To make the crumble topping:
Preheat oven to 170°c and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the ingredients by hand – use your fingertips to rub in the butter until all the lumps are gone and the mixture is sandy in consistency (shaking the bowl every so often will help to bring the larger lumps of butter to the surface). Cook for 3-4 minutes, mix then return to the oven to cook for a further 3-4 minutes. Be careful not to overcook. The crumble must be golden in colour. Reserve until needed.
To make the sweet apple sauce:
Cut the cooking apples into little 2x2cm pieces then place in a non-stick saucepan together with all other ingredients. Stir constantly on a low heat until cooked through to a thick and sticky consistency. Note – if you like chunks of apple keep the recipe as it is but if you prefer a smooth apple sauce you can continue cooking the sauce and mash the apple pieces until smooth. Reserve until needed.
To make the custard cream buttercream:
In a heatproof bowl, whisk together 130ml of the milk, the egg yolks, the sugar and the cornflour and set to one side.
In a saucepan place the remaining 230ml of the milk together with the vanilla extract and slowly bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and add it to the egg mixture stirring continuously. Return the combined mixture to the saucepan and bring to a gentle boil. Remove from the heat and pass through a sieve back into the heatproof bowl. Leave until it cools to room temperature. Cover the top of the bowl with cling film so a crust doesn’t form.
In a separate bowl beat the unsalted butter until light and fluffy then add in 1tbsp at a time of the room temperature cream until it is all incorporated.
Insert piping nozzle of choice into large piping bag then add in your cooled custard cream buttercream and secure top with a food clip.
To make the mini cakes:
Preheat oven to 170°c and fill a 12 hole cupcake tray with paper cupcake cases. Cream the butter and sugar together until pale in colour. Then add the eggs (one at a time) followed by the milk and mix together on a high speed for 3 minutes (until well combined). Finally, add in the flour, cinnamon and salt and mix until combined. Do not over mix. Divide the mixture evenly between the cupcake cases (1-2 tablespoons per case) and cook for 20 minutes.
To assemble the mini cakes:
Remove the centre of the cakes with a cupcake corer (top tip: you can use an apple corer or piping tip instead). Try to remove as much from the middle as possible without going all the way to the bottom.
Fill the centre with the cooled apple sauce until it reaches the top.
Pipe the cakes with the custard cream buttercream then sprinkle on the reserved crumble mix.
Enjoy!
