In a medium-sized bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice.
Beat butter and sugars in a large bowl until light and fluffy.
Beat in eggs, sour cream, vanilla extract, and lemon zest until blended.
Mix in flour mixture a little bit at a time until just combined.
Fold in apples.
Divide batter evenly among 12 cupcake liners (they will be filled almost all the way to the top).
Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting Instructions
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, mix the butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy.
Mix in the vanilla.
Mix in the powdered sugar a little bit at a time until fully combined.
Spread or pipe onto cooled cupcakes.
Notes
You can experiment with different sizes for the apple pieces. If you like chunks of apples in your desserts, cut them into 1/2 inch pieces. You can also cut them into smaller pieces or matchsticks if you want them more integrated into the batter.