Don't let the "apple" part of this recipe fool you; these are not—in any way, shape, or form—healthy. In fact, I'm pretty sure I'm gaining weight just by ogling the picture and thinking about eating one again :D Make these. Your taste buds will thank you.
Apple Pie Cupcakes
Cupcakes:
- 1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tbsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3 cups sifted cake flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 eggs
Apple filling:
- 3 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and diced
- 2 tbsp. butter
- 2-3 tbsp. sugar
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting :
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- up to 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 6 to 8 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Directions:
In a medium bowl, sift cake flour, baking powder and salt. With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well and scraping down the sides of bowl after each addition. Add vanilla extract; mix well to combine. Add dry ingredients alternately with milk, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Stir until just combined.
Divide batter evenly among cupcake liners, filling about 2/3-3/4 full. Bake until golden; about 18 to 22 minutes. Remove from oven; cool for 5 minutes in pans. Transfer to wire racks; cool completely.
Apple filling: heat butter in medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add cinnamon and sugar; cook for a minute, until mixture begins to bubble. Lower heat to medium; stir in the apples. Mix well. Cook until apples are somewhat tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
While apple mixture cools, use cone method to remove a chunk from center of each cupcake, leave a rim around the top of cupcake. Fill holes with cooled apple mixture.
Frosting:
Beat butter in a stand mixer until smooth. Add 4-5 cups confectioners' sugar, milk and vanilla. Beat until sugar disappears. Add more sugar, by 1/2 cups, until desired consistency is reached. (For a stiff buttercream, use close to the max- 7-8 cups). Beat in cinnamon.