Monday, November 8, 2010

Apple Pie Muffins. Cupkins Thanksgiving


How do you make an apple pie with just one apple?

You make apple pie muffins! An unusual technique makes these different from your typical apple spice muffins. They really have the strong taste and texture of baked apple that you'd get from a pie.


My recipe is below and today Joanne's hosting this months Cupkins link party so after you check out my recipe hop on over to Ready, Set, Craft to add your Thanksgiving themed cupcake or muffin and check out the other recipes.

Apple Pie Muffins:
  • 1 apple (any variety you like for baking)
  • 1.5 cups flour
  • 2/3 cup of sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
  • 1/2 applesauce
  • 1/3 cup milk (I use nonfat)
  • 2 tablespoons (or more) of cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
  • Dash of nutmeg
  • Juice from half a Lemon

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.


Peel and core your apple. Then slice it into rings about 1/8 of an inch thick. You need at least 12 slices. Don't worry if some rings break, when that happens I use the pieces to reconstruct a ring.


Squeeze Lemon juice over your slices and sprinkle with half your cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. And add a dash of nutmeg.


Then sprinkle one spoon of sugar over the slices.


Gently toss with your fingers, so the rings are coated but aren't broken into pieces.


Set the apple slices aside while you make the batter in a separate bowl.

Mix flour, remaining sugar, baking powder, salt and the rest of your cinnamon and pumpkin pie spices. You could add more cinnamon to the batter if you like- to be truthful I never measure the cinnamon- I just toss in what looks (and smells) good.

Now add all of your wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until incorporated.

Coat a large muffin pan with nonstick spray and then it's time to start building the each little muffin pie- using that special technique.

Start with a little bit of batter at the bottom of each muffin well. You don't want too much batter- just enough to coat the bottom.

Add a slice of apple to each well.


Cover the slice with a little more batter and add another apple slice to each well.


Use the remaining batter to cover the apple slice in each muffin well. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.


Makes 6 large muffins.



The great thing about layering the slices is that when you bite into this muffin you get a lot of apple flavor and texture just like an apple pie.


Go ahead, have a slice.


Split it with friends


Or just eat the entire thing yourself!

Now head on over to Joanne's blog to see her recipe for spiced pumpkin mini cupcakes


And link up your Thanksgiving muffin or cupcake idea.


And since you stuck with me this long I'll give you another tip. The little apples in the photos are called Lady Apples. They're an heirloom variety- in fact the oldest variety of apple known! Information on them notes that they were first cultivated by the Romans but may go back as far as the Etruscans (a pre-roman civilization). Some people think they are called lady apples because elegant ladies used to carry these petit treats in a small pocket of their skirts to freshen their breath in Renaissance times. In France during the early 16oo's they were thought of as royal apples and grown in the garden of Louis XII. And in this country during colonial times they were a special Christmas treat.

They are delicious! I tried them for the first time this season and they are my new favorite! If you see them I highly recommend picking some up.


5 comments:

  1. Ooh this recipe sounds wonderful and lucky me, I just bought some Lady Apples last week at a farm market. I had no idea about their history - very interesting post!

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  2. Thanks for the comment Ann. So funny that you just picked up some Lady Apples. They are so cute and small, I think it's almost impossible not to pick them up. Once I tasted them- and learned a bit about them I was hooked. I keep thinking wow... it's a tiny little piece of agricultural history. I wonder how many famous historic figures also ate these apples.

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  3. Yummo! But you didn't link them up? :)

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  4. Since you linked to me in your post I put my two recipes from last year into the link party instead.

    : )

    I love how simple and quick your recipe is for those yummy looking pumpkin mini cupcakes!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oh, I am inordinately happy about this post! I like to make a different kind of muffin each week for our "football Sundays" (nerd alert), and I've been looking for a good apple recipe. This is perfect. I can't wait to try it out this weekend. Thanks so much!

    ReplyDelete

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