Autumn is in the Air!

I love baking in the fall! I like to bake with pumpkin, apples, and different spices that remind one of crisp, autumn days. 

When I have time this week, I am going to bake these apple muffins from Martha Stewart. I plan to use more than one apple....probably three.

Applesauce Spice Cupcakes

This is another great recipe from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book.  I highly recommend getting this book if you don't already have it. 

These cupcakes have a hint of each of the spices. The recipe makes 18 cupcakes. 

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup lightly packed light brown sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups unsweetened apple sauce

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line muffin tins with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. On a low speed, add applesauce and then the flour mixture, beating until just combined.

Fill each cup 3/4 full with batter. Bake 20 minutes. 

Frost with Brown Sugar, Cream Cheese Frosting:

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup packed light-brown sugar

Using electric mixer, mix cream cheese with 1 stick butter and 1 cup light brown sugar on medium speed until smooth. Spread cream cheese frosting on cupcakes. Cupcakes can be refrigerated in airtight containers up to 2 days.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These Red Velvet Cupcakes were wonderful! The recipe is from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes, which I love! Definitely use the Cream Cheese Icing recipe with it. These cupcakes went so fast, I was unable to get a picture of them! So the photo above is from marthastewart.com.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups cake flour (not self rising)

2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon red gel-paste food color (The paste is much better than the liquid. I use the Wilton kind.)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together cake flour, cocoa and salt. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, whisk together sugar and oil until combined.

Add eggs, beating until each is incorporated. Mix in food color and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with 2 additions of buttermilk, and whisking well after each. Stir together the baking soda and vinegar in a small bowl (it will foam); add mixture to the batter, and mix on medium speed for 10 seconds.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature or frozen for up to 2 months, in an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 3 days in airtight containers. Bring to room temperature before serving. Makes 24 cupcakes.

Cream Cheese Frosting: Makes 4 cups.

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1 pound (4 cups) confectioners' sugar

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Beat butter and cream cheese on medium until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce to low and add sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, then vanilla. Mix until smooth. If not using immediately, frosting can be refrigerated up to 3 days in an airtight container. Before using, bring to room temperature and beat on low speed until smooth again.

Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cupcakes

I really cannot rave enough about the book Martha Stewart's Cupcakes. There are many amazing recipes in it. This is the first one I have made, and I have a huge list of others I will try. I personally do not eat cheesecake, but these got rave reviews from the many people who I shared them with. I plan on making them again soon!

Here is the recipe, from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes:

42 Oreos (30 whole and 12 coarsely chopped) - I chopped about 20! :)

2 pounds of cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 large egges, room temperature, lightly beaten

1 cup of sour cream

1 pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line 30 standard muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 whole cookie in the bottom of each lined cup.

2. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add sugar, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla.

3. Drizzle in eggs, a bit at a time, beating to combine and scraping down sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in sour cream and salt.

4. Stir in chopped cookies by hand.

5. Divide batter evenly among cookie-filled cups, filling each almost to the top. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until filling is set, about 22 minutes. Cool completely in tins. Refrigerate (in tins so they don't lose shape) for at least 4 hours, or up to overnight. Remove from tins just before serving.