Apple Cider Cupcakes

This recipe was submitted by Jennifer Buter. The recipe comes from epicurious.com and was printed in the October 1991 issue of Gourmet Magazine. Jennifer has this recipe on her "to-bake" list, but asked that I try it out first. Here is my opinion...

I love it when recipes come with reviews. I trust reviewers more than I would trust some random recipe. So when I read one review that stated, "Overall this is an atrocity of a recipe," I knew there would have to be some tweaking involved. I relied on my instincts mostly. I substituted butter for half of the shortening (This was my first time ever using shortening in a cake; I probably won't do it again, mostly because it has no flavor. But also because shortening for real just wierds me out!). [[EDIT: Umm holy crap, I'm an idiot. I just noticed in the picture I took of the ingredients... I totally used 3/4 cup of shortening AND 3/4 of a stick of butter. Hahaha, okay screw this whole recipe!]] I doubled the amount of baking soda. I also reduced the amount of sugar, as I do with a lot of recipes. Most reviewers said that the apple cider flavor was very minimal, so I boiled the cider down to less that the recipe called for, hoping to end up with a more concentrated flavor. I made up for the extra liquid by adding some whole milk. Also, when I boiled the cider, I added a tablespoon of mulling spices to enhance the flavor. It wasn't noticeable in the cupcake, however. I recommend upping it to 2 or 3 tablespoons of mulling spice.

The resulting cupcake was a dull, wierd flavored, yet moist and tender cupcake. The frosting had a nice twang to it, but it was very soft. The temperature stated in the recipe was too high. I was thinking to myself as I was preheating the oven, "When was the last time I baked cupcakes at 375 degrees??" The cupcakes got very brown and almost tasted like the crust on white bread (freakin ew!). You would have no clue these were made with apple cider unless you were told. In that case, you'd still be lying if you said "Oh yeah, now I can taste it!" In the words of Mythbusters, this recipe is busted!

Ingredients Notice I have 3/4 cup shortening AND 3/4 stick of butter. I'm a retard, thanks.

At least the batter was yummy!

I hate spending extra $$ on cute liners that wrinkle when you put them in the pans!

They even look like bread crust, don't they!

Making the frosting... reduced cider + sugar...

Mixed until it's smooth. (This picture is before the addition of cream cheese. Don't worry, the frosting isn't that runny!!)

The end...

You can get the mulling spices as Williams-Sonoma. They smell so good!

For the cupcakes
3 cups unpasteurized apple cider (I added 1 tablespoon of mulling spice; I recommend 2-3 tablespoons)
3/4 cup vegetable shortening (I effed up the amount of fat in this recipe. I accidentally added 3/4 of a stick of butter instead of substituting it for half of the shortening!)
1 3/4 cups sugar (I reduced this to 1 cup)
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon (I reduced this to 1/2 teaspoon because I used spices in the cider)
1 teaspoon baking soda (I used 2 teaspoons)
Pinch of salt (I used 1/4 teaspoon)

For the icing
2 cups apple cider
6 ounces cream cheese, cut into bits and softened (I used 8 ounces)
1/2 cup sifted confectioners' sugar (I used 1 cup)

Preparation
Make the cupcakes: In a large saucepan boil the cider (and mulling spices) until it is reduced to about 1 1/2 cups and let it cool (strain the spices). In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat together the shortening and the sugar until the mixture is fluffy and beat in the eggs, 1 at a time. Into the bowl sift together the flour, the cloves, the cinnamon, the baking soda, and a pinch of salt, stir in the reduced cider, and combine the mixture well. Divide the batter among 18 paper-lined 1/2-cup muffin tins and bake the cupcakes in the middle of a preheated 375°F (I'd reduce the temp to 350°) oven for 25 minutes (check them about 5 minutes early just in case), or until a tester comes out clean. Transfer the cupcakes to a rack, let them cool in the tins, and remove them from the tins.
Make the icing: In a saucepan boil the cider (and mulling spices) until it is reduced to about 1/4 cup and let it cool (strain the spices). In a bowl with an electric mixer beat together the cream cheese, the confectioners' sugar, the reduced cider, and a pinch of salt until the icing is smooth (I omitted the salt, and mixed the sugar and cider together first before adding the cream cheese).
Spread each cupcake with some of the icing.

Overall rating on a scale of 1-5
Moistness: 4
Flavor: 1
Tenderness: 5
Frosting: 3 (too soft and kinda boring)