cinnamon apple raisin cupcakes

A cupcake (also known as "fairy cake") is a small cake (designed to serve one person) baked in a small thin paper cup. Some people prefer cupcakes to muffins because cupcakes are "bite-sized" and make good snacks. If you have a recipe for muffins, you can use the same recipe to make cupcakes, the only difference being the size of the baking pan and the paper cups used.

Recently, I found 3 apples in our refrigerator and I was debating whether to make an apple pie. However, I changed my mind and decided to make cinnamon apple raisin cupcakes instead.

Ingredients

375 g red apples, cored, peeled and cut into small cubes

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup seedless raisins

1/2 tsp cinnamon sugar

2 cups plain flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

125g butter (melted)

2 eggs

3/4 cup milk

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.

2. Mix the cubed apples, brown sugar, raisins and cinnamon sugar until well combined.

3. Sift the plain flour, baking powder and ground cinnamon together in a large bowl.

4. Stir in the apple mixture into the flour mixture and mix well.

5. Whisk the butter, eggs and milk until well combined.

6. Add the milk mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a large metal spoon or a spatula until just combined. Do not over-mix.

7. Spoon the batter evenly into cupcake pans lined with paper cupcake cases.

8. Bake the cupcakes in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through. To test if the cupcakes are cooked, insert a toothpick or skewer into the centre of one of the cupcakes - if it comes out clean, it is ready; if not, cook for a little longer before testing again.

9. When cooked, remove the cupcakes from the oven and stand for 2 to 3 minutes before turning onto a wire rack.

10. Makes about 84 cupcakes.

Tips

1. If you are baking muffins instead, you will need 12 medium (125 ml or 1/2 cup) muffin pans. Non-stick muffin pans do not need greasing. If you are not using a non-stick muffin pan, brush the pan with melted butter or margarine to lightly grease the pan. Alternatively, line the pan with paper muffin cases.

2. The baking powder acts as a raising agent and will help give the muffins a light texture.

3. Blending the wet ingredients before adding them to the flour mixture makes it easier to evenly combine the two.

4. When adding the milk mixture to the flour mixture, do not over-mix else the cooked muffin will have a rough texture.

5. The cupcake is not very sweet due to brown sugar being used. If you prefer sweeter cupcakes, you can substitute with castor sugar.