In September, I started a cupcake adventure. If you haven’t read about it yet, you can do so here.

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One of the most mouth-watering photos in the cookbook is from the “Gourmet Cupcakes” chapter: Tarte Tatin Cupcakes with Caramelized Apples (Lord, have mercy!)

And having a fridge full of fresh apples from Nebraska (thanks, Grandpa!), this proved to be the perfect recipe to tackle next.

The batter was fairly typical, but used brown sugar rather than white, like most of the other recipes do. So, naturally, these smelled extra yummy while they were baking.

Next, I peeled four nice, crisp apples from my grandparents’ orchard…

and cut each one into 16 slices.

Next, I melted some butter in a shallow skillet and squeezed on as many apples as I could so I wouldn’t have to do more than 2 batches of frying!

YUM! Look at how they bubble. Mmm.

There’s definitely an art to caramelizing an apple just right. And I’ve only got 2 years of gas-stovetop experience under my belt. Some looked perfect, while others got a little dark. I was extra-careful to arrange the over-cooked ones dark-side-down on the cupcakes.

Next, you pile a few apple slices on top of each cupcake.

That alone makes a pretty presentation.

But if you want to go in for the kill, you can drizzle a little bit of caramel sauce over the top! The instructions included a recipe for caramel glaze, but I ran out of time before Andrew and I had to be at Bible study, so I just used the store-bought caramel used for topping ice cream. If you zap it in the microwave for just a few seconds, it has the perfect consistency!

Whew. I’m definitely going to make these again once I get through the rest of the book.

Here’s the final result, packed in my carrier and ready to travel!

In September, I started a cupcake adventure. If you haven’t read about it yet, you can do so here.

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I was surprised by this recipe because it contains no sugar. The batter was thicker (not unlike cookie dough) and the yummy crumbles were added to the top before baking.

But what do you do when you get in such a hurry that the cupcakes are in the oven before you remember to take any pictures? Take a picture while they are baking, of course!

And when they come out of the oven, they look as scrum-diddly-umptious as THIS. Just look at those chocolate chips and walnut chunks. YUM!

Remember when I shared how to cover a circular board to create a platter? Another trick that I use to jazz up a boring old plate is to cut a piece of scrapbook paper to fit my square, white serving tray. That way, you can use any paper that  matches the theme of the party (or other dishes) AND clean-up is a bit easier because the paper catches most of the crumbs and spills!

YUM!

In September, I started a cupcake adventure. If you haven’t read about it yet, you can do so here.

***

There’s something fantastic about adding real fruit to a recipe. And with Blue Blueberry N Cream Cupcakes, you start with a cup of frozen, defrosted blueberries.

Then you cream together the butter and sugar, add the juicy berries, and bake.

Breathe deeply as the smell of freshly baked blueberry cupcakes fills your kitchen. Yum.

This was my first time using whipping cream for the icing and it did NOT work out well for me. I had it completely chilled, but I guess I should’ve gone a step further and stuck my beaters and bowl in the fridge for a while before using them. Instead, I got a milky, blueberry pool.

So, what do you do? DIP THEM!

Luckily, whipping cream is thick enough to coat a cupcake, even if it doesn’t set up. So I dipped each one and let the excess drip off a little.

They turned out pretty cute, huh?

And as a set, they look absolutely delicious!!

Bon Appetit!