-yum-yummy! As a few others mentioned, I did add a tiny bit of cream cheese to the frosting. (That stuff is dangerous – lol!) And why anyone would complain about the leftover chai sugar is beyond me – what a bonus! I poured that into an empty spice jar which I’ll use in all sorts of ways (most imminently: a dirty chai latte!)
Hey Lisa! I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe! I hope you have a lovely weekend and have some time to relax! xTieghan
Made these cupcakes this morning for my knitting group, and am happy to report 0 remain this evening. The cupcakes were dense, which in this case is not a complaint because it worked with this particular flavor profile, because I may have under baked them just a bit. For kicks and giggles, next I make this recipe I want to use the traditional cake mixing method, creaming the butter w/ sugar and so on. Also want to experiment with making the icing as an Italian meringue buttercream. If it bombs, I know they’ll still taste great! As others have mentioned, I had a ton of the chai sugar remaining. So not sad about that! Chai sugar in black tea, on oatmeal, in yogurt with pumpkin, on toast, and in a latte. YAY! Always fun when a wonderful recipe is is easy to make, comes with a LO chai sugar bonus, and is received with much pleasure & no left overs!!
Thank you!
Hey Rachel! Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try, I’m so happy you enjoyed it! xTieghan
These were so fun to make and so delicious- from there I made the cream cheese swirled cinnamon pumpkin butter bread for my daughter and her friend’s pumpkin carving night- devoured. So while on a roll- I whipped up the sheet pan hot honey mustard chicken- so good! Tonight I am trying the spicy garlic lemon butter shrimp with the polenta. Thank you so much for the recipes!
Hey Jen! Thanks so much for trying out this recipe, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂 xTieghan
I’ve noticed that I need to thicken the frosting for this and your other chai cupcakes. Am I doing something wrong? I’ve had to add nearly a whole block of cream cheese which makes me feel like something else has to be off.
Hi there! So sorry about that! Is there anything you’re doing differently in this recipe? xTieghan
Made for 95 year old aunty and she said they were absolutely perfect ?? mahalo for such incredible recipes that are always delicious and not too scary to make ???
Hey there! Thanks so much for trying out this recipe, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! ? xTieghan
I made these for our Halloween party yesterday, and they were a huge hit with everyone! Will definitely make these again soon. I used only 1 cup (instead of 1.5 cups) powdered sugar for the frosting, and although still delicious, the frosting was a bit sweeter than I’d like. Next time I’ll try adding some cream cheese and/or further reducing the amount of sugar. I ended up having way more of the chai topping than I needed for the topping – next time, I think I’ll put the greater half of it in the batter and just reserve a little for the topping.
Hey there! Thanks so much for trying out this recipe, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂 xTieghan
There is no granulated sugar in the frosting…you mean brown sugar. You might want to fix that.
Thanks for letting me know! xTieghan
Fantastically delicious. I followed the recipe exactly. Major hit with the family. Easy to make. Loved it. A total keeper.
Hey! Thanks so much for trying out this recipe, I hope you loved it! Have a great week ? xTieghan
These are my favorite fall dessert
Thanks so much! xTieghan
Made these yesterday and everyone in the house loved them. They’re so flavorful. I grew up in Germany and the taste reminded me of “Lebkuchen”. The frosting was definitely too sweet for me so I added cream cheese and some salt. The chai mix on top of the frosting is a great idea! Thank you for this recipe. Will be making these often!
Hey! Thanks so much for trying out this recipe, I’m so happy you enjoyed it! Happy Halloween 🙂 xTieghan
Made this today as an 11×7 sheet cake-AMAZING! The frosting was a bit sweet but I added extra butter and a pinch of salt until I was happy. Truly addictive!
Happy Thursday! So glad this recipe was enjoyed and thanks for making it! xTieghan
These are soooooo goooood. Has anyone ever tried adding cream cheese to the frosting? How much did you add if so?