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Easy Baked Apple Cider Donuts with Cinnamon Sugar

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These baked apple cider donuts with cinnamon sugar are soft, tender, and coated in a crunchy cinnamon-sugar shell. Made with real reduced apple cider, they deliver all the cozy fall flavor without the fuss of frying.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup apple cider (unfiltered is best)
  • 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg (freshly grated if available)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 large egg, room temperature
  • ½ cup buttermilk, room temperature (or ½ cup milk + ½ tablespoon lemon juice, let sit 5 minutes)
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup reduced apple cider (from above)
  • ½ cup granulated sugar (for coating)
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon (for coating)
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (for dipping)

Instructions

  1. Reduce the apple cider: Pour 1 cup apple cider into a small saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until reduced to about ¼ cup. Set aside to cool.
  2. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease a standard 6-cavity donut pan with non-stick spray or melted butter.
  3. Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
  4. Mix wet ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together granulated sugar, brown sugar, and egg until smooth and slightly thickened (about 1 minute). Then whisk in buttermilk, melted butter, vanilla extract, and cooled reduced apple cider until smooth.
  5. Combine wet and dry: Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Gently fold with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix; a few streaks of flour are okay.
  6. Fill donut pan: Transfer batter to a piping bag or sturdy Ziploc bag with corner snipped off. Pipe batter into each donut cavity, filling about ⅔ to ¾ full.
  7. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until donuts are lightly golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the thickest part comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 2 minutes.
  8. Prepare coating: While donuts bake, melt 4 tablespoons butter in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, whisk together ½ cup granulated sugar and 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon.
  9. Coat donuts: While still warm, gently remove donuts from pan. Working one at a time, brush all over with melted butter, then immediately roll in cinnamon sugar mixture, pressing gently to adhere.
  10. Place coated donuts on a cooling rack. Let set for a few minutes, then serve warm.

Notes

Don’t let donuts cool completely before coating; warm butter helps cinnamon sugar adhere. For best results, use real apple cider (not apple juice) and reduce it to concentrate flavor. If you don’t have a donut pan, use a mini muffin tin for donut holes (bake 8-10 minutes).

Nutrition

Keywords: baked apple cider donuts, cinnamon sugar donuts, fall donuts, apple cider donuts, baked donuts, easy donut recipe

Find it online: https://juliamadeit.com/easy-baked-apple-cider-donuts-with-cinnamon-sugar/