Caramel Apple Pie Cupcakes ♥

Fall Caramel Apple Pie Cupcakes ♥

These are a few of my favorite things...

about Fall.

By: Amanda Cupcake

 The cupcake is a conglomeration of spicy fall flavors swirled with salted caramel frosting, dripping with caramel on top. A mini handmade apple pie rests on top of each little cupcake creation (and although some might say the pies are too pretty to be eaten, I say that the pies are yummier because they are pretty!)

..And a surprise inside! 

Do you see the apple pie that is baked inside?

Pie and Cake together..I've said before..and I will say it again.

Somehow this pie & cake combo is a movement toward World Peace. (because..it unites pie & cake people!):

Watch my video tutorial here on how to bake a pie inside of a cupcake:

..The recipe for Fall in a Cupcake here, from start to finish:

Your first step,  Mini Handmade Apple Pies, by you:

Use a ready made crust…Pillsbury is the ready-made pie crust I recommend!

Ingredients Needed:

Apples (4-6 depending on how many mini pies you are making)

Dash of lemon juice

¼ Cup of Sugar

1 Tablespoon of All Purpose Flour

1/2 Tsp ground Cinnamon

1/8 Tsp Ground Nutmeg

For Mini Pie Crusts:

1. Use tartlett cutters as your tools to cut out pie crust shapes.
2. Take out a mini cupcake pan, and spray with non stick spray.
3. Mold the mini pie crusts into the mini cupcake liners. Make sure they are deep enough to get filled with delicious pie filling
**I always bake enough mini pies to bake inside of the cupcakes and also to use as decoration for the top of the cupcakes. For example: If you are baking 18 cupcakes, you'll need to bake 36 pies.  One pie for the inside of each cupcake, and one pie for the top of each cupcake.

For Filling:
1. Dice apples as tiny as you can get them (they have to be able to fit into a mini pie crust).
2. In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg together.

3. Add diced apple to this mixture and toss all of the ingredients together.

4. Fill each of the mini pies with your apple pie filling and bake at 350-375 for appx 15-20 minutes, until crust is crispy and brown (but not burnt or overbaked).

To take pies out of the pie crusts:
Use a toothpick or a fork.  They come out of the mini pie pans best after cooling in the mini cupcake pan for about 10-15 minutes (so they are still slightly warm).

Your second step..Spiced Cupcake Batter:

Dry Ingredients:

2 Cups all-purpose Flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp ground ginger

Creaming Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Butter, Softened
1 1/4 C Packed Brown Sugar
3 Large Eggs

Liquid Ingredients:
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 1/1/4 C Milk

Instructions:
1. Preheat the Oven to 325.
2. Line your cupcake pans with about 18 liners (this makes about 1 1/2 dozen cupcakes).
3. In one bowl, sift flour.
4. Add remaining dry ingredients and whisk together with flour.
5. In a second bowl, combine your liquid ingredients (milk & vanilla extract). Set aside.
5. Cream Sugar & Butter together in your mixer for about 2 -3 minutes. Make sure to scrape down the bowl as needed so all the delicious ingredients are evenly combined.
6. Add eggs one at a time and blend well.
7. Add one-third of flour mixture to the creamed mixture.
8. Add one third of liquid mixture.
9. Repeat about two times until all ingredients are evenly blended.
10. Remember: There may be some amazing yummy-ness being left on the bottom of your bowl so I would recommend scraping the bowl with a spatula several times throughout mixing.

Before you scoop the batter into the cupcake liners..read below:

Your Third Step, Baking the Mini Pies & Cupcakes together!

1.  Make sure your cupcake pan is lined with cupcake papers!
2.  Fill a ziploc or a piping bag with your cake batter.
3.  Pipe some cake batter into the bottom of your cupcake liner (with a small amount of batter - just enough to cover the bottom of liner) and stop here.
4. Place your mini pie on top of the batter.
5.  Pipe the cake batter on top of the pie, and fill liners about ¾ full.
6.  Bake at 325 for about 20 minutes.
7.  The result: A trip to the apple orchard inside of a cupcake.  (I like to cut the cupcake open and look inside before I eat it, because it looks so festive and pretty!)

Simple Salted Caramel Frosting:

Ingredients Needed:

1 Pound of Butter (cut up into squares)
6-8 Cups of Powdered Sugar3/4 Cup of Ready Made Caramel (You can find it in the ice cream section at the grocery store. I use Mrs. Richardsons brand).1 Tablespoon of Sea Salt1 Tablespoon of Vanilla

Instructions:

1. Blend Butter Squares in your mixer until creamy and light like butter should be.
2. Pour the caramel into the butter, and enjoy this moment. (It looks really pretty when you do, swirls of light caramel in the butter! Yum!)3. Blend your Butter & Caramel together until the mixture is a very light brown. Sadly, the swirls will disappear. But they have gone to a wonderful place.4. Mix in Sea Salt.5. Add The Vanilla Extract6. Make sure your mixer is turned down low. (Unless you want snow showers of powdered sugar which could be fun in some kitchens..)7. Gradually add the powdered sugar until the frosting looks light, airy, and dreamy.8. Optional: You can add 1 Tablespoon of Milk or Heavy Whipping Cream if you want a more "spreadable" frosting. (I add milk all the time to the frostings I use to spread on cakes).

For Decorating:  Cut a hole in the end of a disposable piping bag. You can push piping tip 1A through to the tip of the bag and swirl your frosting on with the tip! Or you can simply cut a hole at the end of the bag and pipe the frosting out ♥
Drizzle caramel on the top of your cupcake, and adorn each cupcake creation with a second mini apple pie!