Spiced Pumpkin Cupcakes

Have I mentioned lately that I love fall? hehe Well, this week the season lives on in Betty Crocker's Spiced Pumpkin Cupcakes. Now I'll be honest, this wasn't a new recipe for me. I actually made them last year around this time. Quote of the year from a co-worker: "How did you do that? They taste like Thanksgiving!" They were a HUGE hit. I'm pretty sure all 24 were devoured before 10:30am...silly engineers.

With that kind of success, how could I not make them again.

But before I go into details, I should mention how much I love BettyCrocker.com. Tons, and I mean TONS, for quick and simple meals and desserts. One draw back is that they all require at least one BC product (obviously), so it isn't the greatest for impromptu ideas, but if you plan ahead, you'll have no problem.

And lastly, if you think I'm obsessed with fall, just wait til November 26 and I start listening to Christmas music :)

How Long Is This Gonna Take:10 minutes for the pecans and making the batter + 20 minutes to bake + 10 minutes frosting = 40 minutes total

What You'll Need:1/2 - 1 cup finely chopped pecans
3 tbsp sugar
1 box yellow cake mix
1 cup pumpkin, not pumpkin pie mix (I used the whole 15oz can, mostly because I can't read :-P)
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup veggie oil
4 eggs
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 container cream cheese flavored frosting

What To Do:1. Preheat oven to 350F. Use paper baking cups to line cupcake pan or spray with cooking spray.

2. In a non-stick skillet, cook pecans and 2 tbsp of sugar over low heat, stirring constantly, until sugar is melted, about 8 minutes (I had to crank my electric burner to 5 aka medium in my book to get the sugar to start melting). Spread pecans onto a sheet of waxed paper and sprinkle with remaining 1 tbsp of sugar.

3. In a large bowl, beat cake mix, pumpkin, water, oil, eggs, and pumpkin pie spice until combined. Divide among cupcake tins, filling about 2/3 full. (Hint- if you only have one 12-cup muffin pan, cover and refrigerate other half of batter while the 1st batch is baking. When baking up the cooled batter, add 1-2 minutes bake time)

4. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until it passes the toothpick test. Remove from pan onto cooling rack and allow to full cool before frosting.


5. Frost each cupcake and then turn upside down into a bowl full of the sweetened pecans. Push down any loose ones trying to escape.