Hard Cider Cupcakes
I love that hard ciders are so widely available these days. Cider is such a great fall flavor and goes well with so many other fall flavors. And now you can even get different seasonal cider flavors year round! For this recipe I used the Original Angry Orchard, but I look forward to experimenting with other cider flavors and other cider recipes with these flavors!
I topped my cupcakes with caramel, but they are delicious without it too. I love how well this recipe brings out the cider flavor and the cupcakes really taste just like the beverage! I hope you enjoy!
Note: these cupcakes will get very soggy as they sit, so be sure to serve as soon as possible.
Hard Cider Cupcakes
Servings: 12 cupcakes
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 stick butter melted
- 1 cup Angry Orchard
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup applesauce
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 1/2 cup flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
Icing
- 1 stick butter
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2-4 tablespoons Angry Orchard
Optional Caramel Topping
- 10 caramels
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon Angry Orchard
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a cupcake pan with paper liners or grease pan.
- Combine cider and butter. Stir in sugar. The mixture will look clumpy.
- In a large bowl combine applesauce, eggs, and vanilla.
- Slowly add the cider mixture. Add flour and baking soda and mix until smooth.
- Pour into liners and bake 18-22 minutes.
- Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then remove cupcakes from the pan and move to wire racks to cool completely. While cooling, spoon some additional Angry Orchard over the tops of the cupcakes.
Icing
- For the icing, combine all ingredients and mix until smooth. If the icing is too thick, add more cider. If the icing is too thin, add more powdered sugar.
- Spread icing on cupcakes once the cupcakes are fully cooled.
Optional Caramel Topping
- Heat caramels and heavy cream over med-low heat, stirring frequently until melted.
- Once melted, remove from heat and stir in Angry Orchard. Drizzle caramel over cupcakes.
