Autumn Recipe and Tutorial: Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

These addictive and decadent Golden Apple Strudel cupcakes are perfect to satisfy an autumnal sweet tooth. They are crumbly, soft cakes with brown sugar, raisins, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice baked in, filled with chunky homemade apple sauce, swirled with apple buttercream and topped with a gold dusted fondant apple; wonderfully simple and tempting, we’re sure you’ll agree!

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

Strudel Cupcakes Recipe (makes approx. 12 cupcakes)

226g self raising flour
226g butter
226g brown sugar
4 eggs
2 handfuls of raisins or sultanas (for some boozy decadence leave these to soak in a teacup of whiskey overnight before adding into your batter - remember to drain the whiskey first before adding to avoid sloppy, overly moist batter)
2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoon allspice

Pre-heat your over to Gas Mark 3 / 160C / 325F and line a cupcake pan with cupcake cases. Cream your butter and sugar first. When pale and creamy add your eggs, spices and raisins. When combined add the flour. Mix well and then pour your silky batter into your cases. Bake for around 20 minutes to 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean when tested.

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

Apple, Cinnamon & Brown Sugar Filling

5 large cooking apples
3 teapsoon cinnamon
140g brown sugar
14 tablespoons water

Peel and chop up your apples in chunks around 1cm in size. In a saucepan add the chopped apples, cinnamon, brown sugar and water on high heat. Bring to boil and then lower the heat to medium and let simmer until the apple pieces have softened and the water has reduced a little. Take off the heat and mash before pouring into a jar. Leave to cool. Once cooled down you can core your cupcakes with a good cupcake corer and spoon your delicious apple mixture inside.

Apple Buttercream Recipe

250g butter
250-300g icing sugar (keep testing when adding to make sure it is the consistency and sweetness YOU’D like)
6-12 drops of natural apple essence

Add half of the of butter diced into pieces. Cream the butter in a mixer. Then gradually add icing sugar and the remaining butter (cut into cubes) until you get a smooth, creamy texture. Add the flavour to taste.

For more hints and tips see our tutorial on how to make buttercream here.

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

How to Make the Golden Apples

To make your golden apple cupcake toppers you will need…

Golden coloured sugarpaste / fondant (we coloured ours with Caramel / Ivory gel paste food colour)
Small leaf plunger cutter
Edible glue
2 paintbrushes (one for the glue and a dry one for applying lustre dust - remember to use brushes that have ONLY been used on/for food items)
Gold lustre dust
Taped modelling tool
Fondant rolling pin
Icing sugar

To make classic red apples instead you will need…

Red sugarpaste / fondant (use Christmas Red gel paste) for the apples
Brown sugarpaste / fondant (use Dark Brown gel paste) for the stalk
Green sugarpaste / fondant (use Juniper Green gel paste food colouring) for the leaf
Small leaf plunger cutter
Edible glue
1 paintbrush (remember to use brushes that have ONLY been used on/for food items)
Taped modelling tool
Fondant rolling pin
Icing sugar

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

Step one: Shape some sugarpaste / fondant into the body of your apple. Begin with a ball and smooth your fingers over it to create a slightly tapered base and rounded top.

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

Step two: For the leaf simply roll out some sugarpaste / fondant onto an icing sugar dusted surface and use the plunger cutter to cut out a small leaf. Leave on a curved surface (e.g. a teaspoon) to dry into a more natural shape. OR you could shape a small piece of sugarpaste into a leaf shape and indent the centre with a line using a veining tool.

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

Step three: To create the stalk shape a small amount of sugarpaste / fondant into a apostrophe-like shape with a flat top.

Step four: Attach the stalk and leaf by pushing the tapered modelling tool into the top of the apple, add a dab of edible glue into the indent for the leaf, insert the stalk into the top of the apple and lightly press the leaf next to the stalk where you’ve applied some edible glue.

Step five: If you’re creating golden apples leave your apples to dry fully. Once dry dust generously with gold lustre dust. Leave to sit for a few minutes before dusting again until you get a gorgeous glimmering gold!

Now you have your own Golden Apple Strudel cupcakes; perfect for any seasonal party!

Autumn Golden Apple Strudel Cupcakes

 

Spiced Apple & Caramel Cake with The Happy Egg Co.!

Autumn always brings forth some wonderfully warming and indulgent flavours when it comes to food and celebrations. As Guy Fawkes’ Night festivities commence in the United Kingdom this month’s cake is nothing short of a subtle yet sumptuous treat; perfect to enjoy during the Bonfire Night shenanigans! Imagine slicing into a fragrant cake spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves and ginger; covered and filled with home made caramel sauce and scrumptious apple buttercream; and then drizzled with even more caramel sauce! Wouldn’t that be the perfect addition to your dinner table this 5th of November and during the rest of the chilly season! If you’re outside of Great Britain we’re sure you’ll still enjoy this recipe too. The rich spices, tangy apple frosting and sweet caramel pair wonderfully with any autumnal soirée. The little fondant apples sat happily amidst dripping caramel resemble glistening apples bobbing in a barrel of water ready for party games.

Spiced Apple & Caramel Cake by Juniper Cakery

Spiced Apple & Caramel Cake by Juniper Cakery

Simple Spiced Cake Recipe (makes approximately 3 x 1″ layers of an 8″ diameter round cake)

453g self raising flour
453g butter
453g brown sugar
7 eggs
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teapoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

The Happy Egg Co. Eggs

Cream your butter in a mixer then add the brown sugar. Add in the flour along with half of the happy eggs for around one minute. Once half of the happy eggs are combined add the remaining and the spices to taste. Mix for about 5 minutes.

Pour batter in the pan until 2/3 full and place on the top shelf of a pre-heated oven at Gas Mark 3/325F/170C. Bake for around 30 minutes. Repeat this step to create your second and third layer.

Apple Buttercream Recipe

500g butter (around two packs in the UK)
300-400g icing sugar (keep testing when adding to make sure it is the consistency and sweetness YOU’D like)
6-12 drops of natural apple essence

Add half of the of butter diced into pieces. Cream the butter in a mixer. Then gradually add icing sugar and the remaining butter (cut into cubes) until you get a smooth, creamy texture. Add the flavour to taste.

For more hints and tips see our tutorial on how to make buttercream here.

Spiced Apple & Caramel Cake by Juniper Cakery

Easy Caramel Sauce Recipe

260g caster sugar
4 tablespoons of room temp water
140ml double cream
50g butter

On medium heat dissolve the sugar with the water whilst stirring in a saucepan. Raise the heat until the sugar mixture bubbles and turns a lovely golden brown (this should take around 5 minutes). Take off the heat and stir the cream and butter into your caramel sugar mixture. Leave to cool and it’s ready to fill and pour atop of your cake!

To assemble your cake smooth caramel sauce and apple buttercream between each layer of cake. Next apply a thin layer of buttercream over your cake evenly leaving extra buttercream for later. Smooth and leave in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes to an hour. Once chilled smother the rest of the lovely apple flavoured buttercream over the sides and top and smooth with a spatula. Now carefully pour the caramel sauce over the cake and use a clean spatula to push the sauce to the edges so it drips luxuriously! Finally you can decorate the top with little fondant apples, fudge pieces, cinnamon sticks or caramel filled truffles!

Spiced Apple & Caramel Cake by Juniper Cakery

We do hope you thoroughly enjoy this warm and taste bud tingling recipe during the ensuing chilly months. Try a generous slice with a cup of spicy chai tea or gingerbread flavour coffee for an uplifting treat!

 

The Happy Egg Co. Cake - Spiced Apple

October is officially here which means burnt reds, oranges and yellows are quickly taking over the leafy greens of summer. Though this is, perhaps, the biggest change when we look through our window here at Juniper Cakery HQ there are also notable changes being made in the food and baking world too. The thought of warming seasoned fruits, soups and desserts have inspired this month’s recipe which is to be a spiced apple cake!

Spiced Apple

Spiced Apple

The bittersweet taste of apple and their deep reds and autumnal greens are perfect for this time of year. Their traditional, and much loved, pairing with cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and allspice creates a warm, homemade feel perfect for getting cosy in the coming blustery months.

Spiced Apple

 

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