Rose Cupcakes with Creamy Apricot Filling

Ingredients:

2 apples

1⁄2 lemon (juice)

1 stick cinnamon

360 ml water

2 sheets puff pastry

50g hazelnuts

3 tbsp apricot jam

Butter for greasing

Tools:

cutting board, knife, citrus press, large bowl, small saucepan, oven, muffin tin

1) Quarter apples, remove core, and then cut crosswise into thin strips.

2) Add apple slices and lemon juice to a large bowl. Stir well to combine. Then add apple, lemon juice, and cinnamon stick to a small saucepan with some of the water, slowly bring to a simmer, and cook for approx. 2 – 3 min. Remove from heat, drain the apples, remove the cinnamon stick and set aside.

3) Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Roll out puff pastry and cut lengthwise into strips approx. the width of 4 fingers. This pastry dough will lay the foundation of your rose cupcakes and make sure to hold the apple petals in place perfectly.

4) In a small saucepan, bring apricot jam and rest of the water to a simmer over medium heat for approx. 3 – 5 min. Stir well to combine. Remove from heat and set aside.

5) Grind hazelnuts to finer, close to fully ground mixture using a food processor or the hand blender.

6) Arranging the cupcakes now requires the most attention to detail. Spread apricot jam evenly over puff pastry strips. Sprinkle ground hazelnuts on top of jam. Then, form a row of apple slices, half-moon side facing up, on top of jam. Fold the bottom half of the puff pastry up so that apple slices are tucked inside. Carefully roll from side to side to form a rose. Transfer to a lightly greased muffin tin and bake in a preheated oven at 190°C/375°F for approx. 30 – 35 min.

7) Let it cool completely. Dust with confectioners’ sugar.