Tessa's Recipe Rundown
Taste: Apple cake with sweet and salty caramel buttercream frosting.
Texture: Moist and tender crumb and silky smooth frosting.
Ease: The frosting requires a little extra time but it’s not too difficult.
Appearance: Mouthwatering.
Pros: Apples, cake, caramel frosting, caramel drizzle…
Cons: You have to keep a close eye on the caramel sauce so you don’t over cook and burn it.
Would I make this again? Oh yeah!
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Please welcome back Melanie from Garnish & Glaze as she shares this Apple Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting recipe! Please visit her mouthwatering and show her some love!
I LOVE fall! The crispness of the air is so refreshing, the crunchy leaves under my feet is music to my ears, and all things apple or pumpkin taste like heaven. Just give me a loaf of Pumpkin Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting and a Caramel Apple and I’m one happy girl.
These apple cupcakes are divine! The shredded apple makes them so moist and that caramel buttercream frosting is silky smooth sweet and salty heaven. My two year old ate all the frosting off the cupcake and then said “mmmm! More butter!?” Haha! I was pretty impressed she knew it was made of butter… and also proud that she likes butter as much as I do. I’m sure you will love these fall cupcakes as much as we did!
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Ingredients
For the Frosting:
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 12 tablespoons (6 ounces) butter, room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup powdered sugar
For the Cupcakes:
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) butter, room temperature
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 6 tablespoons buttermilk
- 1 1/2 cups shredded apple, peeled
Instructions
For the Frosting:
- Stir sugar and water together in a small pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. (You can stir it up until the sugar dissolves but then DO NOT STIR while it boils or else it will form crystals). Let it boil for 5-6 minutes or until it starts to turn a light caramel brown color. Remove from heat and slowly stream in the cream while stirring. Stir in the vanilla. Let it cool to room temperature (about 30 minutes).
- Meanwhile, make the cupcakes. (This is also when I take the butter out of the fridge for the frosting.)
- Once the caramel is cool, in a standing mixer, use the paddle attachment to beat the butter and salt together for 3 minutes at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the sugar and mix it in starting with a low speed. Add half of the caramel (reserve the rest for drizzling) and beat for 2 minutes on medium speed until light and fluffy (scrape the sides of the bowl as needed).
- Place frosting in a piping bag fitted with a star tip and pipe onto cooled cupcakes. Drizzle with caramel and serve.
For the Cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degree F and line a muffin tin with 12 cupcake paper liners.
- In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and ginger together. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a standing mixer beat butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Mix in the egg and vanilla. Mix in the flour mixture a little at a time until just combined and then add the buttermilk and mix until combined. Fold in the shredded apple.
- Spoon batter into cupcake liners filling them 3/4 full (about 1/4 cup). Bake for 22-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
- Let cupcakes cool for a few minutes in the tin and then remove onto a rack to cool completely before frosting.
I made three different recipes before this one and either the flavour or the texture or both were not wasn’t right. I used half Granny Smith and half golden delicious and doubled the vanilla. Stuffed with caramel sauce as well as caramel buttercream with a caramel ribbon on top. Moist and absolutely delicious.
I had extra dulce de leche at home so I used that for the caramel. Such a rich flavor! 🙂
These are soooo good! I made them for my sons 1st birthday and topped them with a candy pumpkin and fall leaf sprinkles! Cutest cupcakes and we’re so darn good! The only thing I changed was the caramel recipe.. I made my caramel from the 6 minute caramel sauce recipe bc I prefer to use brown sugar. Perfect! Thank you for the recipe!
Do these have to be refrigerated or is the frosting shelf-stable? I need to bake for
some Thanksgiving Meal boxes and this sounds like it might be a good addition.
It will be caramel because the cream replaces the butter. You make butter from heavy cream, so the fat content is there.
Does it matter what type of Apple is used?
I think there is a major problem with the “caramel” in this recipe. There is no butter. I’m standing in my kitchen right now tasting and looking at what is basically melted vanilla ice cream…How do the sugar and water become caramel and not syrup?? Whatever this is…Is not caramel in any universe.
did you use 2oz cupcake liner with this recipe or 3oz? these look great by the way!
Love your recipes. I have made the zebra cake every weekend for the past 4 weekends. Lots of events and everywhere we go people love it.
Heidi- You just made my day! Wow! I can’t believe you’ve made it 4 times! I’m sure you’re a pro at it now. And I’m so happy to hear everyone you shared it with loved it. 🙂
Wow, these cupcakes look so decadent and rich, I love the pairing of apple and caramel, it is so autumnal, pinned!x
They are very rich. Definitely perfect for the season.
Hey Melanie! I’m not exactly a huge dessert person, but these make me want to reach into my screen and grab one! Absolutely delicious! And the photos are perfect!
Thank you Heather!!! You’ll have to try these. They might just turn you into a dessert person.
Love apple baked goods, apple is the Fall star. These cupcake sound delicious.
Kristina- If you love baked apple goods then I’m sure you are going to love these cupcakes! Enjoy!