apples – Page 3 – The Pajama Chef

Sweet spiced apple cupcakes paired with a tart cranberry buttercream. Two fall flavors in one mini cupcake bite! With just a few special ingredients you can have some extraordinary cupcakes!

Before I forget… go say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my baby sister. 🙂 How convenient that I’m posting a cupcake recipe today, huh? Here we are 25 years ago! Aww.

The best things come in small packages, I think [see above?!], and mini cupcakes and muffins are no exception. They’re pretty much my favorite things ever! I hadn’t made mini cupcakes in wayyy too long, so when Coleen of The Redhead Baker announced her celebration of cupcakes this fall, I KNEW mini cupcakes would be my contribution. And after much deliberation, I decided to make apple cupcakes. But what to top them with?

One of my Nashville friends has her own baking business and recently brought some sample cupcakes to our Bible study. She topped her apple cupcakes with a salted caramel buttercream, which was delicious, but I didn’t want to be a copycat. 🙂 Cinnamon buttercream also sounded good too, but then my favorite applesauce variation came to mind. Ben and I love swirling cranberry sauce into homemade applesauce, so I thought a nice tart cranberry buttercream may be the way to go. And ohhh my–it is!

Multiple strong, overly sweet flavors don’t always work for cupcakes in my book. So I like to keep either the cake or the frosting on the simple side, and really play up the other. The cake portion of these cupcakes are just a subtle, spiced apple flavor. I grated the apples to add some texture and fresh apple. I normally love small chunks of apple in cake and muffins, but the grated texture works better in mini cupcakes, imo. Then the frosting. Ohhh the frosting!

The cranberry buttercream is stunning, isn’t it? It’s naturally that bright, bold shade of pink, and each bite is better than the last. This buttercream is sweet, with a fantastic cranberry-y tart aftertaste. Good thing this recipe makes a ton of buttercream… enough to keep in your fridge for a late night snack. 🙂 Seeing these pink seasonal cupcakes just makes me so happy! I wish I could bring some to share with you in real life today. Enjoy!

Thanks for organizing this celebration of cupcakes, Coleen! Be sure to scroll down below the recipe to see lots of yummy cupcake recipes. Have a great Monday!!

four years ago: Cheddar Black Pepper Biscuits

Mini Apple Cupcakes with Cranberry Buttercream

Servings: 32 mini cupcakes
Print

Ingredients:

for apple cupcakes from Chow

1 1/2 cups shredded apples [2 medium Gala apples]
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour [156 1/4 grams]
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg, room temperature
3 ounces buttermilk, room temperature

for cranberry buttercream from Baker By Nature

2 cups cranberries
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
4-5 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Begin by shredding the apples with a box grater or food processor. Then press apples through a fine mesh sieve to drain as much juice out as possible.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line mini cupcake pans with paper liners and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger. With a mixer, beat butter for 2 minutes until smooth. Add sugar and vanilla and beat for another two minutes. Add egg and buttermilk, then beat for another minute. Scrape the sides of the bowl, add dry ingredients, and mix until just combined. Then, fold in apples.

Spoon batter into prepared pans, filling just below the top of the cup.

Bake for 14-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes clean. Cool completely before frosting.

While cupcakes are baking, prepare buttercream. Begin by placing cranberries and lemon juice in a saucepan. Simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly, until cranberries pop and can be mashed easily. Mixture will look like a thick cranberry jam. Remove from heat, and working in batches, press mixture through a fine mesh sieve to separate the puree from the seeds/skin. This may be time consuming but is worth it. Cover and refrigerate puree to chill.

When ready to frost cupcakes, beat butter on medium-high for 2 minutes, until very smooth. Add in cold cranberry puree and beat for another minute until fully combined. Add powdered sugar, cup by cup and beat until desired thickness is achieved. I used about 4 cups. Stir in vanilla, then pipe or frost as desired.

Pssst! Look at all these other delicious cupcake recipes that my friends made for Cupcake Day! Mmm!

Hot Cocoa Cupcakes by The Redhead Baker
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes by The Cooking Actress
Vanilla Candy Cane Cupcakes by Noshing With The Nolands
Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting by A Day in the Life on the Farm
Nerds Cupcakes by Amy’s Confectionery Adventures
Vegan Midori Melon Cupcakes by NinjaBaker
Chocolate Bourbon Cupcakes with Candied Butter Pecan Frosting by From Gate to Plate
Dark Chocolate Rum Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Buttercream by Lemony Thyme
Gingerbread cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese frosting by Eva Bakes
Cranberry Apple Cupcakes by The Pajama Chef
Almond Joy Cupcakes by Our Eating Habits
Buttered Rum Cupcakes by Adventures in All Things Food
Maple Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
Cone Head Cupcakes with Ice Cream Frosting by The Spiffy Cookie
Candied Buddha’s Hand-Eggnog Cupcakes by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Almond Joy Cupcakes by Food Lust People Love
Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting by Sew You Think You Can Cook
Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting for 2 by Kate’s Recipe Box
Cranberry Cupcakes with White Chocolate Buttercream by Cheese Curd In Paradise
Peppermint Patty Cupcakes by Comfortably Domestic
Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Biscoff Marshmallow Buttercream by Making Miracles
Chocolate Cupcakes with Red Velvet Frosting by {i love} my disorganized life
Lemon Cupcakes by Miss Information
Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cupcakes by Kosher Kitchen
Peppermint Cream Cookie Cupcakes by Take a Bite out of Boca
Cupcake Christmas Wreath by Lick the Spoon

30 Before 30, Breakfast, Pastries, Recipes

Apple Fritters

November 24, 2014February 19, 2016 Sarah

Apple fritters at home. Easy, no fuss, and absolutely amazing!

I LOVE apple fritters. Absolutely love them. When they’re among my doughnut choices, I’ll almost always take one. Cake doughnuts with chocolate glaze and sprinkles are a close second, as are those fake-blueberry doughnuts. [Doughnuts are so yum, doncha think?] I’m not sure what it is about apple fritters that I adore the most–probably those soft pieces of sweet fall apples stuffed inside. Or the combination of soft, pillowy doughnut with a crunchy, spiced glaze. Mmmm!

Since I love apple fritters so much, I decided to put them on my 30 before 30 list. I shy away from making doughnuts at home because using my baked doughnut pan is such a pain and frying scares me. But growing older means getting over fears, so I decided that I had to fry these babies at home. Because apple fritters equal yum. I made them the night I got home from a fall trip to Hilton Head Island with my family last month. Weird, I know. I mean, who doesn’t make doughnuts after an eight hour drive?!? 🙂 Well, I had to, because they were my payment to my sister and brother-in-law for driving me back to Nashville after Ben had to leave early to get back to school.

Well, I’m really glad I faced my fears because guess what! Frying isn’t as hard as it seems. It’s kinda messy and not that great for you, so I don’t think I’ll be doing it alllll the time, but once in awhile it’s fun. You just have to go slowly and carefully to avoid scalding yourself with the hot oil. Other than that, no problem. These fritters are so darn good and so easy that you’ll want to make them every weekend.

The fritters are extra apple-y since they’re made with apple cider AND fresh apples. And extra spicy [not spicy-hot but warm spicy with cinnamon/nutmeg/cloves alongside the aforementioned apple cider]. But that’s just in the fritter! The spiced apple glaze is simple [powdered sugar + apple cider + spices] and absolutely wonderful! I think I’ll be using this glaze on muffins and cakes and everything else imaginable from now on. It is just the perfect compliment to the fluffy doughnut. Each bite of these fritters is better than the last. You know you can just get over some sweets after the first few bites? Like it’s just too much after a bit? Well, these fritters are not that. Each bite is better than the last. I hope you love these fritters as much as we did. They’re relatively quick to make and don’t require the oven, so wouldn’t they be perfect for Thanksgiving breakfast? Enjoy!

one year ago: Chipotle-Cilantro Mashed Potatoes
two years ago: Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
three years ago: Dilled Carrots
four years ago: Apple City BBQ Sauce

Apple Fritters

Servings: 12
Time: 75 minutes
Print

from Cook’s Country via We Are Not Martha

Ingredients:

2 granny smith apples, peeled, cored, + chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoons baking powder
pinch salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch ground cloves
3/4 cup apple cider
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups oil [I used canola, vegetable or peanut are also recommended]

for glaze

2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup apple cider
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Directions:

Place chopped apples in a single layer on a clean tea towel. Top with another clean tea towel and pat dry, gently rolling to dry all sides of the apples. Remove top towel and pat dry with a paper towel to make sure you got it all. Alternatively, you can use paper towels on a baking sheet.

Next, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. In large measuring cup, whisk together cider, eggs, butter, and vanilla. Add apples to the flour mixture and toss together. Then gradually pour cider mixture over apples, stirring to form a thick batter.

In a dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat until it reaches a temperature of 350 degrees F. I think you could also use a deep skillet but you’d need additional oil to fill it up. A deep skillet would allow you to cook more at once, but the dutch oven approach works well too.

When oil is hot, scoop batter by the 1/3 cup-fulls into the hot oil. Immediately use a wooden spoon to press and flatten the batter. I fried 3 fritters at once; if I had used a skillet I think I could have done 4-5 at once. Fry for 2-3 minutes per side, being careful not to let the oil temperature go above 350 or your fritters will burn. Ask me how I know. Adjust heat as necessary to keep temperature between 325-350.

When fritters are golden brown, remove with a slotted spoon or tongs and allow to cool on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet to catch dripping grease. Repeat until batter is finished. Recipe should yield 12 fritters.

When fritters have cooled slightly, make the icing. I did this after all fritters were done frying and the timing worked well. Whisk powdered sugar together with cider, then add cinnamon and nutmeg. Whisk until smooth, then drizzle 1 tablespoon over each fritter. I had extra glaze so I waited for the glaze to set for 10 minutes and then glazed them again to use it up.

Fritters are best enjoyed within 3 days. After the first day, they should be refrigerated.

Breakfast, Pastries, Recipes

SRC: Baked Caramel Apple Mini Doughnuts

October 5, 2014December 14, 2015 Sarah

These mini apple doughnuts are dipped in an easy sweet caramel sauce for the ultimate easy fall treat!

For this month’s Secret Recipe Club, I was assigned to Cookaholic Wife, a blog written by Nichole. Nichole has SO many delicious recipes on her site. I had such a hard time deciding what to make! In the end, I chose these cute lil mini caramel apple doughnuts because they seemed so seasonally appropriate. I do love pumpkin but wanted to show apple some love. 🙂 Recipe runner ups included this Apple-Stuffed Bacon Wrapped Pork that Nichole just posted last week, Hawaiian Burgers, Caramel Grapes, and Coconut Lime Cookie Bars. If it was summer, those cookie bars would’ve definitely won! Aside from being into pretty much every one of Nichole’s recipes, I think the two of us could be BFFs. We’re the same age, both have two cats, and ideally would either be baking or reading on the beach. Yup, sounds about right. 🙂 While I have a 30 before 30 challenge, Nichole had a 28 before 28 challenge. How fun! [And speaking of fun, read this post about Nichole’s mom and her burning water habit. Hilarious!]

Anyways, I was psyched to see this recipe because I a) love caramel apples but hate biting into one, b) have a mini doughnut pan that I never use, and c) they just sounded AMAZING! And that they were. These mini doughnuts were a little bite of fall, perfect for dessert or breakfast. One word of caution though–the caramel sauce is super hot, so don’t take a bite until it’s cooled down a bit. The roof of your mouth will thank you! 🙂 [I learned that from Nichole’s first hand experience.]

Since I only have one doughnut pan, and wasn’t about to mess with letting the pan cool down in between batches, I used half the batter in my mini muffin pan for some adorable doughnut holes. So if you don’t have a doughnut pan, try that out! You may just need some additional caramel sauce for dipping since they’re a tiny bit bigger. Hope you enjoy! Thanks, Nichole for the great recipe! 🙂

one year ago: Baked Strawberry French Toast with Strawberry Maple Syrup
three years ago: Pumpkin Spread
four years ago: Pumpkin Pie Baked Oatmeal

Baked Caramel Apple Mini Doughnuts

Servings: 24 doughnuts
Time: 60 minutes
Print

from Cookaholic Wife
Ingredients:

2/3 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 egg, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup apple, minced
1 cup chewy caramel candies – I used Kraft caramels, the ones they advertise for making caramel apples
1 tablespoon milk

Directions:

Grease mini doughnut pan(s) or mini muffin pan(s) with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and cinnamon. In a measuring cup, whisk together egg, sugars, oil, applesauce, and vanilla. Pour wet ingredients into the dry and stir until combined. Fold in apples.

Spoon batter into prepared pans, filling about halfway.

Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove to a wire rack to cool for 5-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, place caramels and milk in a microwave safe small bowl. Microwave for 30 second increments on 50% power, stirring after each burst. Repeat until a caramel sauce comes together.

Dip doughnuts into caramel sauce then return to wire rack to set. Serve warm! Enjoy within a couple days, but they are definitely best the first day.

Be sure to check out other recipes from the Secret Recipe Club today!

Recipes, Sides, Vegetables

Mystery Dish: Kale Salad with Sesame-Lime Dressing

September 30, 2014December 14, 2015 Sarah

Kale salad is made over with a tangy and nutty sesame-lime dressing!

Welcome to another edition of Mystery Dish! This month, Zainab from Blahnik Baker was our host and she gave us a fabulous list to make one great dish with, including: sesame seeds, green chiles, green tea/matcha powder, cardamom, ginger, feta, lamb, pinto beans, white wine, prickly pear cactus, and apples. We were supposed to use three ingredients, and I immediately thought of a few directions I could go: an apple dessert, a Mexican dish, or something Asian-y. To me, making an apple dessert [which I’d make anyway countless times this fall] was the easy way out. So was Mexican. That left Asian. What to make, what to make. OH! Sesame. I had sesame seeds and sesame oil… and somehow made an awesome awesome kale salad that has been a constant in our fridge for the past three weeks. Seriously!

I would say that the dressing in all its nutty sesame, citrusy tart lime, intense fresh ginger, and salty soy is the best part of the salad. But then I’d be doing a disservice to the crunchy toasted sesame seeds [I used white AND black] and the dried sweet apples. That’d be so sad. This salad keeps well in the fridge over the course of the week. The dressing softens the kale more and more over time, and is just so fragrant and flavorful! One might think that if you’re making the salad ahead of time it would be better to add the sesame seeds and dried apples just before serving. But surprisingly the sesame seeds stay nice ‘n crisp, and the apples take on a great salty-sweet flavor once they’ve bathed in the dressing for a day or so. Obviously the ultimate choice is up to you–assuming the salad lasts long enough for leftovers–but I highly recommend just tossing it all together and enjoying dish after dish in your lunch all week long.

I’ve never had a salad I’ve had to fight Ben for…this is a first. I mean, he likes salad and kale but this kale salad is out of this world amazing! Enjoy!!

one year ago: Maple Apple Pie-Crisp with Cheddar Crust and Bacon Crumb Topping
two years ago: 1970s Style Tacos
four years ago: Sweet and Spicy Blueberry Pork

Kale Salad with Sesame-Lime Dressing

Servings: 8
Time: 15 minutes
Print

dressing recipe from freshncrunchy

Ingredients:

1 bunch kale
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
juice of 1 lime [approximately 1/4 cup]
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
1/2 cup dried apples, chopped
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Directions:

Wash kale, then remove thick stems and thinly slice leaves into ribbons. Dry with a salad spinner or a kitchen towel. Place in a large bowl.

In a measuring cup, combine extra virgin olive oil, sesame oil, lime juice, vinegar, soy sauce, maple syrup, and ginger. Whisk to combine, then pour half the dressing over the kale. Toss together with salad tongs or your hands, and add as much of the remaining dressing as desired. For extra tender kale, massage dressing into the kale with your hands for a few minutes. Allow salad to rest for at least 10 minutes before serving to soften. Top with chopped apples.

Place sesame seeds in a cold skillet. Set on stovetop over medium heat, and toast for 3-5 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring often. Add sesame seeds to kale salad before serving.

Come check out what else we made this month!

Green Chile Chicken Soup – Chez CateyLou
Crockpot Chicken Chilli Stew – Yummy Healthy Easy
Spiced Apple Crisp – I Want Crazy
Kale Salad with Sesame-Lime Dressing – The Pajama Chef
Spiced Mini Skillet Apple Crisp – Culinary Couture
Pan Seared Pork Chops with Spicy Apple Chutney – Flavor the Moments
Matcha Swirl Cheesecake – Baking a Moment
Green Chile Cheese Pinwheels – I Dig Pinterest.
Baked Apple Donuts with Cardamom Cream Cheese Glaze – Joyful Healthy Easy
Vegan Gluten-Free Ginger Walnut Apple Pie Bars – The Sweet-Tooth Life
Apple Feta Salad with Toasted Sesame Seeds – The Well Floured Kitchen
Apple Cardamon Crisp – Blahnik Baker

Desserts, Other, Recipes

SRC: Apple Rubies in Coconut Milk

March 9, 2014August 28, 2014 Sarah

Welcome to another edition of SRC! [Insert shameless plug for my photo canvas giveaway, now through 3/15/14]. Hope you’re all adjusting to that time change. Boo to losing an hour! I grew up without daylight savings time [most of the state of Indiana abstained until I was in college] so this is a semi-new thing for me. Falling back is great…but springing forward? Not so much. But enough about the time… a fun new dessert is calling your name!

My Secret Recipe Club blog this month was Inquiring Chef, written by Jess, an American currently living in Thailand with her husband. She’s pregnant with twin girls! How fun! Jess has a huge repertoire of recipes on her blog–from Thai dishes like Shrimp Bites with Peanut Lime Dipping Sauce, Red Curry Salmon with Coconut Brown Rice, or Pad See Ew, to more traditional dishes like Pimento Cheese, Bagels, and Potato Pancakes. I wanted to make everything!! In the end, I realized I had to go with a Thai dish. How could I not? Instead of a noodle creation, I landed on this unique dessert–Apple Rubies in Coconut Milk. I have seriously never heard of anything like this before…and let me tell you–it is fabulous!

Jess describes this dish so well that I am going to borrow her description: “Each bite is all at once crunchy, creamy, chewy, cold… almost impossible to describe.” Basically, what you have here is are apples soaked in juice, coated with tapioca flour, and then boiled to create a gelatinous coating. These sweet nuggets are served in a bowl with creamy, luscious coconut milk and crushed ice to create a fun taste and texture experience. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but whatever you have in your mind… this is even better! It’s sweet, but not overly so. If apples aren’t your thing, don’t be dismayed: Jess decided to use apples after the traditional “rubies” ingredient [water chestnuts] weren’t to her liking. And it’s genius! Be sure to check out Jess’ post for tips on preparing this dish [hint: use large pots and bowls, and have everything prepped ahead of time]. Thanks, Jess, for a great dish!

one year ago: Quick Chocolate Pudding
two years ago: Quinoa Pancakes
three years ago: Lemon Blueberry Bread

Apple Rubies in Coconut Milk [from Inquiring Chef]
click to print

Ingredients:

2 crisp apples, cored, peeled, and cut into small pieces [Fiji, McIntosh, Pink Lady, Gala as well as any other crisp type would work well]
2 cups red juice [I used grape; Jess used pomegranate]
1 cup tapioca flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups coconut milk
crushed ice, for topping

Directions:

Place apples and juice in a small bowl to soak, making sure apples are completely covered. Soak for 20 minutes.

While apples soak, bring a large pot of water to boil. Set a medium bowl of ice water next to stove to use as an ice bath.

In another bowl, stir together tapioca flour and sugar. After apples are drained, pour apples into tapioca mixture, tossing evenly to coat. Shake off extra tapioca mixture and gently drop coated apples into boiling water. Boil for 5 minutes, until coating is transparent. Remove from water and place in ice bath.

Drain apples and divide between 4 small bowls. Top each bowl with 1/2 cup coconut milk and a serving of crushed ice. Serve immediately.

Time: 40 minutes.

Yield: 4 servings.

Notes: This dish is traditionally made with water chestnuts so those could be used in place of the apples if you wish.

Check out all the other SRC recipes for this month below!