Apple Cider Doughnut Holes
September 29, 2010 | Print | E-mail | Filed under apple, doughnut
Hubby and I went apple picking with friends over the weekend, and we picked a TON of Honeycrisp, Cortland, and Empire apples – even after making a batch of apple maple butter, it looks like I barely made a dent in our bounty! We had a great time picking and going out for lunch, and then afterward, we all headed over to our friend’s house so that the girls could bake and the guys could play video games – the perfect Saturday afternoon, in my opinion! So, bake we did. We made pie crust, apple pies, apple crisp, and then we decided to get a little adventurous and make these doughnut holes. I had brought along my little fryer, so we made got to work making the dough…and before we knew it, we had over a hundred doughnut holes! Not only does each one taste like you’re taking a bite of autumn, but unlike a lot of other fried foods, they keep pretty well stored in an airtight container for several days. And, since this recipe makes so many, that’s a good thing – you’ll have plenty to share!
Makes about 115 doughnut holes:
- 1 cup apple cider
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 5 1/2 cups flour, divided
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp cardamom
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- Vegetable oil, for frying
For the topping:
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 Tbsp cinnamon
In a small sauce pan, boil the apple cider down until it is reduced to 1/4 cup. Allow to cool. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs.
Beat in the buttermilk and reduced apple cider.
In a medium bowl, whisk together 3 1/2 cups of the flour, the baking powder and soda, and the cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients until combined. The dough will be very sticky.
Transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead, adding in the additional flour (you may not need the full 2 cups), until the dough is no longer sticky.
Roll out the dough to 1/2″ thickness, and using a 1″ cutter, cut out the doughnut holes. Re-roll the scraps of dough and continue cutting until there is no dough left.
In an electric fryer or a deep pan, add 3″ of vegetable oil. Fry several doughnut holes at a time, turning occasionally, until they are browned and cooked through. Remove the cooked doughnut holes to a paper towel-lined plate. Immediately coat them in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Serve warm.
September 29th, 2010 at 9:29 am
Ok I am not usually a fan of donuts (or pastries in general) but I LOVE apple donuts. They remind me of vacations as a kid. These look so incredible!
September 29th, 2010 at 9:32 am
Apple Cider Donuts are an ALL TIME Anderson family favorite! I will have to make these for my mom.
September 29th, 2010 at 9:39 am
Thanks for sharing. I definitely want to try these! What a great way to capture autumn in a small bite.
September 29th, 2010 at 9:42 am
Theyu look fantastic – have made them with applesauce but never cider – will have to try!! Thanks!
September 29th, 2010 at 9:49 am
Apple cider donuts are my favorite. I look forward to buying them every year when we go apple picking. I would never have thought to make them at home. Thanks so much for sharing the recipe. My kids will be very happy too! They look so darn good:)
September 29th, 2010 at 9:55 am
I’ve never tried apple cider doughnuts before. but they sound delicious!
September 29th, 2010 at 9:57 am
this looks like the perfect thing to do this weekend!
September 29th, 2010 at 10:05 am
These are the perfect fall doughnuts!
September 29th, 2010 at 10:09 am
We are having friends over for the game and cookout this weekend, I think this will be the perfect thing for dessert!
September 29th, 2010 at 10:43 am
Ok…..so I have yet to do any “frying” – it intimidates me for some reason. I keep seeing such wonderful (and d’lish) recipes that require some frying in the process….including your amazing Apple Cider Doughnut Holes! I’ve got to get over the fear and just go ahead and do some “frying” already! Thanks for the encouragement Tracy!
September 29th, 2010 at 12:16 pm
Wow, these look so good! Great go to recipe!
September 29th, 2010 at 1:15 pm
Cortland is my favorite apple and every fall I fill up for the year!
September 29th, 2010 at 2:14 pm
These little gems make me want to go purchase a new fryer! We used to make fried apple fritters when I was a kid….now I need to try these. Thanks for the post!
September 29th, 2010 at 3:23 pm
Oh my goodness YUM!!!! my favorite little donuts as a girl were apple ones. These sound great!
September 29th, 2010 at 3:26 pm
I am enjoying a lovely Honeycrisp at this very moment. Can’t wait for the stores to get local a supply of local Pink Lady.
Apple donuts? I’d have to go out and buy bigger pants. But they look spectacular.
September 29th, 2010 at 3:55 pm
Ooh, love this! Donuts usually mean hours in the kitchen around here, but these look pretty simple and totally yummy!
September 29th, 2010 at 6:28 pm
This is the best thing I have seen all day! Just lovely and delicious
September 29th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
Love cider donuts this time of year! I’ll have to tuck away this recipe for Thanksgiving when the fam is together
September 29th, 2010 at 8:32 pm
Oh, budddddy! Looking good.
September 29th, 2010 at 10:46 pm
Oh man! Every time we go to Vermont, we stop at this little apple cidery inbetween Stowe and Waterbury. And every single time, we can’t leave without getting some freshly made apple cider donuts. We’re gonna have to make these, as soon as I get home from Dallas!
September 29th, 2010 at 10:48 pm
I have to have these babies now!! They look amazing! I love apple cider and doughnut holes…The perfect combination! Yummy!
September 30th, 2010 at 10:39 am
Love these and the picture! I’m tweeting this too!
September 30th, 2010 at 1:22 pm
Those look so good. You could get creative with this too!
September 30th, 2010 at 3:43 pm
These look so yummy!!!!!
September 30th, 2010 at 8:29 pm
Wow! Those look so great!
September 30th, 2010 at 11:04 pm
Donut holes make me so happy. I love this recipe!
October 1st, 2010 at 4:45 am
These look absolutely delicious!!! I love doughnuts. Plus, no worrying about yeast and things. I’m a yeastphobe!
October 1st, 2010 at 8:40 am
I have always been a little scared of deep frying…probably because I know deep down I will become addicted!! These look so perfect and yummy
October 1st, 2010 at 5:20 pm
Oh, my. What a torture not having one right now!
October 1st, 2010 at 6:03 pm
These look and sound delicious! Can’t wait to give them a try:)
October 2nd, 2010 at 9:08 am
these left my house smelling like a bakery!!! these started off the sat work morning with a bang! thank you for another successful recipe! keep them coming. . .
October 2nd, 2010 at 7:25 pm
Alison lewis is a champ! her suggestion to read your post was a good one! my son wanted to make something like this last week during our school holidays and the recipe he found was ridiculously hard… this one is delightfully easy! thanks so much and glad i clicked on! cheers kari
October 3rd, 2010 at 8:29 am
Oh how I love apple picking. Getting fresh apple cider donuts makes it just that much better!
Thanks for sharing, will definitely be trying this
October 3rd, 2010 at 3:50 pm
These look so good- I have been meaning to make apple donuts, and I think I have been inspired!
October 6th, 2010 at 8:34 pm
YUM!! I always love your recipes, but the recent recipes this fall have been even better than usual. LOVE these doughnut holes.
October 8th, 2010 at 5:02 pm
I swear…you have the best fall recipes!
October 10th, 2010 at 9:58 pm
These look AH-Mazing! I seriously wanted to reach right through the screen…and your pictures are so beautiful, I felt like I could!
October 30th, 2010 at 8:59 pm
I have a donut pan to bake my donuts. Do you think I would have to make modifications to this recipe if I were to bake the batter instead of frying it? Thanks!
October 31st, 2010 at 9:55 am
Sarah – This dough has a consistency closer to that of a bread dough than a cake batter, so I’m not sure how it would work with a doughnut pan. You can certainly try it, though – I would form the dough into doughnuts and then place them into the pan and bake them. If you do try it, let me know how they turn out!
October 7th, 2011 at 2:15 pm
Can the dough be made the night before and refrigerated until morning?
October 9th, 2011 at 2:17 pm
Sarah – I don’t see why not!