This homemade baked apple cider donuts recipe creates donuts that are soft, tender, and filled with fall flavors in every bite. The secret is reducing the apple cider down until it's concentrated and syrupy, so you get more apple flavor without watering down the batter. Combined with a blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and allspice, these donuts taste like fall in the best way possible.
Apple cider donuts have been on my must-bake list for years, and after plenty of recipe testing, I finally landed on the recipe I've been chasing. These apple cider donuts are tender, full of flavor, and never dry or dense. Piped into a donut pan and baked instead of fried, they come together with less mess and less oil than the donut shop version, but you still get that same nostalgic, crunchy cinnamon-sugar on the outside. This will quickly become one of your go-to fall baking recipes. If you are looking for more fall baking recipes, be sure to check out our Apple Coffee Cake or our Pumpkin Pancakes.
Quick Look: Apple Cider Donut Recipe
- Ready In: about 35 minutes
- Makes: 12 donuts
- Calories: about 350 kcal
- Add to Your Shopping List: apple cider and sour cream
- Dietary Info: contains gluten, eggs, and dairy but can be made as gluten free apple cider donuts
- Baker's Note: Use a piping bag (or a zip-top bag with the corner snipped off) to pipe the batter into the donut pan. It's easy, less messy than spooning it in, and gives you even, similarly sized donuts.
Summarize and Save This Content
Jump to:
Key Ingredients
Make this homemade apple cider donut recipe with a handful of pantry staples and everyone's fall favorite - apple cider.
Apple cider - This is where the concentrated fall flavor comes from. Reducing 1 ½ cups of cider down to ½ cup gives you a concentrated apple flavor without adding extra liquid and watering the batter down.
Cozy fall spices - A mix of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and allspice give these donuts that cozy, nostalgic flavor that you want in a fall bake. If you're missing one of the spices, don't stress. Just make sure that cinnamon is the one that you use the most of.
Sour cream - Adds moisture and a subtle tang that keeps these donuts tender for days, not just on the day you bake them.
Brown sugar - Add flavor and moisture to the batter.
How to Make Apple Cider Donuts
Making these baked apple cider donuts comes down to just a few simple steps. The most labor intensive part is reducing the cider, it's not hard, it just takes a little bit of time.
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Reduce the apple cider. Pour the apple cider into a small saucepan and simmer until it is reduced down to about ½ cup.
- Melt the butter into the warm cider. Add the butter to the warm, reduced cider and stir until completely melted.
- Whisk in the remaining wet ingredients. Once the cider mixture is cool. Which in the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla.
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Pipe the batter into the pans. Spray two donut pans with cooking spray, then pipe the batter evenly into each well, filling about ¾ of the way full. Bake for 11-12 minutes.
- Brush with butter and coat. While the donuts are still warm, brush each one with melted butter, then dip and roll in the cinnamon-sugar.
- Serve. Pile the warm, cinnamon-sugar coated donuts onto a platter and serve with coffee or warm apple cider for the full fall moment.
Baked, Not Fried
If you're imagining the deep-fried, cakey donuts that you get from your favorite apple orchard or donut shop, these are a little different. The recipe is baked in a donut pan instead of fried in oil, which means no standing over a pot of hot oil, no greasy mess, and no need for a deep fryer or candy thermometer.
Baking does give you a slightly lighter texture than a traditional fried apple cider donut, but you still get that same warm spice, tender crumb, and that classic cinnamon-sugar coating. If you love the ease of a one bowl muffin recipe, this donut recipe will feel just as easy to make - just piped into a fun shape instead of scooped.
Substitutions and Variations
Apple Pie Spice Substitution
Happen to have a jar of apple pie spice in your cabinet? You can use 2 teaspoons in place of the individual spices in this recipe.
Gluten Free Apple Cider Donuts
Swap the all-purpose flour for your favorite 1:1 gluten free baking flour and make this apple cider donut recipe gluten free. I've had good luck using Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1:1 Baking Flour and King Arthur Measure for Measure in this batter.
Mini Apple Cider Donuts
To make mini apple cider donuts, pipe the batter into a mini donut pan instead, filling each well about ¾ of the way full. Bake at 350°F for 6-8 minutes, or until the donuts spring back when lightly touched. This will make about 24 mini donuts.
Apple Cider Donuts FAQs
This recipe is developed specifically for baking, so the batter isn't designed for frying. If you love a cider donut, and you're looking for a fried version, save this version as your go-to baked donut recipe and then choose a recipe designed for frying.
This usually means that the donuts came out of the oven a little early. Ovens can run hot or cool, so start checking at the 9 minute mark and bake until the donuts spring back when lightly touched in the center.
A donut pan gives you that classic shape, but you can also bake this batter as muffins. Fill a lined muffin pan about ⅔ full and bake at 350°F, checking for doneness around 12-14 minutes.
This batter is best mixed and baked right away, since the baking powder starts to work right as soon as the wet and dry ingredients combine. If you need to prep ahead, measure out the dry ingredients and boil the syrup ahead of time. Mix the batter up just before baking.
Storage
Room Temperature: Store apple cider donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Refrigerator: For longer storage, keep the donuts in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freezer: These donuts freeze well for up to 2 months. Let them cool completely, then freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet before transferring to a freezer bag.
How to Reheat Apple Cider Donuts
Microwave: Warm a donut for 10-15 seconds to bring back that just-baked texture.
Oven or Toaster Oven: Warm at 300°F for 3-4 minutes.
Frozen Donuts: Thaw at room temperature, or warm a frozen donut in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds.
More Fall Baking Recipes
If you tried these Apple Cider Donuts or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
📖 Recipe
Want to Save This Recipe?
Enter your email & I'll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Maple and Thyme.
Baked Apple Cider Donuts Recipe
Equipment
- large mixing bowl
- whisk
- small saucepan (for reducing the cider)
- glass measuring cup
- piping bag, or a zip-top bag with the corner snipped off
- donut pans (2)
- cooking spray
- small bowl or shallow plate (for the cinnamon-sugar coating)
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
Ingredients
For the Apple Cider Donuts
- 2 cups (270g) all purpose flour
- ⅔ cup (120g) brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon cardamom
- ⅛ teaspoon allspice
- 1 ½ cups apple cider reduced to ½ cup
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
For the Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- ¼ cup butter melted
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
Instructions
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, allspice, and brown sugar.
- Reduce the apple cider. Pour the apple cider into a small saucepan and simmer until reduced down to about ½ cup. Pour into a glass measuring cup.
- Melt the butter into the warm cider. Add ¼ cup butter to the warm, reduced cider and stir until completely melted.
- Whisk in the remaining wet ingredients. Once the cider mixture is cool, whisk in the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla.
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Pipe the batter into the pans. Spray two donut pans with cooking spray, then pipe the batter evenly into each well, filling about ¾ of the way full.
- Bake. Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes, or until the donuts spring back when lightly touched.
- Brush with butter and coat. While the donuts are still warm, brush each one with melted butter, then dip and roll in the cinnamon-sugar mixture until fully coated.
Notes
- Don't skip the cider reduction. Reducing the cider all the way down to ½ cup is what gives these donuts their concentrated apple flavor - don't rush or skip this step.
- Let the cider and butter cool before whisking in the eggs so that you don't accidentally cook them.
- Coat while warm. The butter and cinnamon-sugar coating sticks best when the donuts are still warm, so coat them soon after they come out of the oven.
Amanda Smallwood says
These were so easy to make and they turned out perfectly! It was so easy to pipe the batter into the pan instead of dealing with frying. That cinnamon and sugar coating on the outside is so good! Will definitely be making these again this fall!