Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

It’s that time of year where we need all things pumpkin because everything pumpkin is delicious. These chocolate chip pumpkin cupcakes are tender and perfectly spiced with the most luscious cream cheese frosting!

My dear friend Lisa makes the most spectacular chocolate chip pumpkin cupcakes and always gifts me some every fall. She’s the type of human being that you want in your corner. Not because she makes dang good cupcakes, not because she’s a fighter (which she is after battling cancer), and not even because of some special talent or anything. She’s the lifelong, loyal, completely genuine woman that all women should strive to be.

When we first moved and were so lost and bummed that we couldn’t (and still haven’t) found a home to settle into she showed up with another friend bearing these cupcakes as a reminder that I and my family are seen and loved even when we don’t live by each other. I just cried when I opened the door. I love her and I think she makes the best pumpkin cupcakes ever so I had no choice but to share them with all of you.

They are perfectly balanced with flavor, texture and the frosting is literally the icing on top. Best. Pumpkin. Cupcake. I promise.

What You Need to Make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Grab a can of pumpkin from the grocery store and I’m willing to bet you have the rest of the ingredients already! Here is everything you will need:

For the Cupcakes

• Wet Ingredients: Eggs, Sugar, Pumpkin, Water and Oil
• Dry Ingredients: Flour, Baking Soda, Baking Powder, Salt. Ground Cloves and Cinnamon
• Mini Chocolate Chips

For the Frosting

• Cream Cheese: I’ve had the best results with full fat Philadelphia brand cream cheese.
• Butter: Make sure it is softened to room temperature.
• Powdered Sugar: Adds the sweetness and structure to the frosting.
• Vanilla Extract: Adds flavor
• Milk: Helps the frosting be a little more creamy.

The details and measurements for each ingredient can be found down at the end of the post.

How to Make Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cupcakes

You’re just a few steps away from the most delicious pumpkin cupcakes of your life! Here is a step-by-step guide to making the cupcakes:

1. Prep: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a muffin tin with paper liners.
2. Combine: Start by mixing the eggs and sugar together until well combined. Then add the rest of the wet ingredients and blend thoroughly.
3. Mix: Add all the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Then fold in the mini chocolate chips.
4. Bake: Fill the cupcake liners in the muffin pan 2/3 full and then bake the cupcakes for 17-19

Samoa Cupcakes

Girl scout cookie meets cupcake in these rich chocolatey, caramel, and toasted coconut Samoa Cupcakes!

I’m so thrilled that stores have started making knock off Girl Scout cookies so that I don’t have to wait until March to devour all my favorite Girl Scout cookie flavors. Keebler has a version of the Samoa cookie and Walmart even has it’s own Great Value version. So you can make these Samoa cupcakes all year round!

Samoa Cookie Inspiration

I love cupcakes and Samoa cookies so why not mash the two together?! Voila! It’s seriously a party in your mouth. I chose to use a yellow cake for the cupcake to mimic the shortbread in the cookie and then I dipped it in ganache similar to how the bottom of a Samoa is covered in chocolate.  

I was going to top the cupcake with just a caramel/coconut mix but what kind of cupcake would that be without a buttery frosting?! The caramel buttercream is divine! I could eat it by the spoonful! And we top it with a sprinkle of toasted coconut!

Oh and for extra good measure I drizzled more caramel and ganache on top of the cupcakes creating a delicious mess.  These Samoa Cupcakes are going to blow your minds!  Enjoy!

Ingredients for Samoa Cupcakes

There are a few steps that go into making this cupcake recipe, but don’t worry, every ingredients and step is worth it! Here are the ingredients you will need:

Cupcakes:

• Dry Ingredients: All-Purpose Flour, Cornstarch, Baking Powder, Baking Soda and Salt
• Wet Ingredients: Butter, Sugar, Eggs, Vanilla and Sour Cream

Ganache:

• Milk Chocolate Chips
• Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
• Heavy Whipping Cream

Caramel Frosting:

• Butter
• Powdered Sugar
• Caramel Sauce
• Vanilla

Topping:

• Samoa Girl Scout Cookies
• Sweetened Coconut Flakes
• Caramel Sauce

The measurements for each ingredients can be found in the recipe at the end of this post. Keep scrolling down for all the details!

How to Make Samoa Cupcakes

Now that you know all the ingredients you need, here is the step-by-step guide to making them:

Cupcakes:

1. Prep: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line muffin tins with paper liners.
2. Combine: Add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mix to combine.
3. Beat: Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and beat until light and creamy.
4. Mix: Add the eggs one at a time mixing thoroughly between each egg. Then mix in the vanilla and sour cream.
5. Combine: Add in the flour mixture and mix until just combined.
6. Bake: Spoon the batter into the cupcake liners

Nutella Stuffed Strawberry Chocolate Cupcakes

If an 8 year old can make Nutella Stuffed Strawberry Chocolate Cupcakes, you certainly can do it! Moist chocolate cupcakes are a must for Valentine’s Day!

Are you familiar with how cooking happens in our house? It’s not just a mom thing, and it’s certainly not just an adult thing, the whole family is involved. I’ll tell you all about how our family created the tradition of kids cooking, plus a few tips for making it work in your home, but first, let’s chat about these Nutella Stuffed Strawberry Chocolate Cupcakes, very similar to our Milk Chocolate Cupcakes.

Nutella Stuffed Strawberry Chocolate Cupcakes

I love the look of chocolate and fluffy, pink anything, yes, even pink pancakes. I’m not really a pink girl, I think I have one or two pink shirts in my closet and that’s probably it. Now don’t panic, I have nothing against pink, I’m just not drawn to it like I am blue or white for example. I should move to Santorini, Greece. That seems like a good choice.

Ahhh but chocolate and pink, there’s something about that just makes me want to take a big ol’ bite. And these Nutella Stuffed Strawberry Chocolate Cupcakes are the perfect example.

A moist chocolate cupcake, stuffed with totally lickable Nutella and topped off with strawberry buttercream that is silky like those old school 90’s silk pajamas. Nothing short of a dream.

Why Coffee in Chocolate Cake

You all know us well enough by now to know that we don’t drink alcohol, coffee or tea and while yes, alcohol usually cooks out of things, we don’t keep it in the house so it just doesn’t happen.

When it comes to chocolate cake I’ve had to embrace that it does in fact make a difference. I bought this, Espresso Powder  used for baking and I merely add a little to any liquid in chocolate baking and it enhances the chocolate flavor without adding any coffee flavor. I honestly still skip it all the time, but really, it does make a difference and you’re probably eating it most of the time you buy a chocolate anything out and about.

Boiling Water in Chocolate Cake

Have you noticed how many chocolate recipes include boiling water? Especially a chocolate cake or cupcake. So what’s the deal with boiling water in chocolate cake?

It seems like it would be something with the hot water making the cake more moist or tender, but it’s actually about the cocoa. When making anything chocolate you should mix cocoa with hot water then let it sit for a few minutes. What you’re actually doing is blooming the chocolate, or in other words, the cocoa dissolves and the flavor particles are released leading to a more powerful chocolate flavor.

Chocolate brownies are a little different, you’ll want to bloom the chocolate in hot oil. Not like, fry you up some fried chicken oil, just warmed up so