Thanks to Midwestern-nice food blogger Jamie Preuss these cupcakes are now part of my fall dessert rotation. Pumpkin, sage and browned butter — what gets more autumnally indulgent than THAT? The sage is swirled with the brown butter, offering a savory, sweet, almost umami flavor. The pumpkin keeps the cupcake moist, which also gets a helping hand from the brown butter icing. MAKE. THESE. A PRIORITY.
Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for tins
- 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour plus more for tins
- 1/4 cup fresh sage leaves, cut into chiffonade
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp ground cloves
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
For the brown butter icing:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
- 2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp milk plus more if needed
DIRECTIONS:
For the cupcakes:
- Preheat oven to 325 F. Brush standard muffin tins with butter; dust with flour, tapping out excess.
- In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the sage, and continue to cook, swirling occasionally, until butter turns golden brown. Skim foam from top, and remove from heat. Pour into a bowl to stop the cooking, leaving any burned sediment behind; let cool.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
- In another bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, both sugars, eggs, and brown-butter mixture. Add flour mixture and whisk until just combined.
- Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until cake tester inserted in center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.
- Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.
- To finish, dip top of each cupcake in icing, then turn over quickly and let set.
- Cupcakes are best eaten the day they are glazed, keep at room temperature until ready to serve.
For the brown butter icing:
- Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, swirling pan occasionally, until nut-brown in color, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and pour butter into bowl, leaving behind any burned sediment.
- Add confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk to brown butter, stir until smooth. If necessary, add more milk (up to 2 tablespoons) a little at a time, just until icing is spreadable. Use immediately.