An Apple a Day Keeps The Doctor Away!

An apple a day keeps the doctor away! These cupcakes are topped with doughnuts, covered in red frosting and sprinkled with red sugar. Whether you are trying to keep the doctor away or sweet-talk your teacher these cupcakes are sure to do the trick! I made a vanilla cupcake, but you can use whatever flavor you'd like. An apple cinnamon spice cake would be great! 

This tutorial is from the book "What's New Cupcake?" 

Ingredients:

 12 vanilla cupcakes baked in red paper liners 
 12 mini plain or chocolate-covered doughnuts
 24 oz vanilla frosting
 8 chocolate Tootsie Rolls
 8 green Air Heads
 1 cup red decorating sugar
 Red food coloring


Instructions:
1. Cut 1/2 inch from the bottom of each mini doughnut with a serrated knife and discard bottom piece.

2. Spread some vanilla frosting on the cupcakes and place a mini doughnut piece, cut side down, on top of each. Place the cupcakes in the freezer for 10 minutes, until slightly frozen.

3. For the stems, cut the unwrapped chocolate chews in half lengthwise on the diagonal and shape into stems. For the leaves, roll out the green fruit chews 1/8 inch thick, then cut into ten 1 1/2-by-3/4-inch leaf shapes. Make a crease down the center of each leaf with the back of a paring knife and pinch one end of each leaf.

4. Place the red sugar in a medium shallow bowl. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the vanilla frosting into a small ziplock bag, press out the excess air, and seal. Tint the remaining vanilla frosting in the can red with the food coloring.

5. Working on 1 cupcake at a time, spread some of the red frosting on the top and sides of the doughnut and cupcake to fill in the gaps and lightly coat, making the doughnut look like the top of an apple.

6. Roll the frosted cupcake in the red sugar to coat. Repeat with the remaining cupcakes.

8. Insert the chocolate-Tootsie Roll stems with the green Air Head leaves at the top of the apple cupcakes.