Adapted from Teddie’s Apple Cake in The Essential New York Times Cookbook: The Recipes of Record (10th Anniversary Edition )
1 cup toasted pecans
1 cup raisins
boiling water
1 ounce bourbon
3 cups apple peeled, cored and shredded in a food processor or by hand
3 cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup canola oil
¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cups sugar (consider reducing to 1 ½ cups if using less tart apples like Gala or Fuji )
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line muffin tins with 24 paper liners.
Toast the pecans. Cool and chop coarsely. Pour just enough boiling water over the raisins to cover and stir in the bourbon. Let stand for 10 minutes. Drain the raisins. Prepare the apples.
Sift the flour, salt, cinnamon and baking soda together. Beat the oils and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium high speed for 5 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until creamy. Stir in the dry ingredients. Stir in the apples, pecans and drained raisins.
Evenly divide the batter between the 24 liners. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Check after 15 minutes and rotate the pan once the tops are domed and starting to brown. Cool in the tins for a few minutes before removing the cupcakes to cool completely on a rack.
Frost with Italian Buttercream. Use 1 ½ teaspoons for vanilla instead of Cointreau to flavor the buttercream.
Cream cheese frosting is another excellent choice for these cupcakes.