These apple cupcakes with a faux bite — adapted from a "What's New, Cupcake?" by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson — are clever to the core. Make a crateful to celebrate the start of a new school year.
What you'll need
- Cupcake batter
- Red frosting
- Red sugar sprinkles
- Tootsie Roll Midgees
- Green Tootsie Fruit Roll
- White frosting
Our silicone baking cups were part of a multicolor set from Michaels, but Le Creuset makes an all-red set that would also work ($10 for 6 cups at cookware.com).
How to make it
Mix your favorite cupcake batter and divide it evenly among cupcake wells lined with red paper or silicone cups (see Tip below), filling each one about three-quarters full. Bake the cupcakes according to the recipe directions and let them cool.
Carve a shallow, dime-size well in the top of each cupcake, then cover the tops with red frosting and coat them with red sugar sprinkles. Mold a small piece of a Tootsie Roll Midgee into a stem shape. Form a leaf from a small piece of green Tootsie Fruit Roll, pinch it against the stem, then insert the stem into the cupcake.
To make a bitten apple, spoon a small well from the side of the cupcake and line it with white frosting. Press tiny bits of Tootsie Roll Midgee in place for seeds.
