Bake these Apple Cider Cupcakes for a fun fall treat, with their moist, tender crumb and cream cheese frosting - you cannot go wrong! No bourbon? No problem, just use apple cider in the frosting, too.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 muffin tins with liners.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, use a hand or stand mixer, with a paddle attachment, to cream together sugars and butter for about 2-3 minutes. Once light and fluffy, add vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, mixing between each addition, and scraping the sides as needed.
Combine oil and apple cider. Alternate adding the dry and wet ingredients together, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients (3 dry additions, 2 wet additions). Mix together the batter until just combined between each addition.
Divide the batter evenly between each muffin tin, filling approximately 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 14-17 minutes until the internal temperature reaches approximately 200°F. Be careful to not overbake. Let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting.
Frosting:
In the bowl of an electric mixer, add softened cream cheese and butter; beat until fully combined and smooth.
Add bourbon, and vanilla extract if using, stirring to combine. Add powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing to combine between each addition. Continue mixing until smooth, adding an additional 1/2 cup of powdered sugar for a thicker texture.
Spread or pipe the frosting on top of cooled cupcakes and sprinkle with additional cinnamon, as desired.
Notes
Make the frosting alcohol-free by substituting apple cider in place of the bourbon.
Apple cider or apple juice? You can use them interchangeably, however, if using juice I'd recommend replacing 1-2 teaspoons of it with lemon juice to add the tart flavor you get with apple cider.
When updated in October 2020, the flour increased from 1 1/4 cups to 1 1/2 cups, and the oil was added. The butter amount in the frosting was reduced from 1/4 cup to 2 TBSP to thicken the consistency, and additional apple cider was removed.