Winning Recipe Caramel Apple Cupcakes With Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting

CARAMEL APPLE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Cupcakes:
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a standard cupcake pan with twelve paper baking cups, and a second pan with six baking cups, or grease pans with butter if not using baking cups.
• Sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt on a sheet of parchment paper or wax paper and set aside.
• Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a bowl with a handheld electric mixer. Beat on medium speed until fluffy. Stop to add the sugar; beat on medium speed until well incorporated, approximately 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add the eggs one at a time, mixing slowly on medium speed, after each addition. It's important to add them one at a time so that they will completely incorporate into the batter and you don't put too much weight on your batter at once. This would collapse all the little air bubbles you created when you creamed the butter and sugar.
• Reduce the speed to low. At this stage, it's always important to mix as slowly and as little as necessary since you don't want to traumatize your batter. Add one third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, then gradually add one third of the hot water, beating until well incorporated. Add another third of the flour mixture, followed by one third of the hot water. It's important to add the flour and water little by little like this, so that your batter does not have too much weight thrown on it and that you allow each amount of flour and water to completely mix into the batter. Stop to scrape down the bowl as needed. Add the remaining flour mixture, followed by the remaining hot water, and beat just until combined.
• Using a spatula, fold the grated apple into the batter. Take care not to overmix the batter. If you overmix the batter, the cupcakes will not be light and fluffy but instead very dense.
• Use a standard-size ice-cream scoop to fill each baking cup with batter, so the cups are two-thirds full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes (start checking at 15 minutes) or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. After 5 minutes, transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely for approximately 20 minutes. It's always best to cool the cupcakes at room temperature. Putting them in the refrigerator to cool can dry out the cake.
• Vanilla cream-cheese frosting:
• Place all ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat until well combined. Be sure to beat on high speed at the very end for at least 2 minutes to ensure that the frosting is light and fluffy.
• Caramel:
• Pour the sugar and water into a large saucepan. Heat on medium-high heat and stir constantly until the sugar completely liquefies. Stir constantly and be careful not to burn the sugar. After all the sugar has dissolved, add the butter and vanilla extract to the saucepan and mix thoroughly. Once the butter has melted and the butter and sugar are completely mixed, remove from heat and, using a whisk, slowly whisk in the heavy cream until you reach a beautiful golden brown caramel color. Set aside and let cool and thicken for 5 minutes at room temperature. Refrigerate for 20 minutes to thicken further before you use to fill or decorate.

WINNING RECIPE OATMEAL-RAISIN CUPCAKES, ORANGE CREAM CHEESE ICING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line standard cupcake pans with 36 cupcake liners.
• Whisk 2 cups oats with the flour, oat bran, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and both sugars on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating until each is smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl if needed. Beat in the vanilla. Turn the speed to low, add the flour mixture, and beat until combined. Beat in the sour cream. Stir in the raisins by hand. Transfer 2 3/4 cups batter to a small bowl, and then stir the coconut and the remaining 1 3/4 cups oats. Divide the plain batter among the cupcake liners, and then top each with 1 tablespoon oat-coconut batter. Bake until golden, rotating the pans halfway though, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer the pans to wire racks to cool completely before removing the cupcakes.
• To assemble: Frost the cooled cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Icing.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, butter, and salt on medium-high speed until creamy. Turn the speed to low and beat in the confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup at a time. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy. Add the orange zest and liqueur, beating steadily until mixed. Refrigerate the frosting for 30 to 60 minutes to firm.;

VANILLA FROSTING

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk together the milk, vanilla, lemon juice, and zest.
• In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand-held electric mixer and a bowl, combine the butter and sugar and mix on low until incorporated. Raise the speed to high and mix until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. (Occasionally turn the mixer off, and scrape the sides of the bowl down with a rubber spatula.)
• Reduce the speed of the mixer to low. Add the milk mixture in 3 batches, waiting for each batch to be fully incorporated before adding the next (scrape the bowl down occasionally). Raise the speed to high and mix briefly until fluffy. Use as desired. May be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for 3 days.