Soft, spiced pumpkin muffins with maple and pecans, finished with a burnt-butter caramel cream cheese frosting PB cups and chocolate-covered pretzels. To die for!
Pumpkin, Maple & Pecan Muffins with Burnt-Butter Caramel Frosting.
I’ll be honest, tinned pumpkin purée has always put me off slightly. Something about the idea of puréed squash in a cake just didn’t appeal. But I had a tin at the back of the cupboard that needed using, and everyone raves about pumpkin muffins, so I thought I’d see what the fuss was about.
Turns out, the fuss is justified. These pumpkin, maple and pecan muffins are soft, spiced, and stay moist for days. You don’t taste pumpkin; you taste maple’s toffee warmth and the nutty crackle of pecans. And because I can’t help myself, I crowned them with a burnt-butter caramel cream cheese frosting and a scatter of peanut butter cups and chocolate-covered pretzels.
Why Pumpkin Works Here
Pumpkin purée acts like quiet bakery insurance, moisture without vegetable vibes. Think courgette in chocolate cake: you don’t taste it, but you notice the tender crumb. Cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg do the talking; maple syrup adds depth you can’t fake with plain sugar, while soft light brown sugar gives body and that deep bronze edge.
They also hold beautifully: plain or glazed, you’re good for 2–3 days in a tin; frosted, stash in the fridge and bring to room temp before serving. Somehow they taste even better on day two, flavours settle and the texture stays lush.
Shopping Notes (keep it simple)
- Pumpkin purée: Use tinned (not pie filling). If it looks watery, drain in a sieve lined with kitchen paper for 10 minutes — you want thick, not sloppy.
- Maple syrup: Real maple only. Don’t skip; it’s the flavour driver.
- Pecans: Toast if you remember; raw is fine. Walnuts if you like a bitter edge; pumpkin seeds for nut-free.
- Spice: Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg. Mixed spice also works — check it still smells alive.
Frosting, the burnt-butter caramel one
I brown the butter until it smells nutty; then I push it a shade darker because I can’t help myself. Brown sugar goes in and clumps, then melts. I add in cream; it hisses, I grin, and the caramel inevitably turns glossy. Cool it on the sill and poke it every few minutes until it’s semi set.
Next, cold cream cheese goes in the mixer. I beat it briefly, then stream in the cooled caramel. It loosens for a second; however, a minute’s chill fixes it. I taste (twice), add a touch of salt, and it suddenly tastes like the edges of sticky toffee pudding.
Now I pipe delicious swirls on cooled muffins. Peanut butter cups land first; chocolate-covered pretzels follow for snap and salt. Besides, that crunch makes the sweet make sense. Finally, I stand back, try to be sensible, and immediately eat one.
Sorry not sorry.
These started as an experiment and turned into the ultimate autumn bake I hand to people without warning. Nobody clocks the pumpkin; everyone asks for the recipe. If you want another cosy number for the season, try my Apple & Miso Caramel Crumble same “unexpected, obviously right” energy!
If you’d like to watch these recipes come to life in real time, you can always join in over on Tik Tok and Instagram.
Ingredients
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Dry ingredients
- Wet ingredients
- Add-ins
- Burnt-Butter Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting (butter-free muffin; butter is in the frosting only)
- Candy crunch topping (optional but outrageous)
Instructions
-
Heat the oven & prep tins.
- Heat to 180°C (160°C fan). Line a 12-hole muffin tin with paper cases. Dry mix.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, bicarb, spices and salt in a large bowl. Wet mix.
- In another bowl, whisk eggs, brown sugar, maple, oil, vanilla and pumpkin until smooth and glossy. Combine
- Fold wet into dry until just combined — a few flour streaks are fine. Pecans in.
- Fold through most of the pecans, keeping a handful for tops. Fill & bake.
- Divide batter between cases (about ¾ full).
- Scatter with reserved pecans and demerara.
- Bake 22–25 mins until risen and a skewer comes out clean.
- Cool 5 mins in the tin, then transfer to a rack to cool completely before frosting. Brown the butter (for frosting)
- Melt butter in a light-coloured pan over medium heat.
- Cook until the milk solids turn deep amber and it smells nutty.
- Scrape all the butter and browned bits into a small saucepan. Make burnt-butter caramel.
- Add brown sugar to the browned butter, set over low–medium heat and stir until it looks like damp sand and starts to melt.
- Pour in warm double cream slowly (it will bubble).
- Stir in salt and vanilla.
- Cool to room temp and thick but pourable (quicker in a shallow tray). Cream cheese base.
- In a mixer, beat cold cream cheese on low just 10–15 seconds to smooth (don’t whip loose).
- Beat in 380 g icing sugar to a thick paste. Emulsify caramel.
- With mixer on low, stream in the cooled burnt-butter caramel.
- Beat just until silky.
- If too soft for piping, add more icing sugar 1–2 tbsp at a time and/or chill 10–15 mins. Frost & finish.
- Pipe or spread frosting onto fully cooled muffins.
- Top with chopped peanut butter cups and broken chocolate-covered pretzels.
- Add a tiny pinch of flaky salt if you like.
Notes
Thick pumpkin: if your purée is loose, drain it in a sieve lined with kitchen paper for 10 minutes. Caramel texture: it should be room-temp and thick before adding to cream cheese; hot caramel will slacken the frosting. Pipeability: chill the filled piping bag for 10 mins; the browned-butter caramel firms as it cools and holds ridges. Swap-outs: walnuts instead of pecans; mini chocolate chips in the batter for extra indulgence. Storage: frosted muffins keep 3 days in the fridge (bring to cool room temp 15–20 mins before serving). Unfrosted muffins freeze up to 2 months.
