Cheesecake-Filled Pumpkin Cupcakes

Found on So We Think We Can Cook
adapted from Rachael Ray

So I totally snagged this post from my niece Stacie, pictures and all! (Which were better than the ones on Rachael Ray's site and I didn't take any.) She found it in the Rachael Ray magazine. She followed the recipe exactly for the cupcake, but used a different frosting. So the frosting is a buttercream frosting that she used. That's what I used too. Thanks Stacie!! You're my baking idol.

Pumpkin Batter:

• 1 c. canned pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1 c. white sugar
• 1/2 c. oil
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 1/2 c. flour
• 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt

Beat pumpkin, eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla together. Add dry ingredients and mix.

Cheesecake Batter:

• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 c. powdered sugar
• 1 egg white
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Beat cream cheese and powdered sugar together for 3 minutes. Add egg white and vanilla and mix well.

Spray muffin liners. Layer each muffin cup with some pumpkin batter, then the cream cheese mixture, then the pumpkin batter. Bake until done, about 25 minutes, at 350 degrees. Let cool, and then frost.

Buttercream Frosting:

• 1/2 c. butter, softened
• 4 c. powdered sugar
• 1/4 c. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla

She added about 1/4 c. brown sugar to this, then dusted the tops of each cupcake with a cinnamon/sugar mix we keep on hand for toast. I did too but added the brown sugar last. I wish I would have added it to the butter and creamed them first. That's what happens when you don't read all the way through the recipe first!

These take some work and don't make a lot (only about 15), but they were really, really, yummy.

Note to Self: These were really good!! Very nice blend of pumpkiny and sweet! YUM!