Fried Apple Cider Donuts with Maple Icing
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These delicious and easy fried apple cider donuts are so perfect for a fall breakfast! Simple to make and coated in a spiced maple icing, they're sure to become your new favorite autumn treat.
why I love these apple cider donuts:
Is there anything better than a freshly fried donut? These fried donuts are incredibly easy to make because they do not contain any yeast!
Texture. These donuts have the same texture as a yeasted donut that you would fry without the hassle of making a bread dough. They fry up beautifully and have excellent lift simply from baking powder and baking soda.
Simple Ingredients. There is nothing better than keeping it simple when it comes to baking (and cooking)! This recipe uses incredibly simple ingredients, making it a doable recipe for most home bakers.
One Bowl. You only need one bowl to make these apple cider donuts, which means easier clean up!
gathering ingredients:
These fried apple cider donuts are made with simple ingredients that you most likely already have in your kitchen!
Apple Cider. To make apple cider donuts, you will need apple cider to make a reduction. The apple cider reduction gives the donuts their signature autumnal flavor!
All-Purpose Flour. For this recipe, I have found that all-purpose flour gives you the best results. Whole wheat flour can really weigh down the recipe and pastry flour is too fine, making the donuts fall apart.
Brown Sugar. You will need light brown sugar for this recipe, which really helps boost the overall flavor of the donut.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda. You do not need yeast for this donut recipe!
Salt. I like to use kosher salt.
Spices. I used cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.
Butter. I always use salted butter in my recipes, but you can swap it out for unsalted butter and increase the salt by 1/4 teaspoon.
Unsweetened Applesauce. Applesauce adds more depth of flavor and texture to this donut. If you do not have unsweetened applesauce, you can use sweetened applesauce instead.
Buttermilk. If you do not have buttermilk, any other type of milk or even water will work for this recipe.
Eggs. For this recipe, you will want large eggs.
Powdered Sugar. For the icing, you will need powdered sugar.
Cornstarch. To give the icing a lovely thickness and ability to coat well, I like to use cornstarch. You can use another type of starch as a substitute, such as potato starch or tapioca starch.
Maple Syrup. For a lovely maple flavor, maple syrup is added to the icing.
how to make fried apple cider donuts:
Step One: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice until well combined. To the dry ingredients, add the apple cider reduction, melted butter, applesauce, buttermilk, and eggs. Stir together with a wooden spoon or spatula until a thick and somewhat biscuit-like dough forms. It will be a wet and tacky, but it should hold together on its own.
Step Two: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it into your refrigerator. Leave the dough to chill for at least 2 to 3 hours or overnight. The longer it chills, the easier it will be to work with. The chilling process makes the dough easy to roll and fry, sort of like a soft cookie dough.
Step Three: Lightly dust the countertop and your rolling pin with flour. Roll out the dough to about 1/2-inch (1-cm) thick. The dough does become sticky easily, so dust with flour as needed. Cut out donuts with a 3-inch (8-cm) donut cutter, or a 3-inch (8-cm) round cookie cutter and bottle cap for the center hole. Save the donut holes to fry or set them aside to roll back into the scrap dough.
Step Four: When the oil is hot, fry the donuts about 1 minute per side, flipping them over in the oil with a fork or tongs. The temperature of the oil will drop while frying, so let the temperature raise back up to 350° F (177° C) in between sets of donuts.
Step Five: Remove the donuts from the hot oil with tongs or a skimmer spoon and place on a wire cooling rack set over parchment paper or a baking sheet to catch any oil drips.
Step Six: In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon. Then, add the maple syrup and milk, creating a thick and smooth icing with the same consistency as liquid glue. It should ribbon and leave a trace for a few seconds when you drizzle the icing back into the bowl. Dip the donuts into the icing, flipping them over and gently shaking off any excess icing. Lay them back onto a wire cooling rack set over a baking sheet or parchment paper to catch and drips.
tips & recipe notes:
Frying donuts can be a little intimidating if you have never done it before! But don’t worry. It’s really easy to make homemade apple cider donuts that have been fried. If you want, you can also make Baked Apple Cider Donuts!
Chill the Dough. If you are whipping up this dough, you might start to question the recipe overall because the donut dough is really soft! Don’t panic. The dough needs to go through a chilling period before being fried, similar to cookie dough. The chilling helps it retain its shape and makes the dough able to be rolled and cut with a donut cutter on the countertop.
Adjust the Temperature. When the donuts are frying, the temperature of the oil will go down. Don’t toss the next set of donuts into the oil until it has returned to 350° F (177°C). If your oil is getting too hot, simply lower the heat and let it slowly climb back down. You can also move the pot to be a little offset on your burner to help reduce the heat.
Weigh Your Ingredients. It’s always incredibly helpful to weigh your ingredients! I provide metric measurements for my recipes and this is how I develop them so that they turn out perfect every time. For the best results, I highly suggest investing in a kitchen scale and weighing everything out.
storing fried apple cider donuts:
These donuts taste the best on the first and second day after baking. After that, most fried foods tend to decline in texture.
To store these donuts for later, I suggest storing them in paper such as a paper sack or paper box for pastries at room temperature. This will help them to not be surrounded by too much moisture. If they are stored in plastic, the donuts will become soggy and the icing will start to melt.
For longer storage, you can store the donuts in the refrigerator, or freeze them. Simply wrap the donuts in plastic wrap and place into a freezer bag. They should keep for about 6 months for the best quality.
final thoughts:
As you can see, making homemade fried apple cider donuts is pretty simple! You don’t need any fancy equipment or loads of experience as a baker. The dough comes together in minutes and after some time in the refrigerator, the donuts are ready to fry and coat in irresistible maple icing. I love these apple cider donuts to enjoy on a chilly autumn afternoon with a cup of hot coffee. Grab your favorite flannel blanket to enjoy these while watching the autumn leaves fall!
xoxo Kayla
Fried Apple Cider Donuts with Maple Icing
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups (600 ml) apple cider
- 3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (50 g) brown sugar, packed
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) salted melted butter
- 2 tbsp + 2 tsp (40 ml) unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tbsp + 2 tsp (40 ml) buttermilk, room temperature
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 quarts (1.89 L) neutral cooking oil, for frying
- 1 cup (118 g) powdered sugar, sifted
- 1/2 tbsp (4 g) cornstach
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) maple syrup
- 1 to 2 tbsp (15 to 30 ml) milk
Instructions
- Begin by making your apple cider reduction. To a medium saucepan, add the apple cider and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat to a simmer and continue to cook until the cider is reduced to about 1/3 cup (80 ml) and is a dark amber color, thick, and syrupy. Let the reduction cool to room temperature before using.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice until well combined. To the dry ingredients, add the apple cider reduction, melted butter, applesauce, buttermilk, and eggs. Stir together with a wooden spoon or spatula until a thick and somewhat biscuit-like dough forms. It will be a wet and tacky, but it should hold together on its own.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it into your refrigerator. Leave the dough to chill for at least 2 to 3 hours or overnight. The longer it chills, the easier it will be to work with. The chilling process makes the dough easy to roll and fry, sort of like a soft cookie dough.
- After the dough has chilled, bring it out onto the countertop. Heat the oil in a large pot over the stove or an electric deep fryer to 350° F (177° C).
- Lightly dust the countertop and your rolling pin with flour. Roll out the dough to about 1/2-inch (1-cm) thick. The dough does become sticky easily, so dust with flour as needed. Cut out donuts with a 3-inch (8-cm) donut cutter, or a 3-inch (8-cm) round cookie cutter and bottle cap for the center hole. Save the donut holes to fry or set them aside to roll back into the scrap dough.
- Bring the dough together and roll back out, continuing to cut out donuts until you have used all of the dough.
- When the oil is hot, fry the donuts about 1 minute per side, flipping them over in the oil with a fork or tongs. The temperature of the oil will drop while frying, so let the temperature raise back up to 350° F (177° C) in between sets of donuts.
- Remove the donuts from the hot oil with tongs or a skimmer spoon and place on a wire cooling rack set over parchment paper or a baking sheet to catch any oil drips.
- Continue to fry the donuts in batches until they are all finished. Let the donuts cool completely before icing.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon. Then, add the maple syrup and milk, creating a thick and smooth icing with the same consistency as liquid glue. It should ribbon and leave a trace for a few seconds when you drizzle the icing back into the bowl.
- Dip the donuts into the icing, flipping them over and gently shaking off any excess icing. Lay them back onto a wire cooling rack set over a baking sheet or parchment paper to catch and drips.
- Continue to dip the rest of donuts until they are all coated in icing. Once the icing has dried, about 3 to 5 minutes per donut, serve the donuts at room temperature.
- They store best in a paper container, such as a paper sack or paper box. Storing the donuts in plastic will make the icing melt and donuts soggy.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
545Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
