Hostess Caramel Apple Cupcakes are back! Please find our review, originally published in September 8th 2016, below.
Recently, I offered up a theory that one Caramel Apple Oatmeal Cream Pie a day would keep the doctor away.
Guys, I was wrong. Maybe I misremembered the phrase or maybe you’re supposed to stop at one, but all the Caramel Apple Oatmeal Creme Pies I was eating brought many doctors to me instead of keeping them away. Those doctors offered several pieces of advice:
1) Liposuction.
2) Stop writing about junk food to nobody.
3) Eat more fruit.
Options 1 & 2 are out of play, but I hear you loud and clear on Option 3, Doc.
Less oatmeal, more caramel apples.
Hostess Caramel Apple CupCakes
Hostess Caramel Apple Cupcakes arrive at Target just in time for fall. They’ve got some big shoes to fill after the Hostess Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes earned a spot right in the middle of my heart. Not only do caramel apples contain fruit, but cupcakes and apples are so similar in shape and size that I’m positive they are nutritional equivalents. My doctor is gonna be so happy!
Hostess Caramel Apple Cupcakes are frosted caramel apple flavored cakes with creamy filling. I found it interesting that the cake part itself is supposed to be both caramel and apple; I would have expected an apple flavored cake with caramel flavored creme or caramel frosting or something. Turns out I hardly taste the caramel anywhere.
The cupcake itself is solid but tastes like an apple spice cake more than anything. The main spice here is cinnamon, putting this cupcake more in the apple cinnamon category than caramel apple. It has the same butteriness you find in all Hostess cake products. Think Twinkies but a little higher quality, aka everything.
I blew it, Doc. Hostess Caramel Apple Cupcakes don’t contain any apples at all…
But here’s a big fat anomaly for you. Hostess Caramel Apple Cupcakes contain no apples, yet I can taste plenty of apple. They do contain real caramel, but I can’t taste any caramel. Food science is weird.
The frosting on top of Hostess Caramel Apple Cupcakes isn’t as sweet as in other Hostess cupcakes. That’s not a bad thing, but the flavor is a little off for me. It has a bit of saltiness like it’s trying to be caramel. It never fully materializes though. The same is true of the cream but to an even greater extent.
Caramel didn’t get its due today. The cupcakes are also on the dry side compared to the amazing, wonderful Hostess Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes from years past. Please bring those back.
In summary, my doctor is gonna be pissed.
How Hard It Is To Eat Healthy Rating: 9 out of 10
Odds I Will Eventually Require Liposuction Rating: 9.5 out of 10
Overall Rating: 6.5 out of 10
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No apples! I will stick with the pumpkin spice ones imo.
I’m not on Instagram, but your donut pic in sidebar caught my eye so advising here. Apple cider donuts from cider mills should indeed include apple cider. Next time try going 20 minutes south from AA instead – wasemfruitfarm.com/info.html (current hours are on their facebook page) They also sell at the Ann Arbor Farmer’s Market. Cinnamon-covered apple and cinnamon-covered pumpkin are the best but they’re all good. And tend to sell out. Plenty of u-pick apple options at the orchard, and the best cider around. Long lines on weekends up ’til Halloween (at which point many Michiganders suddenly and bizarrely forget that donuts and cider are delicious) but the season runs longer.
Thanks for all this info! The next time I visit Ann Arbor, I will keep this in mind!
I’m loving your reviews.
Thanks Heather, hope you stick around!
Didn’t they have just an apple spice flavor years ago? Am I thinking of another snack?