Sugar & Spice Pumpkin Mini Cakes

The recipe for these cute little “pumpkins” is so easy and versatile! In just a few minutes, you have enough batter for a regular size bundt pan, three 9-inch round cake pans, a 13x9x2-inch pan, or, of course, this mini bundt cupcake pan filled twice to make 24 of these edible pumpkins. Sweet and delicious, they are perfect for serving on Halloween night after a fun-filled evening of trick-or-treating. Better yet, serve to the adults who are accompanying the kids when they trick-or-treat at your house!

Ingredients:

No-stick cooking spray

1 (15 oz.) can 100% pure pumpkin puree

1 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ cups granulated sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 ½ teaspoon soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Frosting:

1 (16 oz.) can cream cheese frosting, divided use

Orange food coloring

Green food coloring

Other decorations:

Gold sanding sugar (optional)

1 (3.52 oz.) milk chocolate candy bar

Tools:

Mixer

Large mixing bowl

Medium mixing bowl

Spatula

12-cavity mini bundt cupcake pan***

Wire cooling rack

3 small bowls

3 spoons

3 resealable sandwich bags

Coffee cup

Scissors

Knife

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cavity mini bundt cupcake pan with cooking spray. Set aside. 

In a large mixing bowl, beat pumpkin, oil, eggs, and extract together on low speed for 1 minute, scraping down side of bowl as needed.

In a medium mixing bowl, stir flour, sugars, soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves together. 

Add flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and mix on low speed just until combined, scraping down side of bowl as needed. 

Fill sprayed cavities in pan ¾ full. Bake on center rack for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in pan then remove from pan by inverting onto a wire rack. Cool completely. (Wash and dry pan and respray before filling and baking again.) 

While pumpkins are cooling, mix frosting colors. Place ¾ cup of frosting in a small bowl and stir in 6-8 drops of orange food coloring. Place ½ cup of frosting in second bowl and stir in 2-3 drops of orange food coloring. In third bowl, place ¼ cup of frosting and stir in 3-4 drops of food coloring. For one frosting color, open a small sandwich bag in coffee mug, folding top 1-inch of bag on outside of cup. Microwave for 5-6 seconds until frosting just softens. Remove and seal bag. Repeat for other two colors. 

To frost pumpkins, start with bright orange frosting. Snip off about 1/8-inch from one bottom corner. Starting at top, evenly squeeze 6 stripes about halfway down on each pumpkin. Snip off about 1/16-inch from one bottom corner of light orange frosting and place 6 more stripes between other stripes. Snip a tiny corner off the bottom of the bag of the green frosting and make tendrils on each pumpkin. Immediately sprinkle lightly with sanding sugar. 

Break candy bar into 15 sections then cut each section in half lengthwise. Insert one candy bar piece into top center of each pumpkin for stem. 

Serve on a platter or on individual serving plates. Serves 24.

***If a mini bundt pan is unavailable, a 12-cavity regular muffin pan may be substituted.

Broken pretzel rods may be used as stems instead of chocolate bars.