BAKED APPLE CIDER DONUTS

Fluffy spiced donuts spiked with apple cider and rolled in cinnamon spice sugar. They’re baked rather than fried and you won’t miss it!



I am super excited for this weekend. I’m in my cousin’s wedding and I know it’s just going to be a blast! I’m so happy and excited for her because she is seriously such an amazing person who would literally give you the shirt off of her back. She deserves nothing but the best! Also, this is the first WHOLE weekend I’m going to be away from my son though, I’m not sure how I feel about that. I’m 99% positive I’m going to cry when I leave tomorrow.. But I know he’s going to be in great hands with my in-laws, they’re amazing. Anyways, before I go, I will leave you with this: Baked Apple Cider Donuts.


Even though it’s not Fall anymore, who says you can’t still enjoy apple cider?! This donut recipe is one of my absolute favorites and I’ve transformed it from regular cinnamon sugar to pumpkin. It’s always a winner every time! The donuts come out super moist, perfectly tender and have SO much spicy flavor with a little sweetness from the apple cider. They’re insanely delicious! And addicting. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya!

To make these donuts you’ll need a donut pan. When I first bought my donut pan I thought I would never use it but I use it all the time. There’s just nothing like homemade donuts! If you don’t have a donut pan, you can use a mini muffin pan and make donut “holes”.

You’ll start by mixing the donut batter and piping it into the donut molds. I like to pour my batter into a ziplock bag and snip the end off to distribute my batter instead of spooning it in because it makes life a whole lot easier. Bake them up until they are lightly golden and spring back slightly when you touch the tops and you’re ready for step 2. Cinnamon sugar time! You’ll them dip only the tops into some melted butter very quickly while the donuts are still warm and then right into the cinnamon + nutmeg sugar mixture.

The smell of these apple cider donuts is so intoxicating, I dare you to stop at just one! I know I can’t. Especially when they’re warm straight out of the oven.

Baked Apple Cider Donuts

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

25 minutes

Yield: 15-16 donuts

Ingredients:

Donuts

10 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3/4 cup buttermilk

2 cups apple cider (reduced to 3/4 cup)

3 teaspoons baking powder

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons cinnamon

2 teaspoons nutmeg

pinch salt

Topping

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 cup granulated sugar

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a donut pan with cooking spray and set aside.

Before you begin, you will need to reduce the apple cider. Pour apple cider in a small saucepan a simmer on low-medium heat for 15-20 minutes or until the cider reduces down to 3/4 cup. Once it is reduced, set it aside to cool.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, pinch of salt, cinnamon and nutmeg and set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix the melted butter and sugars together until smooth. Add in the eggs and vanilla and stir until completely combined. Pour in the buttermilk and apple cider and mix until smooth. Stir in the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Do not over mix or donuts will be tough.

Pour the batter into a ziploc bag and snip off one corner. This makes it much easier to pour into the donut wells. Pour batter into prepared pan about 3/4 to the top of each well. Bake for 14-15 minutes or until the tops are firm and spring back slightly when you touch them. Do not over bake or you will have dry donuts.

When done, remove donuts from the oven and let them cool in the pan for 5 minutes then remove them carefully and place on a wire rack to cool until they are warm to the touch so you are able to handle them. While they are cooling, get your butter + cinnamon sugar topping ready.

In a small bowl, melt butter in the microwave. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix together the cinnamon and sugar. Set aside.

Once donuts are cool enough to be handled, dip the tops into the melted butter and then quickly into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Repeat for the entire batch of donuts.

These Apple Cider Donuts are best served fresh the same day, but will stay soft for up to 2 days stored in an airtight container. If they get a bit firm, you can reheat in the microwave for a few seconds to soften them up and they are good as new.