Baked Apple Cider Donuts
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Baked apple cider donuts are a great way to celebrate fall. Brushed with butter and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, they’re tender and light with the perfect crumb. This classic recipe captures the fall flavor of donuts from apple orchard bakeries. Make them in 35 minutes.
📌 PIN BAKED APPLE CIDER DONUTS
🍩 About Apple Cider Donuts
When the leaves change color, our family heads to Apple Hill in Northern California. We visit wineries, apple orchards, and on-site bake shops. We pick apples and pumpkins, and bring home jugs of fresh apple cider.
These cider donuts are filled with the rustic flavors and scents of fall in the foothills. Your kitchen will smell like an apple-orchard bakery!
🛒 Ingredients
Donut Batter
- Butter: For a rich, delicious buttery taste.
- Granulated Sugar: Adds delicious sweetness to the batter.
- Light Brown Sugar: Adds sweetness with a light caramel flavor.
- Large Eggs: Provide strength and structure for the batter.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the sweetness and provides a bakery aroma.
- All-Purpose Flour: Provides structure for the donuts. When mixed with liquid, a gluten framework forms that stretches and helps hold the ingredients together.
- Baking Powder: This leavening agent gives apple cider donuts the perfect rise.
- Kosher Salt: Enhances the flavor of the other ingredients.
- Ground Cinnamon: Adds warm fall flavor and aroma. If you don’t have this spice on hand, feel free to use apple pie spice instead.
- Ground mace or ground nutmeg: Contributes the traditional flavor of donuts.
- Apple Cider: It’s the star ingredient. It provides the delicious apple flavor that makes these baked treats apple cider donuts.
Donut Coating
- Melted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Ground Cinnamon
📖 Recipe Steps
Make the Donut Batter
- STEP 1: This first step is optional, but will give your donuts a greater depth of gorgeous apple flavor! 👉🏻 On the stovetop, reduce one cup of apple cider down to one-half cup. Cool the liquid before beginning this recipe.
- STEP 2: In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, one by one, mixing well after each addition.
- STEP 3: Add flour, salt, baking powder, and spices. Mix on low speed until all ingredients are incorporated. As needed, stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
- STEP 4: With the mixer running, slowly stream in the apple cider.
Bake the Donuts
These delicious fall favorites are baked not fried! Continue following this easy recipe for apple cider donuts:
- Preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Grease 2 donut pans with butter, or spray them with cooking spray.
- Fill the donut pan cavities to 2/3 full. Do not overfill!
- Bake for 15 minutes or until done. Cool in pan for 4-5 minutes.
Coat the Baked Donuts
- Melt the butter.
- In a bowl, mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon.
- Brush each donut with butter.
- Dredge in sugar/cinnamon mixture.
👩🏻🍳Expert Tips
- Use ground mace if you have it. After all, it’s the primary flavor of donut-shop favorites. Because nutmeg is pretty close, it’s a great substitute for mace in most donut recipes, including this one.
- How to keep the surface of baked donuts smooth: After removing donuts from the pan, cool on a baking tray. A cooling rack would leave unwanted marks across the surface!
- No donut pan? No problem. You can still make this easy recipe. Prep two muffin pans with cupcake liners. Fill each cavity 3/4 full. Bake at 350°F for about 18 minutes, or until a cake tester run through the middle of two separate muffins comes out clean. Makes one dozen apple cider donut muffins.
🧑🏼🍳 Recipe FAQ
These are the most commonly-asked questions when making baked apple cider donuts, and the most helpful answers for recipe success.
Reduce one cup apple cider down to 1/2 cup. On the stovetop, simmer the cider in a small saucepan over low heat for 15-20 minutes. Transfer the liquid to a freezer-safe bowl. Cool it in the freezer for 10 minutes before adding it to the donut batter. Another option: use thick, pourable, apple cider concentrate (boiled cider syrup).
Yes they can! This is the perfect recipe for freezing. Store them in the freezer for up to 6 weeks.
Grease the pans. Fill the cavities 2/3 full with batter. Bake at 350°F for 8-9 minutes. Makes 48 mini donuts.
Transfer batter to a large zip-top bag. Snip a corner of the bag. Pipe batter into donut pan cavities.
🍁 More Fall Recipes
- Glazed Pumpkin Hand Pies
- Pumpkin Muffins
- Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
- Pumpkin Pie Dip
- Pumpkin Overnight Oats
- Libby’s Pumpkin Pie
- Grandma’s Apple Pie
Rate This Recipe ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Flavor testers rated these the best baked apple cider donuts. They compared them against the same flavor donuts at Apple Hill bakeries in Northern California. They said the fluffy texture and delicious flavor was everything they were looking for in a fall donut.
If you agree this recipe’s a keeper, give it a 5-star rating in the comments. Then be a recipe hero. Share it with friends. 📌 Pin it to Pinterest.
Baked Apple Cider Donuts
- Total Time: 35 Minutes
- Yield: 15 Donuts 1x
Description
Apple cider donuts are a fall favorite! Baked not fried, they’re lightly brushed with butter then sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. These are the farm-style donuts sold apple-orchard bakeries throughout the country.
Ingredients
DONUT BATTER
- 10 tablespoons butter, softened
- 3/4 cup light-brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground mace OR ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup apple cider*
COATING FOR DONUTS
- 6 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
RECIPE PREP: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease the wells of two donut pans with butter, or spray them with cooking spray.
- Cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs one by one, mixing well after each addition.
- Add flour, salt, baking powder, and spices. Mix on low speed until all ingredients are well incorporated. As needed, stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
- With your mixer running, slowly stream in the apple cider.
- Fill the donut pan cavities to 2/3 full. Bake for 15 minutes or until done. Allow donuts to cool in the pan for 4-5 minutes. Transfer to a baking tray.
- Melt 6 tablespoons butter. In a bowl, mix granulated sugar and cinnamon. While the donuts are still warm, brush them with melted butter. Dip them into the cinnamon sugar.
Notes
How to fill donut pans: Transfer batter to a large zip-top bag. Snip a corner of the bag. Pipe batter into donut pan cavities.
How to keep the surface of baked donuts smooth: After removing donuts from the pan, cool on a baking tray. A cooling rack would leave unwanted marks across the surface!
No donut pan? No problem. You can still make this recipe. Prep two muffin pans with cupcake liners. Fill each cavity 3/4 full. Bake at 350°F for about 18 minutes, or until a cake tester run through the middle of two separate muffins comes out clean. Makes one dozen apple cider donut muffins.
How to bake donuts in a mini donut pan: Grease the pans. Fill the cavities 2/3 full with batter. Bake at 350°F for 8-9 minutes. Makes 48 mini donuts.
- Prep Time: 20 Minutes
- Cook Time: 15 Minutes
- Category: Donuts
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Baked Apple Cider Donuts 👉🏻 Join the Convo
When was the last time you enjoyed a freshly-baked apple cider donut? Was it from a rural road-side stand? Share your favorite fall traditions in the comments below!
This recipe for apple cider donuts looks delicious! I would like to make it need to get some apple cider.
This is what I love about the Fall. So many baked treats that have awesome flavor and the family enjoys them too. I will definitely keep this recipe! The donuts would go well with your fave cup of coffee or tea!
My son is so excited for fall – for the Apple Cider and the doughnuts. I have to try this recipe.
I love the flavor of apple cider. I have a pork roast for dinner which is cooked with apple juice or cider, and brown sugar. Such great flavor.
Those donuts look so good! I have never had an apple cider flavor! Looking forward to trying this recipe.
We just had some of these at our local farmer’s market and they were amazing!! I’ll have to try to make my own.
These donuts look amazing. It’s been awhile since I have made donuts before. I’m really looking forward to trying this recipe.
I love donuts, but I have never tried apple cider donuts before. I bet they are as good as they look. Yum!
Woah, this sounds delicious! I love that I can make it in les than an hour.
What a way to make donuts, a little less hassle and of course sounds very delish! Thanks for the recipe and the tips! :)
Baked apple cider donuts sound incredible. We can get these only in the fall around here, I’d like to make them other times. Thanks to you and your recipe, they can be a year long treat!
This apple cider donut recipe is mouth watering! I love to feel that rustic flavors and scents of fall. Thanks for sharing this.
I love apple cider donuts. They’re one of my favorite foods in the fall, even more than pumpkin spice anything.
I love cider donuts, and it would be so fun to make our own! Plus I like that these are baked. Such a great fall treat!
Wow, these apple cider donuts look delicious! They would be great right now, with the cooler days!
Yum. I haven’t tried making homemade donuts yet. I’ve recently started baking and making homemade icings so I’ll have to tackle donuts soon. These apple cider donuts sound amazing. Perfect for a fall morning too.
ok I am not intrigued by the combination of flavors and need to make them this weekend
These donuts look delicious! I have never made donuts at home before. But I want to so I need to find myself one of these pans!
apple cider donuts are the best- and i may try and make this myself- my kids are LOVING all of them this fall :)
I am so excited about these! I just love apple cider so I know I will gobble these donuts right up.
Oh man, I am drooling over these donuts right now. They sound SO good.
One of our favorite flavor for donuts! These are amazing!
Last week, some friends went with us to apple country and had apple cider donuts at one of the orchards. OMG, they were to die for. And now with you recipe, I can make them at home! Thanks and thanks for all the tips!
Everything about this recipe screams fall! I LOVE apple cider donuts! What a fab recipe!
Oh my gosh, these cider donuts were sooooo darn good! I am making these again this coming weekend. Our family loved them!!!!
You had me at donuts! These turned out perfect – and were so easy to make!
Wow 35 minutes from start to finish, count me in! And that baking tray looks super cute, where did you find it from?
these baked apple cider donuts look so divine. surely going to try it out. perfect for the upcoming holiday season. Thanks for sharing.
These are seriously delicious looking donuts! I love that you baked them and not fried. I can’t wait to try them and I bet they will taste fantastic@!! Cheers
I have all these ingredients in my pantry and will be making your recipe this weekend. Thanks for sharing!
These bring back fond memories of living back east. Every Fall we’d head to the town Apple Harvest Festival. There they would have delicious apple cider donuts! I’m excited to try this recipe with my family and pretend we are back at the Apple Harvest Festival!