Teachers' thank you cupcakes recipe

If it's time for the kids to say goodbye to their favourite teachers, make them feel special with these amazing homemade and delicious apple flavoured teachers thank you cupcakes made by cupcake decorator Victoria Threader. This cupcake recipe makes the perfect food gift.

Ingredients

Equipment:

• Deep muffin pan
• 12 cake cases
• Wilton 1E decorating tip
• Piping bag
• Gingham ribbon for the cases (Optional)
• Alphabet cutters
• Circle cutter 58mm
• Rose leaf cutter/embosser small

For the sponge:

• 150g butter softened
• 150g light brown sugar
• 140g self-raising flour
• 10g cornflour
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• Pinch of ground cloves (optional)
• 2 Granny Smith apples peeled, cored and diced
• 3 tablespoons of caster sugar
• The zest and juice of half a lemon
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

For the topper:

• 300g of ready to roll white fondant
• Red, brown and green food colour
• Gum Tragacanth (optional but helps keep the toppers firm)

For the buttercream:

• 240ml milk
• 60g plain flour
• Pinch of salt
• 110g vegetable fat such as Trex
• 110g unsalted butter
• 220g caster sugar
• 1tsp vanilla extract

Method

1. For the sponge:
   1. To make this cupcake recipe, core, peel and dice the apples and place into a pan with 3 tablespoons of caster sugar, zest and juice 1 lemon and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat and simmer until the apples are soft. Pop in the blender for a couple of seconds and then leave to cool.
   2. Preheat your oven to 160°C/320°F/Gas Mark 3.
   3. Line the baking tray with cases
   4. Beat the sugar and butter until light and fluffy (about 5 mins)
   5. Sift the flour, spices and baking powder together. Add 1 egg to the butter and sugar with 1/3 of the flour/spices and beat until just combined and repeat until all the ingredients are combined.
   6. Divide the batter between the 12 cases and bake for 30-35 mins depending on your oven
   7. Remove and cool in the tins for 10 mins before moving to a wire cooling rack
   8. When the cakes are cool, core a hole in the centre of each cupcake with an apple corer. Place 1 teaspoon on the cooled apple sauce in the centre of the cakes and pop the tops back on.
   For the topper:
   1. The night before you want to make these, ad 1 teaspoon of gum to your fondant and leave overnight in cling film and an airtight container
   2. The next day colour 260g red, roll to 3mm thick and cut twelve 58mm sized circles. Cut a small triangle shape out of the top and the bottom of the circle, rounding off the edges with my finger.
   3. Colour 10g brown, roll into a long sausage and cut 12 stems. Stick them with a brush of water in the centre at the top of the apples.
   4. Colour 15g of fondant green and cut 12 leaves, stick them with a brush of water onto the top of the stems on the cupcakes.
   5. With the remainder of the white fondant, roll 1mm thin and leave to dry for 5 mins before cutting the letters out for the ‘Thank you’
   6. Arrange the words on top and stick with a brush of water.
   7. Place one finished topper on each iced cupcake and tie a piece of red gingham ribbon around the center of the cases.
   For the buttercream:
   1. Heat the milk in a small saucepan, over a gentle heat, Whisk the flour and salt into the milk and continue to heat gently while whisking continuously (to avoid lumps), until the mixture takes on a thick pudding-like consistency. Leave to cool for 30 mins.
   2. In a separate bowl, cream the vegetable fat, sugar, butter and vanilla until light and fluffy.
   3. When the pudding has cooled add it to the creamed vegetable fat and butter mix one spoon at a time, beating with an electric whisk until all the pudding has been added. It will be very light in texture and quite white when it’s ready. Cool in the fridge for 15 mins, this helps stiffen it slightly so it’s ready to pipe.
   4. Pipe a swirl on the top of each cupcake by starting in the middle working your way out to the outside using the paper as a guide,pipe around the paper and up into a swirl. Place the topper on top.

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