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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 for dessert.
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.
Watch the How-To Reel
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.
This post was originally published on October 16, 2020
These were amazing!!!! Ah.maz.ing!!!
Thank you so much Brenda!! xTieghan
Outstanding recipe. Cake is moist and delicious and frosting is not too sweet. Thanks so much.
Thank you Michelle! xTieghan
Easy to make and soooo delicious. Used the extra chai sugar on my latte the next morning!
Love that! Thank you for trying these, Ellen! xTieghan
Wow these were absolutely amazing. Made them for Halloween and they were a huge hit.
Love that! Thank you so much Lo! xTieghan
I made this recipe tonight and it is amazing!! Love how the pumpkin muffin isn’t very sweet but the icing balances that out. And the spice blend is AMAZING. I need to find other uses for it. Thank you for always having the most delicious and unique items to try!
Yes!! So happy this recipe turned out so well for you, Grace! Thank you for trying this! xTieghan
These were delicious! I did double the chai spice in the cupcake to add more flavor and it wasn’t overpowering. Ended up with a lot of extra cinnamon sugar which I will use on my chai tea latte!
Love that! I am really glad this turned out so well for you, Gopa! Thank you! xTieghan
These are pretty good, but what isn’t with cups and cups of sugar and a ton of butter? However, I wouldn’t have them without the icing as the actual cake is lacking a tiny bit. They are still delicious, but the Chai spice isn’t pronounced. Also, don’t waste 1/3 cup of sugar on the Chai spice. I think i barely use 2 tablespoons of the sprinkled Chai sugar and have now “wasted” a ton of spices that went into the sugar mix. I would recommend just using a bit of sugar. Further, they turned out a bit small? They are almost a mini cupcake. The icing though? Delicious.
Hi Trish! I am glad these tasted amazing, but I am sorry if you feel as if you wasted ingredients! I would highly recommend saving the chai spice for different uses! Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
Not a lot of flavor in the sponge itself. Hoping they will “pull together” once frosted. Several steps are missing from the recipe. Like “add dry ingredients into wet” and also no mention of what point to incorporate the cinnamon when making the frosting. Not the first recipe which has missed some instructions.
Hi Dan! I am really sorry about that. Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
Made these yesterday for Halloween to take to the neighbors (and a few left for us!) My husband says these are the best cupcakes he has ever tasted, YUM! They are not overly sweet, which I like, and much of the sweetness comes from the frosting. Next time I will double the frosting recipe, it is delish. They also look really pretty with the chai spice sprinkled on top. I piped mine because I wanted them to look as pretty as Tieghan’s. They seriously look as beautiful as a cupcake from a bakery and taste W-A-Y better than any bakery cupcake. Thanks Girl! You nailed this one!!!
Oh also, there was a ton of spice mix left over and it is terrific in a cup of hot tea.
Hi Karen! I am so happy these cupcakes turned out so amazing for you!! Thank you so much for trying them! Also, so sweet to share with your neighbors! xTieghan
The cupcakes are really gloopy and lacking in flavour. The frosting was rock hard so had to add milk to make it spreadable but it was lacking in flavour as well. The chai spice was so spicy it ruined the icing. I’m not sure what went wrong!
Hi Jane! I am really sorry these did not turn out for you. Is there anything that could have gone wrong while making this one? I would love to help! xTieghan
Can I make the frosting a day ahead before serving and leave on counter overnight?
Hey Melissa,
Yes that would be fine to do, I would store the frosting in the fridge. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I made these today and really liked the taste! The only part I couldn’t get ‘right’ was the frosting. The frosting came out very gritty. I am assuming it might have to do with the brown sugar but I don’t know what I did wrong to fix it. First I tried putting it in the fridge but that made it too hard to pipe. Then I let it sit on the counter for a little bit and it got too drippy/greasy but still gritty. Still taste great though!
Hi Aly! I am really glad you enjoyed these! If there are any questions I can help with, please let me know! xTieghan
Best cupcake ever!!! Perfectly balanced. Super texture moist yet soft. The icing is beyond delicious. I’ve already given all the cupcakes away so will be making a 2nd batch and doubling to have enough to share. I made mine a tad smaller so yield was 16 cupcakes. I made it exactly and used the coconut oil (first time) and I am glad that I did as I think that is the key to the lovely cupcake texture.
Many thanks and Bravo!
Hi Martha! I am really glad these cupcakes turned out so amazing for you! Thank you so much for trying these! xTieghan
Making these as mini cupcakes for a party! Any tips on the time conversion?
Hey Andrea,
I would start checking for doneness at 15 minutes. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi Teighan, would you use the same recipe/directions to make it a cake? How long would you bake in the oven for?
Hey Yasmine,
Yes, I would just increase your baking time and start checking for doneness at 30/35 minutes. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan