Pumpkin Banana Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These pumpkin banana cupcakes with cream cheese frosting have caramelized banana baked into them!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword autumn, bananas, cake, caramelized bananas, cream cheese, cream cheese frosting, cupcakes, dessert, fall, fall baking, frosting, nut-free, pumpkin, pumpkin cake, snack, vegetarian, whipped cream

Prep Time 45 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Servings 24 cupcakes

Calories 260 kcal

Ingredients

Pumpkin Banana Cupcakes

3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 ½ teaspoons ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
½ cup canola oil
½ cup whole-milk yogurt room temperature
4 large eggs room temperature
15 ounces pumpkin purée
2 very ripe bananas sliced in half lengthwise then cut each half into 6 pieces crosswise
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 tablespoon maple syrup
8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups heavy cream room temperature

Instructions

Pumpkin Banana Cupcakes

Whisk dry ingredients.
Beat sugar, oil and yogurt until the sugar is incorporated.
Add the eggs 1 at a time. Add the pumpkin and beat until just combined.
Slowly add the flour mixture, and beat until almost completely incorporated. Fold in by hand any streaks of flour.
Fill 24 lined muffin wells with the batter. Bake at 350F for 10 minutes.
Place a piece of banana on top of each cupcake, and sprinkle with the brown sugar. Press the banana and sugar into the batter slightly. Bake at 350F for another 10-12 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out of the cake (not the banana part) clean.
Cool in pans for 5 minutes. Cool completely on wire racks. Frost cupcakes.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Whip the maple syrup, cream cheese and vanilla until smooth. Add the cream ½ cup at a time, whipping the frosting until smooth and combined before adding the the next addition of cream. Whip until stiff peaks form.
If you want a smooth look like in these pictures, dollop some frosting right in the center of the cupcake, then tap the cupcake gently against a flat surface. You won’t be able to get much frosting onto the cupcake.
I’d recommend refrigerating the frosting for 3-4 hours, until a lot thicker and more spreadable. Then you can pipe and spread as you please (whereas it won’t right after you whip it).

Recipe Notes

Cake adapted from CHOW, cream cheese frosting adapted from Erica Lea.

Use an electric mixer if you can- it's hard to hand mix the batter evenly.