An Apple A Day

By carvalhohm

Ingredients

• 8 vanilla cupcakes baked in red paper liners
• 1 (16-ounce) can vanilla frosting
• Red food coloring
• 8 mini plain or chocolate-covered doughnuts
• 4 chocolate chews (like Tootsie Rolls)
• 6 green fruit chews (like Jolly Rancher or Tootsie Fruit Rolls)
• 1 cup red decorating sugar
• 3 black candy-coated chocolate-covered sunflower seeds (like Sunny Seed Drops)

Details

Servings 8
Adapted from mrfood.com

Preparation

Step 1

Spoon 1 tablespoon vanilla frosting into small resealable bag, press out the excess air, and seal. Tint the remaining vanilla frosting red with the food coloring.

Cut 1/2 inch from bottom of each mini doughnut with serrated knife and discard bottom piece. Spread some red frosting on cupcakes and place mini doughnut piece, cut side down, on top. Place cupcakes in the freezer 10 minutes, or until slightly frozen.

For the stems, cut chocolate chews in half lengthwise on the diagonal and shape each half into stem (you will need 7). For thleaves, roll out green fruit chews to 1/8-inch thickness, and then cut into twelve 3/4- by 1-1/2-inch leaf shapes. Make crease down center of each leaf with back of paring knife and pinch one end.

Place red decorating sugar in medium shallow bowl. Working on 1 cupcake at a time, spread some of the red frosting on top and sides of doughnut and cupcakes to fill in gaps and lightly coat, making doughnut top look like top of apple. Roll frosted cupcake in the red sugar to coat. Repeat with remaining cupcakes.

To create bite mark, carefully remove 1-1/2-inch divot in the side of 1 sugar-coated doughnut, using the tines of fork or paring knife. Snip small (1/8-inch) corner from the bag with the vanilla frosting and pipe thin layer of frosting to cover exposed area inside divot. Spread lightly with back of small spoon to smooth. Arrange sunflower seeds in vanilla frosting as apple seeds, pointed ends toward center. Insert chocolate chew stems with green fruit chew leaves at top of apple cupcakes. Arrange cupcakes in a basket.