I have two other culinary creations that I made before these that I still have yet to share, but I can’t let this weekend end without writing about these beauties: Pumpkin Cupcakes with a Salted Caramel Buttercream frosting.  Have you ever heard a more amazing title? I must have recited that phrase over 20 times this weekend, and every time I got the same stupefied reaction, complete with a little drool.

As soon as I saw these on Made in Melissa’s Kitchen, I knew I’d be making them.  I didn’t know, however, that it would be in the two hours before a dinner reservation I had with my two best friends, or that I’d have to re-make the caramel sauce because I burnt it the first time.  Or that I’d have to switch the frosting tip because the first one just wasn’t right.  Or that I’d be frantically scrubbing the BUTTERcream off the pastry bags and mixer bowl in time to get ready to go.  But even with so many hiccups, these were probably the best baked goods I have EVER made.

I shared these with three different groups of people this weekend— my friends Amanda and Elyse, my family, and my South Plainfield favorites— and their reactions all reaffirmed why I love to cook and bake for the people I love.

I know I’ve told you to make many things in the past, but ignore all those suggestions and take this one: MAKE THESE.  You’ll love its moist, spicy Pumpkin base and the sweet and salty combo that the caramel icing provides.  Perfection.  These might be my contribution to Thanksgiving this year!

Recipe

Even though I made these a few weeks ago (and of course never got around to writing about them), they were SO good that I knew I needed to spread the word about their wonderfulness.  As soon as I saw this recipe on Gingerbread Bagels, I knew that I’d be dropping all plans and making them that weekend.  As some of you may know, I’m a Halloween fanatic.  I love being scared, getting decked out in creative costumes, and the overall fall atmosphere.  Unsurprisingly, I also love the candy and sweets.

When I was younger, seeing Halloween Oreos on the supermarket shelves always signaled the beginning of the season to me.  I don’t care what anyone says— they just TASTE different.  So when I came across a recipe that incorporated these neon orange cookies into both the cake AND frosting, I was sold.

I had a really fun time making these, which was great because I gave up a Saturday night to try them out.  It was my first time making a buttercream frosting and as nerdy as this sounds, I loved turning on my KitchenAid mixer for 10 minutes and watching the icing transform into something fluffy and beautiful.  And boy was that 10 minutes worth it- this was some of the best frosting I’ve ever had.  The Oreos really add something.

I won’t lie and say that these were perfect.  Although the taste was definitely spot on, I had a tough time getting them to look the way I wanted them to.  I wanted them to be over-the-top Halloween, but two things went wrong.  First, the orange gel food coloring I had somehow hardened and wasn’t very useable.  Second, the piping tip I had was big, but not big enough to allow chunks of Oreos to pass through, so I had to resort to the unwieldy spatula method.  However, these were SO good that I would make another attempt at getting them to absolute perfection.  Maybe for Halloween?

Recipe

Breakfast of champions! A French Toast and Bacon cupcake from The Cupcake Corner in Garden City, NY.  Tide (client) had an event there yesterday, and I reaped the benefits.