These apple cider doughnuts are my favorite thing to eat when I need comfort food sweets on the fly. The batter takes less than 5 minutes to make and after 10 minutes in the oven I’m enjoying warm, freshly baked doughnuts with a hint of cinnamon, nutmeg and crunchy sugar.
These doughnuts are light, fluffy, and sugary with a hint of autumn. And thanks to the addition of buttermilk in this recipe, they stay soft for days if you can resist them that long.
Don’t be dissuaded by the first step – reducing the apple cider. It doesn’t take long at all, and the concentrated cider gives these doughnuts an extra delicious added apple kick.
Prefer that fried doughnut taste? Warm some peanut or vegetable oil in a skillet. Fry the baked doughnuts until golden brown (about 20 seconds per side). Coat with cinnamon sugar.
If you enjoy this recipe and want more like it, check out my cookbook Beach House Baking. 🙂
Apple Cider Doughnuts
Ingredients
- 1 cup apple cider
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon cinnamon ground
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg ground
- 1 large egg(s)
- ¼ cup buttermilk
- ¼ cup olive or canola oil
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions
Reduce the cider:
- Boil the cider in a small pot over medium-high heat. Reduce the liquid to 1/4 cup.
- Set it aside to cool.
Make the donuts:
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Grease a Wilton 6-cavity doughnut pan with pan spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, the reduced cider, buttermilk, oil and vanilla.
- Pour the wet ingredients onto the dry ingredients and mix together thoroughly.
- Using a pastry bag fitted with the 1/2-inch smooth round tip, pipe the batter into the molds just over halfway. Bake 5 minutes, rotate the pan and bake for another 5 minutes or until doughnut tops spring back when pressed.
- Remove pan from oven. Let the doughnuts cool in the pan for a few minutes before inverting them onto a wire rack. Bake the remaining batter (two doughnuts).
Coat the donuts:
- Fill a medium bowl with the sugar and cinnamon.
- Roll them in the cinnamon sugar and serve.