It’s the 15th, so it’s time for another installment of the Martha Stewart Cupcake Club (please go check out some of the other member’s blogs). This month’s cupcake is Pumpkin Patch, from Martha’s cupcake book – a timely choice. I usually make pumpkin bread around this time of year and also have a pumpkin cookie recipe that is a favorite around here. I was excited to try the pumpkin cupcakes.
I used all whole wheat pastry flour in this recipe – a first for me. The recipe also include buttermilk, which always means it will be very moist. This doesn’t have a ton of pumpkin – a cup and a half. The cupcakes mixed up nicely – and they were my first recipe using my brand new hand mixer. The beaters on my old one rusted and were falling apart, it was time for a new one 
(and the replacement price for the beaters was higher than the cost of a brand new mixer!).
These took longer to bake than Martha predicted – about 10 minutes more actually. They were very wiggly for a long time. I made the cream cheese frosting suggested in the recipe (except I only made half a batch of it because I remember how much it made), but here, my cupcake club friends, is where I failed you. As you can see, my cupcakes were a bit of a mess. I tried to just spread some frosting on top. Silly me. This really needs to be piped on since the cupcake is very soft and fragile. Mine completely fell apart when I tried to put frosting on with an offset spatula. I’m just not into piping (mostly because I HATE trying to clean those little plastic tips). So these cupcakes are the ugly stepsisters of the ones other members of the club will have on their blogs, I’m sure.
Even though they didn’t look very nice, these tasted great! They were fabulous and I was pleased with the way the whole wheat pastry flour tasted. It wasn’t too heavy nor was it overpoweringly wheaty. It did have a pumpkin flavor, but again, it was not overwhelming. They were soft and moist. The frosting, of course, was just evil, as Martha’s cream cheese frosting always is. Everyone in the family liked these very much. A winner!
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Great job with the pumpkin patch cupcakes. I love your tweak with using the whole wheat flour. Mine were not pretty either so I’m thinking it’s the recipe and not you at all.
They look plenty good to me…nice and rustic, right? There is a time for rustic and I say this recipe is it! It’s all about the taste around here…I have only guys living here, so they don’t ever care what something looks like, they care about the TASTE! Yours look plenty tasty to me. And, as my friend Rebecca says, “I could eat cream cheese frosting off the driveway!” Me, too!
I think the reason that they didn’t rise is b/c you used whole wheat flour. You need to change the baking powder/soda combo. I made some raisin bread with whole wheat flour the other day and it did the same thing. It doesn’t matter a whole lot what they look like cause they all look the same in your belly. Thanks for baking along with me this month!
Using whole what is a great idea. I forgot to write in mine that I made it gluten free which means I used rice flour, potato starch and I think I used tapioca for the third, this time. Gluten free means about a dozen different flours. They came out which is what counts.
I think yours look just great.
Ugly stepsisters! That is too funny.
Hey, looks aren’t everything, right? As long as they tasted good – that is what’s really important.
I think your cupcakes look delicious. Nothing like a thick spread of cream cheese frosting. Your changes sound good too. I’m glad these were a winner at your house. Thanks for baking along with me this month.
I’m so happy you used all whole wheat. I am totally making these. They look great. And we can buy pumpkins for 50 cents at the farmers’ market (small pie ones that bake easily). Thanks for this! Will you email me the recipe??!!
Yes I will. I love whole wheat flour, but my kids still prefer regular. I just think it tastes so much better. It’s real food. They don’t complain as much as they used to at least.
Great that you used whole wheat flour. Always interesting when you change a recipe, sometimes it takes more than once to get it just right. They look delicious and that’s all that counts!
Where did you find pastry flour? I’ve never used it before, but I’m very curious about it. Your changes sound pretty helpful, and thanks for the tip about baking them longer, I will try that next time!
It was in the organic section of my grocery store. It happened to be on an end cap, or I never would have thought to look for it.
I’m surprised that it ALWAYS seems to take a lot longer to bake than the recipe says. You gotta wonder how/if some of these are actually tested.
I’m going to test my oven temp to see if it’s off. It’s a pretty new oven though. I also think that commercial ovens probably get back up to temp quicker after you open the door, so that might be part of it.
LOL you’re too funny! Glad you liked them though!
They still look delicious. Love that you used whole wheat, I might have to try that next time.
Beauty is only skin deep! Glad you enjoyed the tast of these cupcakes and anything with cream cheese frosting on them is good.
Mine actually worked okay with an offset. Maybe your frosting was too cold? I’m glad you enjoyed the cupcakes! I think they’re delicious!
You made them, therefore, they look wonderful! I have to get me some whole wheat flour.
I like that these are good for you (with all that whole wheat flour)! I think taste should come first – these sound really good.
i thought these were super delicious too! =)
Tasting great is all that matters in my book!!! I loved these as well! YUM!
These do look delicious. You can always order pastry flour from King Arthur–alto I don’t think I’ve seen the whole wheat pastry flour in the catalogue. I’ll have to look again. And I’m like you–I love the look of piped frosting, hate the cleanup.
OMG, is it almost Halloween and pumpkin time again?! These look great, Martha. Really!!
Hey, I would eat them! 🙂 I think they look wonderful.
MMMMMM looks good!
A lot of the Martha recipes I have tried are designed for Convection Ovens. If you are using a Conventional Oven, then it’s likely the temperature needs to be raised slightly. When I use convection, the time listed is exactly how long it takes. Just something you may want to look into.
The recipes do not say to use convection though. Many home cooks do not have convection, so if that’s what they’re doing, it makes no sense whatsoever!
I think I want these. NOW.
I agree–they were delish, won rave at our house (and with co-workers as well!!)!
I will still eat those!
I liked this recipe and will use it again.
Thanks for baking along with us. Fun, fun, fun!
I’m sure no one in your family cared that they looked less than Martha perfect since they were so yummy!! 🙂
Okay, so maybe it’s just me but I am SO NOT digging the way Martha writes her recipes. I think they are unnecessarily complicated and not nearly straightforward enough. I found that to be true with this one as well. Also, there is no real reason to sift flour… Maybe, Brett, you could re-write the recipes (and change the ingredients to healthy alternatives) to make them easier to follow? Sorry if I sound grumpy…
I just do not sift. Ever. Ok, maybe I did once for angel food cake. But I think it’s stupid. And I agree, a lot of her recipes are very complicated in unnecessary ways. She always has extra steps that take forever, like refrigerating things in between steps. Oh yes, I would love to rewrite all of her recipes (the good ones only!) to make them easier and healthier. Now I just need to get someone to pay me to do that……