Pumpkin chocolate cupcakes ermergherd! This chocolate cupcake recipe has been my go-to ever since going sugar-free. It's from a cake recipe by The Best Cakes Ever that I've adjusted for cupcakes. I wanted to turn it into a fall cupcake, so what better than to add some pumpkin buttercream. Pumpkin and chocolate are one of my absolute favorite flavor combos.

Let's get started!

Chocolate cupcake ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups monk fruit sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup freshly brewed strong hot coffee

Pumpkin buttercream ingredients:

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
4-5 cups powdered monk fruit sugar

For the cake:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Add your cupcake liners to your pan.
  3. Mix your dry ingredients - all-purpose flour, monk fruit sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt - set aside.
  4. In a large bowl using a hand mixer, combine the buttermilk, vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla.
  5. Slowly add your dry ingredients to your wet about 1/4th at a time.
  6. Add the hot coffee and mix until combined. The mixture will be a bit runny.
  7. Add your batter to your muffin liners making each one about 2/3 full.
  8. I bake mine for 18 minutes, but I would check at 16 and see where they are and adjust accordingly. You should be able to insert a toothpick and no cake will come out.
  9. Let cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting:

  1. Using a hand mixer, cream the butter and shortening until smooth.
  2. Add the pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice and mix on low until just combined.
  3. Add your powdered monk fruit sugar 1 cup at a time. How stable you need your buttercream to be will determine the amount of sugar needed. You may need as little as 3 cups depending on your preference. 5 made a perfectly stable buttercream for me.
  4. Assemble your cupcakes.  I used the Wilton 1M to create the buttercream roses.

In my humble opinion these are easily the best sugar-free cupcakes I've had yet. Plus, these two recipes are so adaptable for other flavors!