....and fairy cakes. I couldn't decide which size to go for so I made both.
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After seeing Sammie's maple syrup frosted apple cupcakes last week I immediately felt compelled to bake apple and maple syrup cupcakes, only I fancied pairing mine with cinnamon and a maple cream cheese icing. Other than that, the recipe is essentially the same, but Sammie's look way more photogenic. Haha! I intended to pipe my icing but there was a lot of air trapped in the piping bag which made the icing burst out the nozzle in a very uneven manner, so out came the palette knife to smooth everything over. I also didn't make enough icing which was a bit stupid. It's the flavour that counts, right?
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It's hard to go wrong with apple, cinnamon and maple syrup; they're such classic, warm, autumnal flavours. The apples are grated into the mixture, rather than chopped, so the flavour is distributed evenly through the sponges. I don't think I need to elaborate much on the maple syrup cream cheese icing - it's very, very tasty.
Please don't be put off by my dull presentation, these are lovely, little cakes.
Please don't be put off by my dull presentation, these are lovely, little cakes.
apple, cinnamon and maple syrup cupcakes
sponges:
6oz (175g) softened butter/margarine
6oz (175g) softened butter/margarine
6oz (175g) soft light brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
7oz (200g) self raising flour
2 eating apples, grated (mine weighed about 5oz)
icing:
(this is enough to lightly cover 24 fairy cakes and a few cupcakes but I'd double, at least, if you want to pipe it on in swirls)
50g softened butter
100g cream cheese
125g icing sugar
a few drops (or however much you fancy) of maple syrup
For cupcakes, preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. For fairy cakes preheat to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. Fill your cupcake/bun trays with paper cases. In a large bowl beat together the margarine and sugar for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the eggs to the mixture one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add a tablespoon of the flour with the last egg to prevent the mixture from splitting. Add the maple syrup and cinnamon followed by the flour and mix together until fully combined. Grate the apples and stir them into the mixture - you'll need to work quickly with the grater as apples brown quickly.
Spoon the mixture into the cake cases, filling them about 2/3 full. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes (12-15 minutes for fairy cakes as they're smaller) until well risen, golden and spring back when touched. Leave to cool in the tins for a couple of minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
For the icing, beat the butter until smooth then add the icing sugar. Once combined, add the cream cheese and the maple syrup and mix until the icing is light and fluffy. Feel free to adjust amounts to personal taste or if you want a different consistency. Spread the icing on top with a palette knife or pipe it on with a piping bag and nozzle.