These homemade apple cider donuts actually taste like apple, not just warm fall spices! Freshly grated apples and concentrated spiced cider pack these fried cake donuts with apple flavor, with no reducing cider on the stove. They’re crisp and golden outside with tender, melt-in-your-mouth centers. Toss them in apple cinnamon sugar while they’re still warm and enjoy them fresh from the fryer!
It took me two years to get these donuts right 😅
Apple is such a delicate flavor that it easily gets lost after frying. It comes through much more easily in my baked apple cider donut cake, but getting that same punchy flavor into a fried donut took a LOT of testing.
I finally landed on the perfect ratio: tart, freshly grated apples, commercial apple cider concentrate (the same kind I use in bakeries), and freeze-dried apple powder so you really get a punch of apple in every single bite.
They were totally worth every round of testing, and I hope you think so too!
How to Make Them
1
The apple donut batter should resemble very thick muffin batter. Because it’s a wet batter, chill it for 3-4 hours before rolling out.
2
Using ample flour, roll out the dough and then use a donut cutter to punch out as many donuts as possible before rerolling the dough and punching out more.
You can either reroll the centers with the rest of the dough, but I like to fry them up to make donut bites!
3
Transfer each donut to its own parchment paper square. This is key to transferring them into the hot oil without messing up the shape or burning yourself.
4
Once the donuts drop into the oil and float to the top, you can remove the parchment paper and fry until golden brown.
I don’t recommend frying more than 1-2 donuts; otherwise, it can severely drop the oil temp and make the donuts greasy.
5
Once fried, I like to let the donuts cool for a bit before brushing them with more apple cider concentrate.
6
Then, roll the donuts in the apple cinnamon sugar and enjoy!
Can’t you just smell them through the screen? 😭 These are truly worth setting up the frying oil for. If you still have an abundance of fresh apples on hand, my crispy apple fritter donuts will put them to very good use!
Enjoy!
— Cambrea 🫶🏻
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Apple Cider Donuts
Ingredients
For the Apple Cider Dough
- 3 2/3 cups all-purpose flour, *See notes below for measuring*
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1-2 medium Granny Smith apples
- 1/2 cup apple cider concentrate
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup melted unsalted butter
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- Neutral oil, for frying
For the Apple Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 4 tablespoons freeze-dried apple powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup apple cider concentrate
Instructions
Make the Dough
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.3 2/3 cups (454 g) all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon (9 g) baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon (1 g) baking soda, 1 teaspoon (4 g) fine sea salt, 1 teaspoon (2 g) ground cinnamon
- Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the apples into a bowl. (No need to peel them unless you want to.) Squeeze the grated apples firmly to remove as much juice as possible. Separate and loosen the compressed apple shreds, then measure 2/3 cup packed apple shreds (90 g) and 3 tablespoons apple juice (44 g). Combine the measured shreds and juice and discard any excess.1-2 medium Granny Smith apples
- In a large bowl, whisk together the reserved grated apples, apple juice, apple cider concentrate, brown sugar, granulated sugar, melted butter, eggs, and sour cream until well combined.1/2 cup (160 g) apple cider concentrate, 1/2 cup (110 g) dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar, 1/4 cup (56 g) melted unsalted butter, 2 (100 g) large eggs, 1/3 cup (80 g) sour cream
- Add the dry ingredients and fold with a rubber spatula until just combined.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3–4 hours. The dough can be refrigerated overnight, but the donuts will have the softest, most tender texture when fried the same day.
Fry the Donuts
- Heat 3-4 inches of neutral oil in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot to 365°F (185°C).Neutral oil
- Line a baking sheet with a wire rack. Cut 11 pieces of parchment paper into roughly 4×4-inch squares and arrange them on a second baking sheet.
- Turn the chilled dough onto a generously floured surface. Flour the top, flip the dough over, and flour the other side. Roll to 1/2-inch thickness.
- Using a floured 3-inch donut cutter, cut out as many donuts as possible, pressing firmly and twisting the cutter back and forth a few times to cut through the apple shreds, and re-flouring the cutter between cuts. Then, transfer each donut to its own parchment square.
- Gather the scraps, reroll to 1/2-inch thickness, and continue cutting donuts. Lightly brush away any excess flour from the donuts if needed.
- Working in batches, use a spider or slotted spoon to carefully lower 2 donuts at a time into the hot oil. Fry for 3 minutes total, flipping halfway through.
- Transfer the donuts to the prepared wire rack. Allow the oil to return to 365°F (185°C) before frying the next batch.
Coat in Apple Cinnamon Sugar
- In a shallow bowl, stir together the sugar, freeze-dried apple powder, and cinnamon.1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar, 4 tablespoons (16 g) freeze-dried apple powder, 1 teaspoon (2 g) ground cinnamon
- Once the donuts have cooled completely, lightly brush each one with the remaining apple cider concentrate, then immediately toss in the apple cinnamon sugar until evenly coated. Enjoy!1/4 cup (80 g) apple cider concentrate
