Pumpkin Cupcakes with Browned Butter Icing

It's my favorite time of year again... NOT election season, pumpkin season!  In the last month, I've indulged in pumpkin muffins, pumpkin bread, pumpkin ice cream, and more than a few pumpkin spice lattes.  Pumpkin perfection!  Last weekend, I experimented with a new addition to my usual pumpkin playlist: pumpkin cupcakes.  I had tried a couple recipes for pumpkin cupcakes in the past, but had never found one that struck the right balance of pumpkin flavor, without being too muffin-y.  Leave it to Martha Stewart to figure this one out!  Her pumpkin cupcakes are pretty amazing on their own, but what makes them really special is this browned butter icing.  I am OBSESSED with this icing!  The flavor is rich and nutty and you even see the beautiful little flecks of browned butter right in the icing.  Believe me, it takes pumpkin to a whole new level!

I tried to get a close-up so that you could see all those beautiful browned butter specks!

Pumpkin Cupcakes (Adapted from a recipe by Martha Stewart)
(Makes 24 Cupcakes)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs
1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Fill your trusty muffin tin with those handy paper liners - I used some cute Halloween ones :)  In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice.  Set aside.  

In a large bowl, beat the sugars, eggs, and melted butter until light and fluffy.  Gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing the batter after each addition.  Once the dry ingredients are incorporated, add the pumpkin puree.  Continue mixing until the batter is smooth.  Spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them 1/2 to 3/4 of the way to the top.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cupcakes comes out clean.  Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting.

You think they look good now?  Just wait for that frosting!

Browned Butter Icing
(Makes enough for 24 cupcakes)

1 stick butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon milk (plus a little more)

Add the butter to a small saucepan and set it over medium heat.  Allow the butter to melt.  Once the butter has melted completely, continue to heat it, stirring often, until it begins to brown.  Once you start to see little brown specks accumulate at the bottom of he pan, remove the butter from the heat.

Meanwhile, in a medium mixing bowl (or the bowl of your trusty Kitchenaid), measure out the powdered sugar, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon of milk.  Add the browned butter to the powdered sugar mixture, and beat until incorporated.  Continue adding milk by the tablespoonful, until the frosting takes the consistency of a loose glaze.

Either spread the icing on the cupcakes with a knife or (if you're like me, and have no patience for frosting) dunk the cupcakes in the icing, allowing the excess to drip off.  I also like the dunk-and-drip method because it gives the cupcakes a nice, smooth appearance without any fuss!

I started out spreading, then switched to dunking, can you tell?