Apple Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes

 photo: http://www.pauladeen.com

Apple Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes

original recipe: http://www.pauladeen.com/recipes/recipe_view/apple_cinnamon_roll_cupcakes/

Ingredients:

For the Cinnamon Roll:

• 2 cups 2% milk
• 1 tablespoon (.5 oz) active dry yeast
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 6 ½ cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 2 eggs
• ¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature

For the Filling:

• ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons cinnamon
• 1 cup loosely chopped pecans
• 2 cups finely chopped tart apples

For the Apple Cider Glaze:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon apple cider

Instructions:

1. In a small saucepan or a microwave oven, warm milk to about 110 F. In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in the milk.
2. Add salt and two cups of flour and beat for two minutes.
3. Beat in eggs and butter.
4. Stir in the remaining flour a half cup at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic (about five minutes).
6. Place the dough in a large bowl and cover it with a towel.  Set in a warm place and allow to rise for 40 minutes or until approximately doubled in volume.
7. Roll out dough into a long rectangle about 1/4” thick.
8. Brush with about half of the melted butter.
9. To make the filling, in a medium-sized bowl, mix sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, pecans, and apples.
10. Spread the pecan/apple mixture evenly over the dough, leaving about an inch empty on all sides.
11. Roll dough over itself from back to front along the long side of the rectangle to form a log. Slice the log into 24 even pieces.
12. Line cupcake tins with cupcake liners and place each piece of the log in a cupcake liner.  If they don’t fit, fold the ends together to make a “C” shape.  The pieces should come to about the top of the liners.
13. Cover the cupcake tins and set in a warm place to rise for another 40 minutes.
14. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
15. Evenly distribute the remaining ¼ cup of melted butter over the tops of the cupcakes.
16. Bake for 20 minutes or until the tops are golden.

For the Apple Cider Glaze:
In a medium-sized bowl, mix powdered sugar and apple cider until fully combined.
Drizzle over cupcakes.