Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease or line 24 muffin cups with paper baking cups. Set aside.
Beat cake mix, pudding mix, milk, oil, eggs, cinnamon and vanilla in bowl of electric mixer on low speed just to moisten, scraping sides as needed. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full. Use an ice cream scoop to transfer the batter easily.
Bake 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and cool completely.
Make the buttercream:
Beat 1 cup (2 sticks) of room temperature butter in large bowl of an electric mixer on medium speed until light, fluffy, and almost white in appearance.
Add the apple butter and mix well.
Then add in the 2 cups powdered sugar. Beat until well blended. Add more powdered sugar to stiffen the buttercream, or a bit of milk to make the buttercream more spreadable.
Frost the cupcakes using a knife, or decorate with an icing bag and tip (Wilton tip 1M) to make a pretty swirl.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
The calories shown are based on the recipe making 24 cupcakes, with 1 serving being 1 frosted cupcake. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box are calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.**