The King of all Cupcakes: Apple Crumble Cupcakes
These cupcakes are absolutely fantasmagorical; there's no better word for them!
Seriously, if I had my own dessert restaurant (one can dream...), this cupcake would be my main course. Sweet cinnamon sponge, a delicately tangy apple centre cushioned by a swirl of custard cream and the final finale, the salty oat crunch of the crumble topping. A textural masterpiece!
The recipe is relatively plain sailing, the only tricksy part is whipping the custard into a non-lumpy submission whilst it boils. It is also somewhat time consuming. So do take note if you're all post-haste this evening!
The Hummingbird Bakery's
Apple Crumble Cupcakes
Makes 12-16
Sponge:
80gUnsalted Butter
280gCaster Sugar
240gPlain Flour
1 tbspBaking Powder
1/4 tspSalt
1/2 tspGround Cinnamon
2Large Eggs
240mlWhole Milk
1/4 tspVanilla Essence
The Filling:
5Eating Apples (I used some old Cox's we had in)
30gUnsalted Butter, softened
50gSoft Light Brown Sugar
1/4 tspGround Cinnamon
The Custard Topping:
500ml Whole Milk
1/2 tsp Vanilla Essence
5 Large Egg Yolks
200g Caster Sugar
30g Plain Flour
30g Cornflour
200mlDouble Cream
The Crumble:
The Crumble:
55gPlain Flour
55gRolled Oats
Pinch of Ground Cinnamon
55gUnsalted Butter
40gSoft Light Brown Sugar
Anything else:
55gRolled Oats
Pinch of Ground Cinnamon
55gUnsalted Butter
40gSoft Light Brown Sugar
Anything else:
Patience
A group of friends with rumbly tummies
Start by preheating your oven to 190°C(375°F) and line a muffin tin with muffin cases. We're looking to make about 14 but see how far your batter stretches. Find two baking sheets and leave them on the side for later.
We'll start by making the yummy apple filling. Peel, core & chop your apples into rough 1cm pieces, add the 50gof sugar and 1/4 tspof cinnamon and coat the apple pieces in this. Melt the 30gof butter over a low heat and add the apple mixture. Cook until soft (but not mushy!) When it's warm & cooked, try your best not to eat the entire mix and set aside to cool while we make the sponge.
Using a handheld whisk, or mixer (The Hummingbird Bakery seem to insist on this) mix together the 80gof butter, 280gof caster sugar, 240gplain flour, 1 tbspbaking powder, 1/4 tspsalt and 1/2 tspcinnamon until the butter has dispersed and you're left with something that looks like fine breadcrumbs.
Whisk together the2eggs, 240ml milk and 1/4 tspvanilla essence in a separate bowl, and then add gradually to the dry mixture. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl to ensure all the dry ingredients are mixed in.
Fill up your muffin cases with the now smooth batter. Aim to fill them two-thirds of the way up. Place 2 tbpsof the apple mixture into the center of the sponge mixture. Don't worry- it will sink as the cupcake bakes.
Bake the cupcakes for around 18-20 mins, or until the sponge bounces back upon touching. You can also test by using a skewer, if it comes out clean then the cake is done! My cupcakes took around 30 minutes because I used muffin cases, and also because my oven is a bit shit. I find it best to speak perfectly bluntly when insulting one's kitchen apparatus.
So, we're onto the final stretch now: making the custard. Heat up your 500mlof milk and 1/2 tspvanilla essence on a low heat. Whilst this is slowly heating, mix together 30gof cornflour, 30gplain flour, 200gcaster sugar, and 5egg yolks to make a paste-consistency. If it seems too dry add 1tbsp of the hot milk.
When the milk has reached boiling point, add 4-5 tbspof the milk to the paste, then add the paste mixture to the milk in the pan and place back over the heat. Now is the time to whisk like crazy (or excuse yourself from bicep training just this once, and use an electric whisk instead) as the mixture thickens. Once the mixture is boiling for a second time, keep on the heat for a further minute and then remove. Spread the custard over one of the baking trays we got out earlier (preparation is a baker's best friend) so the mixture will cool quickly.
As for the crumble, mix the 55gplain flour, 55grolled oats and cinnamon in a bowl. Rub in the 55gof butter using your palms and fingertips to create crumbly consistency. Finally add the sugar and mix in well.
Crumble the mixture on to the baking sheet and oven bake for around 15 minutes, checking repeatedly to give it a poke and a stir here and there. Then take out and cool.
Whip up your 200mlof double cream with a little caster sugar (optional), until it is quite firm. Next add the cooled custard mixture and mix, making sure there are no lumps.
To finish, smother the cupcakes with the custard cream and liberally sprinke the tops with crumble. Now feast!
Le fin!
Tea and Two Slices
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