61: Vanilla Glazed Apple Cinnamon Roll Cupcake!

Welcoming October and Fall with some warm apple cinnamon roll cupcakes. Fall is here y'all, chilly mornings, leaves falling off of trees...time for some warm, freshly baked, cozy goodness of caramelized apples and cinnamon...

Thought of making cinnamon rolls, but then decided to put them in cupcakes as they are easier to eat this way... the only thing I do not like about cinnamon rolls is getting the glaze all over your fingers. So a cupcake version of this seemed ideal.

For the cinnamon rolls,
6-1/2 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Pinch ground nutmeg
5-1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large egg
1 tsp lemon zest
3-1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp instant yeast or 2-1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 cup buttermilk or milk, at room temperature

For the apple filling,
1-1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter

3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, finely chopped

1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Pinch ground nutmeg
Pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

3-1/2 Tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

For the vanilla glaze,

1-1/4 cups sifted powdered sugar

1 tsp light-colored corn syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

 1-2 Tbsp milk

In a bowl cream together the sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and butter until smooth.  Mix in the egg and lemon zest and beat until fluffy.  Mix in the flour, yeast (if using active dry yeast, dissolve in ¼ cup lukewarm water and let it stand for 10 minutes) and milk until a dough forms.  Knead the dough well; it should not be sticky but soft and elastic.  (You may need to add a little extra flour or liquid to achieve this texture.)  Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, turning once to coat.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for about 2 hours, or until doubled in size.

In the meantime, make the apple filling.  For the filling, melt the butter in a pan over medium-high heat.  Add the chopped apple, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  Mix until the apples are evenly coated. Cook about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apple is translucent. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.  Set aside to cool.  

In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar and cinnamon.

Roll out dough into a long rectangle about 1/4” thick. Brush lightly with melted butter. Sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon powder and spread evenly. Then spread the caramelized apple over the dough evenly. Roll dough over itself from back to front along the long side of the rectangle to form a log. Slice the log into 12 even pieces. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners and place each piece of the log in a cupcake liner.  The pieces should come to about the top of the liners.

Cover the muffin pan and set in a warm place to rise for another 40 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Bake for 20 minutes or until the tops are golden.

For the glaze, in a small bowl stir together the powdered sugar, light-colored corn syrup, and vanilla extract. Add enough milk to reach drizzling consistency.

Drizzle the glaze over the cupcakes.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!!