Apple Cinnamon Muffins

for muffins:

• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cup diced apples

for topping:

• 3 tbsp coarse sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1. Oven to 375 degrees
2. Mix together first 4 ingredients (egg, butter, oil & vanilla)
3. In separate bowl, mix together flour, powder, cinnamon, ginger, salt, brown sugar
4. Add dry ingredients to wet alternating with adding the buttermilk
5. Add apples
6. Top with spoonfuls of topping
7. Put into liners in muffin pans
8. Bake 15-18 minutes

this recipe was found at Baking Bites

Apple Cupcakes

It's only the beginning of September, but after flipping through a magazine, I was in the spirit of Fall! Thus, ready to make something with apples.. there was a recipe in a magazine for apple cupcakes.. it looked amazing, but difficult. So I turned to the World Wide Web. I found a cupcake recipe from Martha Stewart. I modified it slightly by cutting the sugar in half, and using Granny Smiths. The sugar amount was plenty! especially with the addition of frosting. For frosting, I used a simple recipe from the Cupcake Project.

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 6 smaller apples, shredded (around 4 cups)

1. Set oven at 350 degrees
2. Whisk together flour, soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.. set aside
3. Blend butter and sugar together until creamy
4. Add 2 eggs and vanilla
5. Add shredded apples
6. Add dry ingredients and mix until evenly wet, but do not mix too long
7. Line muffin tins, (I sprayed them with nonstick spray as well), and fill about 3/4 full
8. Bake 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean
9. Let sit about a hour before frosting (Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting)