Apple Pie Cupcakes With Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

I am soo excited for fall to be here. The weather hasn't really gotten the hint that it needs to change. 80-90F is not what I call "fall weather".
But nonetheless I'm excited to see the pumpkins, apples and fall leaves showing up everywhere. And these little bites of happiness will calm any "we-will-miss-the-fall-due-to-weather" anxieties you might have.
bakes some of these at home and your kitchen will smell like fall...guaranteed!
These Cupcakes are a version of the ever so loved pie. The cupcake is a simple, not overpowering vanilla based cupcake. hollowed out to provide room for a very simple cinnamon/sugar/apple mixture. Then this lovely delight is topped with a subtle cinnamon buttercream frosting. All the flavors complemented each other wonderfully.. The cupcake was not an overpowering sweet one, you could taste the individual flavors.
and of course the smell of apples and cinnamon just can't be beat!
I would love to say that pumpkin is a favorite as well but sadly this week I was sorely mistaken. i bought some glade room scent plugins. Eagerly wanting fall to be here, I opted for the maple/pumpkin smell...thinking it would make my house smell like pumpkin maple pie, in my mind you just couldn't go wrong with that combination...right???......WRONG!!! I had it plugged in for only 5 min and my to my dismay my house did NOT smell like wonderful fall baking...it smelled like a Chinese take out joint, like terriyaki sauce. Yuck EPIC FAIL! kinda wish i stuck with the simple yet perfectly paired apples and cinnamon. Oh well lesson learned...you've been warned.
But these will do the trick as well if not better.
Hope fall gets here soon! I'm dying to curl up next to my fireplace and sip some hot apple cider! mmmmmmm
Enjoy!

Apple Pie Cupcakes 

Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 3 cups  cake flour
• 1 tbsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tbsp. butter
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2-3 tbsp. sugar
• 3 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and diced

Directions:

1. Preheat  oven to 350°. Line two cupcake pans with paper liners.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and mix well. Add in the dry ingredients alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined.
3. Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake liners, filling them about 3/4 full. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 18 to 22 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes in the pans. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
4. To make the apple filling, heat the butter a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the cinnamon and sugar and cook for a minute, until the mixture begins to bubble. Lower the heat to medium and stir in the apples. Mix well. Cook until the apples partially tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
5. While the apple mixture is cooling, use the cone method to remove a chunk from the center of each cupcake, making sure to leave a rim around the top of the cupcake. Fill the holes with the cooled apple mixture. To decorate, top each cupcake with a swirl of cinnamon buttercream.

Recipe adapted from Annie's eats.

Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
• 3 3/4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• 3 -4 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. Place the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer.Beat on low 30 seconds.
2. Add sugar about a cup at a time, beating on low between each addition.
3. Add 3 tablespoons milk, vanilla and cinnamon. Beat on medium 1 minute.
4. Blend in up to 1 tablespoons of milk if frosting is too thick.
5. Scrape frosting into a pastry bag and add a swirl of frosting on top of each cupcake.
6. Finnish off by adding a drizzle of caramel to the frosting.

My own recipe.