Comforting flavors like nutmeg and cinnamon dot every chunk of those moist and flavorful apple cupcakes. The tiny and tender items of tart Granny Smith apples hiding inside soften in your mouth. Wealthy, fudge-like salted caramel frosting is the right of completion, and should you’re up for accessorizing (go for it!), add a drizzle of salted caramel sauce, too. What a cupcake!
When the beginning of fall rolls round, some reader-favorite recipes embrace these pumpkin cookies, apple cider donuts, and basic pecan pie. It’s the time of 12 months when pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon take over the kitchen and certainly one of my high fall baking decisions has at all times been at the moment’s apple cupcakes. One chunk is all it takes to persuade even essentially the most die-hard summer time spirit that the flavors of fall reign supreme. (Although there’s no contest in terms of peach pie… yum.)
The cupcakes are smooth and cakey, the flavour jogs my memory of salted caramel apple pie, they usually style additional particular with caramel frosting on high. They’re the indeniable champion should you’re in search of a festive fall cupcake!
Inform Me About These Apple Spice Cupcakes
- Taste: Whereas they aren’t full of chocolate ganache or adorned with sweet bars, these modest-looking apple cupcakes pack sufficient cinnamon and apple taste that there’s no want for frosting. (That doesn’t imply we shouldn’t add any—we aren’t loopy.)
- Texture: These have extra texture than, say, basic vanilla cupcakes. Each chunk is a stability of soppy, wealthy, and creamy, with juicy apple. They’re additional moist like banana bread, however not practically as dense. Consider a smooth and cakey muffin full of tender items of apple and topped with thick frosting.
- Ease: The cupcake batter comes collectively with out a lot effort. Put aside a while to peel and finely chop your apples. The frosting requires extra exact consideration, plus a range and a few endurance. A sweet thermometer guarantees success.
Salted caramel turns these right into a salty candy cupcake, however should you’re in search of one thing totally different, some readers have used the cinnamon cream cheese frosting from these banana cupcakes earlier than.
The entire elements required are common baking staples like flour, brown sugar, egg, milk, and so forth.
Greatest Apples to Use
You solely want 1 massive apple. Peel and finely chop it to yield about 1 and 1/2 cups (180g). Tart Granny Smith is greatest right here for the reason that frosting will be so candy, however you should use a candy selection if you want resembling Honeycrisp or Fuji. I like utilizing a mixture of each tart and candy in recipes like apple crisp and apple pie, however that doesn’t matter as a lot right here since you solely want 1 apple.
A Few Success Suggestions
- Prepping your pan. This apple cupcake recipe yields barely greater than a dozen, so have a second muffin pan useful or bake in batches. I at all times use and suggest these parchment paper cupcake/muffin liners. And this muffin pan and this muffin pan have each held up properly with very common use.
- Cupcake batter thickens. You’ll use melted butter on this cupcake batter, and since butter is strong at room temperature, the batter will start to thicken. Be sure to bake the batter instantly.
- Don’t overfill your liners. Fsick your liners about 3/4 full with apple cupcake batter.
Are you in search of a cake recipe as an alternative? Do this recent apple cake and even my apple Bundt cake.
Salted Caramel Frosting
Salted caramel is a pure alternative with apple, however don’t let “salted” idiot you—that is nonetheless a reasonably candy frosting. The frosting is a well-liked recipe and I’ve a separate Salted Caramel Frosting put up if you wish to learn extra about it and get some additional success ideas. The instructions to make it are additionally included within the recipe under. You’ll prepare dinner a home made brown sugar caramel on the range earlier than beating in heavy cream and confectioners’ sugar. A sweet thermometer and sieve/sifter are instruments for fulfillment.
As soon as the frosting has thickened, you may pipe it onto your cupcakes—or be happy to unfold it on with an icing spatula or knife. I used Wilton 2A Piping Tip on the pictured cupcakes, and in some images and the video tutorial under, you may see I used an icing spatula to create a little bit dip/divot on high of the piping. (Extra room for salted caramel sauce garnish!)
Like caramel apples in cupcake kind.
Extra Fall Baking Recipes
Description
These are moist & flavorful apple spice cupcakes with salted caramel frosting on high. The cupcakes are pretty straightforward and most time might be spent on the caramel frosting. A sweet thermometer ensures success in step 5.
Cupcakes
Salted Caramel Frosting
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. Line a second pan with 2 liners—this recipe makes about 14 cupcakes. Put aside.
- Make the cupcakes: Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg collectively in a big bowl. Put aside.
- Whisk the melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar collectively in a medium bowl till mixed. Whisk within the eggs and vanilla extract, then whisk within the milk. Slowly add the moist elements to the dry elements and stir gently till mixed. The batter could have just a few lumps. Fold within the apples.
- Fill the cupcake liners 3/4 of the best way full with batter. Bake for 21–23 minutes, rotating the pan midway by baking. A toothpick inserted within the middle will come out clear when performed. Take away from the oven and permit to chill fully earlier than frosting.
- Begin the frosting: (This frosting is in style, so we have now a separate salted caramel frosting put up should you want extra assist making it.) Mix the butter and brown sugar in a saucepan over medium warmth. With a rubber spatula or picket spoon, stir consistently because the butter melts. As soon as butter has melted, change to a whisk to ensure the 2 are actually mixed. (In any other case, you would possibly see an oily layer across the edges the place they’re nonetheless a bit separated; you don’t want that.) As soon as melted butter and brown sugar are mixed, add 3 Tablespoons of heavy cream and the salt. Whisk to mix, then cease whisking and connect a sweet thermometer to your pan, ensuring the bulb is just not touching the underside of the pan. Let the caramel boil, giving it a fast whisk each 30 seconds or so, till the temperature reaches 230°F (110°C). On my range, it takes just below 2 minutes.
- Take away the saucepan from warmth, give it one other fast whisk, and let cool for a minute. Rigorously switch the salted caramel to a heat-proof mixing bowl set on a cooling rack and funky for simply 15–20 minutes earlier than persevering with. The caramel sauce thickens throughout this time.
- End the frosting: Sift in confectioners’ sugar and add remaining 2 Tablespoons of heavy cream. With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat on medium-low velocity till the elements are integrated. Flip mixer as much as excessive velocity and beat for 1 minute. Keep away from over-mixing or the frosting will start to “break” and separate. Let it sit for at the least 20–half-hour earlier than filling your piping bag, to present it an opportunity to thicken as much as a pipeable consistency.
- Frost cooled cupcakes and drizzle with salted caramel, if desired. I used Wilton 2A piping tip on the pictured cupcakes.
- Cowl and retailer leftover cupcakes at room temperature for as much as 1 day or within the fridge for as much as 5 days.
Key phrases: apple spice cupcakes
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