Apple Pie Cupcakes

 

Sorry for the lack of posts this month I have been busy and didn't get anything photographed to post. That part does take a bit of time which I just didn't have.

Also this recipe has been an interesting journey. I knew at the outset basically what I wanted to end result to be however, getting to the final recipe took more time than normal. Part of the problem was I was being very picky on this one. I had an idea and I really wanted to get exactly what I was picturing in my mind. So now I am on about the 8^th or so batch of these cupcakes in the last month and I have tweaked the recipe a bit every time (even this time LOL)

So what did I want that took so long, Imagine if an apple pie and a cake got together this is the love child that result from that union. The cake portion has a filling that is very much like an apple pie filling, the frosting had to be reminiscent of whipped cream (but hold up) and I wanted a touch of caramel also.

In the process of my experiments I have found my all time favorite frosting recipe which I am using a variant of today.

Let's start by talking about the filling. I tried several different apples and found for my taste the Gala was the best. You will want a cooking apple that will soften nicely and be just sweet enough. Also thickening the filling with a mixture of lemon juice and cornstarch gives the filling the best texture.

Do make the filling early in the day because these turn out best when the filling is at chilled a bit. Get at least down to room temperature or colder before making the cupcakes.

I am using one of my cake mixes that I have divided if you haven't seen that blog post here is a link so you can divide the standard box of mix to make small batches of cupcakes.

I stumbled on using the apple juice in place of the water on one of my tests of the recipe. I hadn't even planned to do it that day it was a thought that I had just as I started to mix my batch up that day and I love the result.

You will notice that my batter (and in the end my cupcakes) are more yellow than normal. That is because I was very lucky and received the gift of some farm fresh eggs from a co-worker. I have been loving using them.

When you portion out your cake batter under fill the cups a little from normal you need the extra room in there for the “pie filling”

Divide the “pie filling” as evenly as possible between your cupcakes and continue like normal to bake and cool.

Once the cupcakes have cooled we get to make the frosting and decorate them. Now, I know frosting isn't good for me but I love this recipe so much I think I could eat with a spoon. There will be more than you need to top these cupcakes but the extra keeps for several days in the fridge and is wonderful sandwiched between a couple of graham crackers.

You will need to set your cream cheese out to warm to room temperature early in the day. I usually do that while I am prepping the filling. You will need the kind of cream cheese that comes in the block for this recipe and it will beat up smooth so much easier and faster if it is at room temperature. The caramel sauce in the frosting was something I saw in a cake recipe I saw in a magazine last night so I decided to try it and wow, am I glad I did. So yummy and it puts this just over the top.

Because of the dairy in the frosting these will have to be kept in the fridge. And as a side note because of the filling and the frosting I find them much easier to eat with a fork than picking them up and taking bites.

I used some more of caramel sauce as a drizzle over the top. This looks so pretty but I would suggest doing it just before serving. I only did all the cupcakes because I wanted to take the picture of all of them drizzled. 

 

 

Lastly I found some dried apple slices at the dollar store and they are really cute for presentation, again add them just as you are serving otherwise they will get soggy.

So I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do and as much as I enjoyed experimenting and getting it just the way I wanted it.

Apple Pie Cupcakes

for the filling:

1 Tablespoon butter

1 small Gala apple

1 Tablespoon packed brown sugar

¼ teaspoon Apple Pie Spice

pinch salt

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons cornstarch

Peel and finely dice your apple.

Melt butter in a small saucepan and add the diced apple. Cook over medium high heat for 5 minutes (until the apple pieces soften) stir often.

 

Add the brown sugar, spice and salt and cook another 5 minutes stirring very often until tender. Turn heat to medium-low.

 

 

Combine the lemon juice with the cornstarch to create a slurry and add this mixture to the apple mixture and cook until the liquid bubbles and becomes thick.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Move to a container and place in the refrigerator until cooled.

Cupcakes:

⅓ of a box of yellow cake mix

⅓ cup apple juice

1 egg

3 ½ Tablespoons vegetable oil

Apple filling (above)

Start by preheating your oven to the temperature your box of cake mix calls for, mine was 350°F. Line your cupcake pan with paper liners or grease really well.

Combine the juice, egg, and oil in a mixing bowl and combine well.

Add the cake mix and beat for up to 90 seconds.

Portion into cupcake pan filling the cups a little less than you normally would. Divide the apple filling evenly between the cupcakes. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bake according to instructions on your cake mix. Mine was baked at 350°F for about 20 minutes.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes then move to a cooling rack and cool completely.

Frosting:

3 ounces cream cheese (softened)

¼ cup caramel sauce (plus more for drizzling later if desired)

⅓ cup powdered sugar

¾ cup heavy whipping cream

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Place the cream cheese and caramel sauce in a medium bowl and beat at medium speed until smooth and combined. Add about half the powdered sugar and beat until smooth again.

Turn the mixer down to low and add the whipping cream slowly to the bowl. You will need to stop several times to scrape the bowl so that the mixture combines evenly.

Once all the cream has been added turn the mixer to high and beat until peaks form. Slowly add the remaining powdered sugar and whip until stiff peaks form.

 

Carefully fold in the vanilla extract.

Move the frosting to a pastry bag fitted with a large tip         (I used a Wilton 1M)

Swirl the frosting onto the cupcakes as desired.

 

Drizzle with additional caramel sauce if desired.

A slice of dried apple can be added just before serving for a cute presentation.

Be sure to store both the cupcakes and any remaining frosting in the refrigerator.

Pina Colada Cupcakes

 

For our cupcake for the month of August I thought it would be fun to base it off a summery drink. I chose the Pina Colada because it just screams summer with the flavors of pineapple and coconut. So as you are enjoying your cupcake you can imagine yourself laying on a tropical beach someplace wonderful. Once again this is a small batch like all the baking on this blog, this time I got 6 cupcakes. I am using a boxed cake mix that I got at the regular grocery store. I did a post a little over a year ago to show you how to divide that box of cake mix to make small batches. Here is a link to that post if you need a refresher. I love to have a few boxes of mix in my cabinet divided and ready to bake a small batch of cupcakes.

The cupcakes this time contain some pineapple as well as a bit of Rum extract along with the vanilla extract. For the pineapple I am using one of those little tubs of pineapple tidbits that are sold in the fruit aisle of the grocery store. I have found so many uses for those tubs of fruit and you will find a lot of them used in future recipes. For the small household they are wonderful because you get just the right amount of fruit for a recipe and you don't end up with a bunch of leftover canned fruit to use up.

Once again I am using a vegetable shortening in my frosting instead of butter, this is because it is a more neutral flavor and doesn't compete with the other flavors (coconut) that I want to feature. For the coconut flavor we are using a bit of coconut flavoring and a coating of coconut.

I did garnish my cupcakes with maraschino cherries to make them look more like the drink they are based on. If you set the cherries on a couple of layers of paper towels to soak up the extra liquid they won't make too much of a mess on the top of your cupcakes.

Pina Colada Cupcakes

⅓ of a box of yellow cake mix

4 oz tub of pineapple tidbits (drained- reserve the juice)

1 egg

3 ½ Tablespoons vegetable oil

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon rum extract

Start by preheating your oven to the temperature your box of cake mix calls for, mine was 350°F. Line your cupcake pan with paper liners or grease really well.

Drain the pineapple reserving the juice, add water to the pineapple juice to equal ⅓ cup.

Combine the juice/water mixture, egg, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and rum extract in a mixing bowl and combine well.

Add the cake mix and beat for up to 90 seconds. Then add the drained pineapple and stir just until combined.

Portion into cupcake pan and bake according to instructions on your cake mix. Mine was baked at 350°F for about 20 minutes.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes then move to a cooling rack and cool completely.

Frosting

1 ½ cups powdered (confectioners) sugar

2 ½ Tablespoons shortening or butter

2 Tablespoons half and half

¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

¾ teaspoon coconut flavoring

coconut flakes

6 maraschino cherries (if desired)

If you want to use the cherries on top of your cupcakes place them onto several layers of paper towels to allow the juice to be pulled away from them.

Using a mixer blend together the powdered sugar and shortening until well combined. Add the half and half along with the vanilla extract and coconut flavoring and mix until smooth.

Put some of the coconut flakes into a small bowl to dip the tops of the frosted cupcakes into. I put just a few tablespoons at a time into a small bowl and just added more as needed.

Spread frosting on cupcakes then dip the tops into the coconut. Add the drained cherries if desired.

Crustless Quiche

 

Let's face it a quiche is good any time of day (or night) and this one is super easy because we skip the crust. It bakes up wonderfully and can be adapted to what you have on hand. I used Swiss cheese and bacon but it is just as good with any cheese and meat combo you can dream up. If you want to go a vegetarian route use some veggies in place of the meat.

You will need a small round baking dish that holds about 1 ½ to 2 cups, there are several options out there and you probably have something in your kitchen that will work.

This recipe is for one serving but it Is easy to double (or triple or whatever) to make as many you desire.

I do love these for breakfast on a morning when I have time to sit and enjoy a slower pace. I have made several versions over the last few months and the bacon/Swiss cheese version is the one I turn to most often but ham and Swiss, roast beef and cheddar, and leftover taco eat with cheddar are also fantastic. I bet if you take a look in your fridge you will come up with a couple of combinations to try.

Crustless Quiche

2 eggs

¼ cup half and half

¼ teaspoon salt

⅛ teaspoon pepper

⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg

½ cup shredded cheese

2 to 4 Tablespoons cooked & chopped meat (or veggies) I used 2 strips of bacon

1 Tablespoon chopped fresh chives

Preheat oven to 375° F

Lightly spray a 1 ½ to 2 cup baking dish with no-stick pan spray.

In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs, half and half,

and seasonings until well combined. Add the cheese, the m

eat and chives and combine well.

Pour egg mixture into prepared baking dish and bake in pre-heated oven about 25 to 35 minutes. (check by inserting a knife near the center it should come out clean)

Remove baking dish from oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Zucchini Bread 3 Ways

Once again this month I decided to do a quick bread recipe that I break into three small loaves for the smaller household. I have admit of all the quick breads I make I think zucchini is my favorite so I was excited to get started baking. 

 

Again this recipe freezes really well, just be sure to wrap the loaves really well and store in a freezer bag or other air tight container.

As for eating right away, as good as these are as soon as they are cool enough to cut I find they are even better if you can store them in the fridge overnight before cutting and eating. Their texture improves a lot that way and they are so good. I like to heat mine up in the oven/ toaster oven in the morning and have them with a cup of coffee for a quick breakfast or snack.

The 3 variations I chose for the zucchini bread are- Pineapple, Double Chocolate and Orange. All three are so yummy and just different enough that you won't get bored before you finish all of them off.

As you read the ingredient list you will notice that in one loaf I use pumpkin pie spice and in another I use apple pie spice. You might be wondering about this. I do find the 2 blends of spices are just different enough from each other to make a difference in the breads. I use the premixed spices simply because in this small of a batch it would be hard to measure each individual spice out accurately. After all we are only using ¼ teaspoon of the blend imagine how small of an amount of each individual spice that would be.

Before we begin with the ingredients we need to start by preheating our oven (in this case to 325°F). This is also a good time to grease the 3 small loaf pans( 5 ¾” by 3” by 2”) we will be using. I just used some no-stick spray on mine and it worked great.

To get started we are going to mix up our base bread mixture. You want about 1 ¼ cup to 1 ¾ cup of shredded zucchini. I used 1 average size zucchini for mine and it was just right.

We are using a combination of both white and brown sugar, I love the richness that the brown sugar gives the bread but it is not overpowering in the this amount.

The addition of applesauce makes the bread stay moist and therefore fresh longer. I use one of those little tubs that you buy to go into lunches. If you are using applesauce from a jar just use ½ cup.

Once the above ingredients are combined add the eggs and vanilla and mix.

Now onto the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Once you have added the dry ingredients be sure work gently. Just mix enough to combine.

Now we are going to divide the batter into three bowls. I find three bowls of about a cup of batter is the correct amount for this recipe. It will depend a bit on how big your zucchini was to begin with.

Now on to the fun part making the 3 varieties.

Zucchini -Pineapple Bread

To the first bowl add:

1 (4oz) plastic tub of pineapple tidbits

¼ teaspoon apple pie spice

Combine carefully and move the first prepared pan.

Zucchini Double Chocolate Bread

To the second bowl add:

1 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled

⅓ cup chocolate chips (I used dark chocolate chips)

Again mix carefully and move to the second prepared pan.

Zucchini Orange Bread

To the last bowl of batter add:

1 teaspoon orange zest

¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Once again carefully mix the ingredients and move batter to the last prepared pan.

Now time to bake. This is a moist bread so it is going to take a while to bake. Start checking at around 35 minutes by using a toothpick in the center of each loaf. Since the ingredients are different in the three loaves be sure to check all three loaves. I find the pineapple one takes up to 10 minutes longer than either of the other 2. 

 

Allow the loaves to cool in their pans for 10 minutes before removing them from their pans and putting on a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Once they are completely cooled we are going to add a nice glaze to the Orange loaf only.

For that combine

1 Tablespoon confectioner's (powdered) sugar

½ teaspoon orange juice

Combine and use to glaze the orange loaf. Allow to set up before cutting and serving.

Zucchini Bread 3 Ways

1 grated zucchini (1 ¼ to 1 ¾ cups)

1 cup granulated sugar

¼ cup packed brown sugar

1 (4 oz) plastic tub applesauce

⅓ cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 ½ cups flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

Zucchini -Pineapple Bread

1 (4oz) plastic tub of pineapple tidbits

¼ teaspoon apple pie spice

Zucchini Double Chocolate Bread

1 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled

⅓ cup chocolate chips (I used dark chocolate chips)

Zucchini Orange Bread

1 teaspoon orange zest

¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 Tablespoon confectioner's (powdered) sugar

½ teaspoon orange juice

Preheat oven to 325°F

Grease 3 small loaf pans ( 5 ¾” by 3” by 2”)

Combine zucchini, sugar, brown sugar, applesauce, oil, eggs and vanilla until well mixed.

Add dry ingredients and carefully combine just until mixed.

Divide batter into 3 bowls (each should have about 1 cup batter)

Zucchini -Pineapple Bread

Add the well drained pineapple and the apple pie spice to the first bowl. Gently combine and move to the first prepared loaf pan.

Zucchini Double Chocolate Bread

To the second bowl add the cooled, melted chocolate and the chocolate chips. Stir gently to just combine and move the batter to the second prepared pan.

Zucchini Orange Bread

To the last bowl of batter add the orange zest and pumpkin pie spice stirring gently to just combine. Move batter to the last prepared pan.

Bake the loaves in the preheated oven for 35 to 55 minutes. Be sure to start checking the loaves with a toothpick at the 33 minute time. They will cook at different times.

Allow to cool in the pans for 10 before moving to a wire cooling rack to completely cool.

When cooled combine the powdered sugar and orange juice to make a glaze and pour over just the Zucchini Orange loaf.