The most perfect apple donuts around! Inspired by apple cider donuts, these baked apple donuts are made using FRESH apples instead for the best apple flavor and texture! These donuts bake up tender and moist and are then rolled in butter and cinnamon sugar for added sparkle, crunch, and flavor.
best apples for baked donuts
Some of the best apples for baking are Granny Smith, Braeburn, Fuji, or honeycrisp apples. Any of those apples will work for this recipe because they strike the perfect balance between flavor, texture, and moisture.
Any one of those 4 options will bake up beautifully without releasing a significant amount of water. Those apples hold their shape well enough to keep the donuts light and fluffy, but they still soften enough to blend in nicely with the batter. They're neither too tart nor too sweet and they won't develop a gritty texture when heated.
You can use any one or any combination of these apple types for your donuts. Whichever you choose, make sure to lightly squeeze out any excess liquid from the shredded apples before mixing them into your batter. This helps keep the donuts extra fluffy!
prepping your donut pan
If you're using a good quality donut pan, you can get away with lightly greasing the pan and you don't really need to worry about the donuts sticking. These donut pans by Wilton are my personal favorite and I use them all the time without any trouble. That being said, for added insurance, it's always best to prepare the pan for even easier release.
My favorite method for preparing donut pans is to brush the donuts cups with softened butter and then dust with flour. Then flip the pan over and lightly tap out any excess flour and you're all set! I've never had trouble getting donuts out with this strategy, but there is one more important step to ensure the donuts don't stick: flip them out of the pan while they're still HOT.
When the donuts are hot, the sugar and fat will still be liquid. The donuts are very easy to get out before they cool. Once the donuts cool and set up, they are much more likely to stick. Before flipping the warm donuts out, I also like to gently pull the edges of the donuts away from the pan just to make sure nothing is stuck on before flipping the donuts onto a wire rack.
how to bake donuts
These donuts are baked at a HIGH temperature for a short amount of time. This allows them to puff up and bake through without drying out, giving us the perfect soft and cakey texture! The tops of the baked donuts may look a little bumpy, but that's normal because this is a bit of a chunky batter. They also will be a bit pale on top - that's also normal! Once you flip the donuts out of the pan, the opposite side will look perfectly smooth and brown!
rolling the donuts in cinnamon sugar
After the donuts have cooled slightly, they're topped with butter (to help the cinnamon sugar stick) and tossed in cinnamon sugar for that apple cider donut feel! It's important to hold off on rolling the donuts in the toppings until you're just about ready to serve them.
The sugar coating will dissolve as it sits and will draw out moisture from the donuts. This can cause the surface to become wet and soggy if they sit around for long. The coated donuts can be stored for (at most) 1 day. Anything longer than that and I'd recommend not coating the outside until you're actually ready to eat them.
more tips for making baked apple donuts
- Measuring the apples: When you squeeze out the liquid from the apples, they're going to pack together tightly and lose water weight. So it's important to measure / weigh the apples before squeezing out the liquid to ensure you have the right amount.
- Measuring the flour: Flour can easily be mismeasured, so it's best to weigh the flour if you have a food scale. If you prefer to measure with cups, lightly spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level off any excess using a flat utensil like a butter knife. Don't scoop the flour directly from the bag using your cup or it can pack in extra weight worth of flour!
- Mixing the batter: Overmixing will overwork the gluten and rip through the air bubbles in the batter, causing the donuts to come out dense and tough! This batter is supposed to be lumpy, so just mix until the dry ingredients disappear and you're left with a streak free batter.
- Filling the donut pan: Just like with cupcakes, donut pans should be filled around ¾ of the way full to allow for a perfectly risen and rounded donut! Underfilled cups will lead to flat and dry donuts. Overfilled cups will cause the donuts to overflow and they'll be more likely to sink as they cool.
storage
These donuts are best stored without the cinnamon sugar coating because (like I said above) the sugar can cause the donuts to get soggy!
Keep the donuts covered tightly with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container or plastic bag until ready to serve. The plain (uncoated) donuts will keep for up to 3 to 4 days at room temperature.
You can also freeze these donuts for up to 3 months: once fully cooled to room temperature, transfer to an airtight container or plastic bag and freeze. Defrost for a few hours at room temperature before coating in cinnamon sugar and serving. You can also thaw them faster by warming the frozen donuts in a preheated 350°F oven for 5 to 10 minutes or until defrosted.
check out these other cozy recipes
• Apple Pie Cookies
• Apple Pie Layer Cake
• Sour Cream Glazed Donuts
• Giant Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop Tart
• Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Bars
Lastly, if you made this or any of my recipes, be sure to leave a comment and review below! I love hearing your thoughts! Also tag me on Instagram @eatsdelightfulblog so I can see what you're making.
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Baked Apple Donuts
- Total Time: 1 hour 27 minutes
- Yield: 12 to 14 donuts
Description
Inspired by apple cider donuts, these baked apple donuts are made using FRESH apples instead for the best apple flavor and texture! These donuts bake up tender and moist and are then rolled in butter and cinnamon sugar for added sparkle, crunch, and flavor.
Ingredients
For the apple donuts:
- 1 & ½ cups (210g) grated Granny Smith apples*
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 & ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup (150g) packed brown sugar, light or dark
- ¼ cup (60g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup (160mL) milk, at room temperature
For the cinnamon sugar coating:
- 5 tablespoons (75g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
Make the apple donuts:
- Preheat your oven to 400F.
- Prep the apples: You can peel the apples or leave the skin on (whichever you prefer). Grate the apples then measure out 1 & ½ cups (or 210g) loosely packed.
- Squeeze out any excess liquid from the shredded apples - you can do this by simply grabbing it with your hands and squeezing. Set aside the shredded apples. We're not using the juice for this recipe, but it's great for making drinks or just sipping as is!
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla to combine. Then whisk in the milk followed by the grated apples.
- Finally mix in the dry ingredients until streak free. Take care not to overmix!
- Butter 2 (6 count) donut pans and dust with flour. Tap out any excess flour.
- Fill your greased donut tin with the batter, filling each donut mold ¾ of the way full. You can do this with a spoon, but I find it's easiest to do by filling a large plastic bag or piping bag with the batter and piping it into the donut pan.
- Bake the donuts in the center of your preheated oven for 7 to 10 minutes or until a skewer inserted into a donut comes out with a few moist crumbs. The edges will be lightly browned but the top of the donuts will be a bit pale.
- Cool the donuts for 5 minutes in the pan then flip them onto a wire rack while they're still hot. If they cool in the pan, they'll be more likely to stick!
- Set the baked donuts aside to cool enough to handle.
Make the cinnamon sugar coating:
- Pour your butter into a shallow bowl (large enough to dip a donut in), and set aside.
- In a medium bowl (also large enough to fit a donut in), mix together sugar and cinnamon.
- Quickly dip the donut into the butter and turn to coat both sides. Allow any excess to drip off then drop the donut into the cinnamon sugar and toss to coat all sides.
- Repeat with the remaining donuts then serve!
Notes
* Try to look for firm apples that hold their shape whenever using them in baking. My favorite apples to use are Granny Smith, but some other amazing options include Braeburn, Fuji, and honeycrisp apples.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Bake Time: 7 minutes
- Category: Donuts
Enjoy!
Marion says
I JUST finished glazing these & my husband said they are GREAT! I didn't use the sugar /cinnamon, I used the juice from the apples with powdered sugar instead. That was the ONLY change I made thus a 4 star, because I changed it.THANK YOU for such an easy recipe.