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These Caramel Apple Cupcakes are a moist cinnamon cake filled with a spiced apple compote and are frosted with an easy salted caramel buttercream!
I cannot tell you the last time I actually had a true caramel apple.
Why cover an entire apple in caramel and then cut it up when you can cut up an apple and then dip each slice in caramel, thus sparing yourself caramel between the teeth and feeling justified in increasing the caramel to apple ratio? {Was that sentence long or what?!}
Or skip all that nonsense and eat a Caramel Apple Cupcakes!
These cupcakes have a moist cinnamon cake that is soft and dense. I then filled them with a brown sugar apple compote and topped them with a salted caramel buttercream. I use my homemade salted caramel sauce in the buttercream but you could certainly use store-bought.
The cake is moist and dense with a very large crumb. They kind of melt in your mouth they are so soft. Buttermilk has a way of doing this. If they sound familiar it’s because they are a slight modification of my Sprinkles Copycat Triple Cinnamon Cupcakes.
Apple compote is my fancy way of saying apple pie filling, because it sounds so Cupcake Wars doesn’t it? It’s a lightly spiced cinnamon brown sugar easy apple pie filling, that made my kitchen smell better than any candle could have!
It’s all the flavors of a caramel apple without the messy eating process.
Caramel Apple Cupcakes
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons Saigon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup low-fat buttermilk
For the Cinnamon Sugar:
- 1/8 teaspoon Saigon Cinnamon
- ¼ cup superfine sugar
For the Apple Compote:
- 1 apple {Granny Smith or other sour apple}
- ¼ cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ small lemon juiced
- 1/8 teaspoon Saigon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon cornstarch
For the Frosting:
- 1 cup butter softened
- 2 cups confectioner sugar more if needed to thicken
- 2 teaspoons cream or milk
- ½ cup salted caramel cooled
Instructions
Make your Apple Compote:
- In a small saucepan combine all the ingredients through cinnamon for the apple compote. Taste and adjust sugar or lemon juice as needed. Add the cornstarch and stir to mix. Set over medium heat until it comes to a boil, stirring frequently until the apples begin releasing their juices. You don’t want the cornstarch to burn.
- Reduce the heat low and simmer for 15-25 minutes or until the apples are crisp tender and the sauce has thickened. Remove from heat and cool.
Make the Cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven 350°. Line 12 standard muffin tins with cupcake liners.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Beat together the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla with the last egg. Scrape down the sides of the bowl between each addition.
- Alternately add flour and buttermilk in three additions on low speed beginning and ending with flour, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. You want to stop mixing as soon as the last flour has disappeared.
- Scoop or pour the batter into the liners ¾ full. I use a large cookie scoop for this task and it works beautifully. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar.
- Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. I always start checking at 12 because I’m not a fan of dry baked goods. The cupcakes are done when a toothpick, inserted into the center, comes out with a few clinging crumbs but no wet smears!
- Remove from tins immediately and let cool on a wire rack. They must be completely cool before frosting.
For the Frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed until combined, then add cream and continue to beat until light and fluffy. Slowly pour caramel into frosting and beat until combined. If the frosting is too loose, then add a bit more powdered sugar. Taste as you go!
Assembly:
- Cut a large piece out of the middle of each cupcake and place it beside it. You will lose a little cinnamon sugar but it’s okay. Fill each hole 2/3 of the way full with compote. Place the cut out cake back on top of the hole. It will stick up a little bit. This is fine, the frosting will hide it.
- Frost. You can either pipe or spread the frosting on your cupcakes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Before You Go
I hope you enjoyed this professional chef-tested recipe. Check out our other delicious, chef-developed Thanksgiving recipes! Or, keep up the apple love with some apple cider donuts!
With the apple filling, do these need to be assembled day of to prevent sogginess? Trying to plan timing for a party 😊
Hi Elizabeth, Great question! I use a thicker apple compote, so I did not find that the apple filling made them soggy. If anything, the added moisture was a nice addition where it soaked into the cake. For the most advanced planning you can make the apple filling and store it up to a week in the fridge and 2 months in the freezer. The cupcakes are best the day they are made, or you can bake, cool, wrap and store in the freezer. If you are going to make the cupcake ahead and not freeze them, I suggest assembling them so that the frosting and filling lock in the moisture. The frosting can, of course be made up to 10 days in advance and stored in the fridge or up to 2 months in advance when stored in the freezer.
I hope that helps! Happy baking! ~Lindsey
What size pastry tip did you use to pipe the top of these cupcakes so beautifully?
I love our website and the recipes are inspiring, lots for me to try and share with friends and family . . .
All the best to you.
Hi Judie, Thank you so much for your kind words! You made my day 🙂 I used the Ateco 888 tip. The trick to pretty cupcake frosting is using a large tip! Happy baking, Lindsey
I was super excited to make these but found they were too dense and doughy to enjoy. Good idea though.
Those look amazing! So pretty. Thanks for linking up to Sweet and Savoury Sunday, stop by and link up again. Have a great day!!
Thanks for stopping by Laura! Will do!