Apple Pie Cupcakes

There's a nip in the air....feeling more like fall everyday. That just makes me want to bake (any excuse works for me). I've been thinking about apple pie cupcakes for some time and today just seemed like the perfect day. I was tossed between butter cake, spice cake, or apple cake for the cupcake part. I finally settled on butter cake. My reasoning was that apple pie doesn't have apples in the crust...so my cupcake shouldn't have apples in the cake ;)...but I'm pretty sure any of those options would have been good. I'm a fan of filled cupcakes...its like finding money in that coat you haven't worn in a year....a nice surprise. So, these have a hollowed out center filled with the apple filling and then iced with a cinnamon buttercream frosting.

These were a hit at my house. They turned out as good as I had imagined. If you are an apple pie fan and a cake fan....I suggest you try these out.

Butter cake - makes about 32 cupcakes

3 cups all purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

4 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp almond flavoring

1 cup of milk and half-and-half (1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup half-and-half)

1 large box vanilla instant pudding

Heat oven to 350 and line muffin tin with cupcake papers. Set aside.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Set aside.

Cream butter and sugar.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Add vanilla and almond flavoring.

Add flour mixture alternately with milk mixture (start and end with flour).

Add pudding.

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full and bake for 20 minutes.

While cupcakes are baking...you can start the apple filling.

Apple Filling:

6 tbsp butter

6 Granny Smith apples - peeled and cut into small pieces

1/3 cup plus 2 1/2 tbsp sugar

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4-1/2 tsp nutmeg (to your preference)

juice of 1/2 lemon

1 - 1 1/2 tbsp flour

Cook the first 7 ingredients in a skillet until the apples are soft, but not mushy. Add the flour to thicken. Let cool.

When the cupcakes are cool, cut a hole in the top. I used a knife and cut a cone shape out, then used a melon baller to make the hole larger. Fill the holes with the apple filling. You can save the part you cut out for another use...I'll make a trifle with mine.

Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

2 cups unsalted butter, softened

8 cups sifted powdered sugar

2 tbsp vanilla

half and half

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Cream butter and powdered sugar. Add vanilla and cinnamon. I piped the frosting on to look similar to a lattice topped pie. You can see the filling through the lattice...just like an apple pie!