Have your Pie, and your Cake Too

I am an enthusiastic amateur baker, but sometimes enthusiasm cannot overcome intimidation.
I was intimidated by this recipe. Captivated and awed, but intimidated.

Apple pie is my First Favorite, hence the name of this beloved collection. You can imagine the sound in my head when I saw this recipe. It was about a year ago, and I was reading Alpineberry's deliciously pretty blog.

It went something like this: YYYYUUUUMMMMYYYY!!!!!!!!

The recipe was for Apple Pie Cupcakes. What a glorious idea, cake-pie-apple. I saved the recipe and drooled over the lovely pictures. I was intimidated by the multiple components and not yet ready to take the plunge. But as with all recipes I come across and get excited about, I sent Mom a copy of the recipe.

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If I'm an enthusiastic amateur baker, Mom is an enthusiastic veteran who has been baking mouthwatering creations for 30 years. She doesn't measure, she weighs. She can alter a recipe without much thought because she knows ingredients and recipes so well. She may not be 100% happy with how something new turns out because she seeks perfection, but it will be devoured in moments.

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This weekend she decided to pull out the Apple Pie Cupcake recipe and give it a try. She made a few modifications to the ingredients, (like-mother like-daughter, we both try to cut the fat and sugar without sacrificing flavor), used a square mini cake pan, and was kind enough to send me a few pictures since I could not be there in person.

As usual, she modestly declares that they didn't come out very well, that they don't look good. As usual, my family declares them delicious and interesting.

Apple Pie Cupcakes
adapted from Alpineberry's recipe

Cupcakes:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
1 cup milk

Apple Topping
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 cup sugar
3 apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

Cinnamon Frosting
1 stick butter
3/4 cup confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly grease and flour sqaure mini cake pans or cupcake pans.

For the apple topping: Place the butter and sugar in a large pan over medium low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add apple slices and cook for 10 minutes until lightly caramelized. Allow to cool completely.

For the cupcakes: In a bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. In a mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Beat in the vanilla and zest. Add the flour mixture slowly until just incorporated. Add the milk and mix until smooth. Fill the pans you are using 2/3 full and top with the apples. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes. Allow the cupcakes to cool on racks before icing.

For the icing: In a mixer, beat the butter until fluffy. Add the confectioner's sugar and cinnamon and beat another 5 minutes until fluffy. Frost the cupcakes with an icing spatula.

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