After Eleven Trials...Caramel Apple Pecan Cupcake

This was the hardest recipe to come up with to date. But I finally have it. I can legitimately say this is a Tina original recipe - not a slight tweak of someone else's recipe.
Caramel Apple Pecan Cupcake - a vanilla cupcake with dried apples, drizzled with caramel sauce on the cake, frosted with cream cheese frosting, and sprinkled with meaty pecan pieces.
Lesson #1: Granny Smith apples do not shine through unless it's in small pieces (diced, shredded, or grated.)
Lesson #2: Some spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice will get stronger with time (after being baked). Use half or less nutmeg to cinnamon.
Lesson #3: Using fresh apples in the cake will make the cake wetter, you may have to paddle the batter longer to build the cake structure to compensate.
Lesson #4: If you don't have Granny Smith, use Gala apples. Don't use Braeburn apples - makes the cake too soggy. Gala will break down easier when baked, so expect a wetter cake.
Lesson #5: If you want to control the flavor of the spices, don't use spices at all in the cake or frosting unless you like that pumpkin bread type taste.
Lesson #6: If you like the quick bread texture, use a traditional apple cake recipe. If you like a less wet, but moist, more crumbly type cake, more "cupcake- like", use a traditional vanilla cupcake recipe and mix in diced dried apples.