Caramel Apple Cupcakes

Caramel Apple Cupcakes

These cupcakes are SO GOOD. I had no idea they were going to be so delicious and I was completely blown away. That said, summer is not the best time to make them, because they melt in the heat.

Cupcakes:

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp almond extract

3/4 cup cake flour

5/8 (about 2/3) cup flour

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened and cuber

2 eggs

1/2 granny smith apple, cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Stir together milk and almond extract.

In a mixing bowl, sift together flours, sugar, bp, and spices. At in cubed butter a little at a time, mixing on low speed, until the batter looks sandy in texture.

Add eggs, then milk mixture. Mix until combined. Add apple pieces.

Fill cupcake tins 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 10 minutes, turn, bake 12 minutes. The cupcakes will be brown around the edges. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

Makes 18.

Cinnamon Frosting:

1 stick butter, room temperature

3 cups powdered sugar

3 tbsp cream or whole milk

1 tsp cinnamon

green food coloring, if desired

Beat butter until soft and fluffy. Sift in powdered sugar and cinnamon, then add cream. Beat until frosting reaches the correct consistency for piping. Add one or two drops of food color.

Caramel coating:

1 bag unwrapped caramel pieces

2 tsp cream or milk

Melt the caramel and milk together. If you do this in the microwave, be careful to do it in small increments and with lots of stirring to prevent the caramel from burning. It may take a while for the ingredients to combine fully. Let the mixture cool for a little while.

When the cupcakes are cool, pipe a spiral of frosting on top of each. Dip the frosted cupcakes upside down into the caramel. You need to do this somewhat quickly, especially if the caramel is still warm, or it will melt the icing. Let some of the excess caramel drip off if possible.

As soon as the cupcakes are coated, move them to freezer and let them sit for a while so the caramel can sit. The milk will keep it from becoming crunchy, but it will firm up enough to look really good. In this weather, they will melt almost immediately, so keep them in the fridge or freezer until you are ready to serve them.

Warning: these cupcakes are super messy!

Adapted from The Baking Robot.