Fall is my favorite season, and with that comes crisp air, scary movies, hayrides and of course, baked apple donuts. Imagine the smell of fresh apple cinnamon donuts filling your home and setting that autumn mood.
Apple Cinnamon Donuts
This amazing baked apple donut recipe is a delightful twist on the cinnamon donuts we all love from the local orchards. Start out the season right by whipping up a batch of these baked donuts for your family to enjoy.
Why You’ll Love this Baked Donuts Recipe:
- Homemade: Not looking to fight the crowds for fresh donuts? These baked apple donuts are better than the ones you’ll find at the pumpkin patch, and you can enjoy them while they’re fresh.
- Family Fun: I love doing fall activities with my kids, and baking these delicious donuts together has become a family favorite. We pick one of our favorite Halloween movies and get our baking on!
Everyone knows that apples are the fruit of the season, so we love to bake them into everything! These treats are perfect for breakfast or afternoons with the family.
How to Make Baked Apple Donuts
Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!
- Combine ingredients to make the donut batter, then fold in the apples.
- Pour batter into a piping bag to fill the donut tray molds.
- Bake until fully cooked through, then let them cool.
- Combine ingredients to make the frosting, then pipe or spread over the cooled donuts.
Ingredient Notes
- Buttermilk: If you don’t have buttermilk, you can substitute ¾ cup of regular milk and stir in 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes and stir once more before using it as a substitute for buttermilk.
- Apples: Choose an apple that doesn’t get too mushy during the baking process. I suggest using Granny Smith, but you could also use Honeycrisp, Jonagold, Golden Delicious, Fuji, or Gala.
- Spices: Feel free to use apple pie spice in place of the cinnamon and nutmeg!
- Brown Sugar: In the frosting, use light brown sugar for a more mild taste or dark brown sugar for a bolder taste.
- Gluten Free: To make these donuts gluten-free, use a gluten-free 1:1 flour in place of the all-purpose flour.
Yeasted donuts are the most traditional, with a light and airy texture. They are rolled out, cut to shape, and fried. Cake donuts rely on chemical leaveners, such as baking powder and/or baking soda, and have a crumbly, cakey texture. They are usually piped and fried. Baked donuts are more like a cross between a cake donut and a muffin, and they are baked in a pan.
Apple cider donuts are cake donuts that contain fresh apple cider and are fried. These donuts, on the other hand, contain chunks of real apples and are baked in a donut tin.
No, buttermilk is needed in this recipe for the donuts to be nice and fluffy. If you don’t have buttermilk, you can substitute ¾ cup of regular milk and stir in 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes and stir once more before using it as a substitute for buttermilk.
A few different things could’ve happened. First, make sure you measured your flour correctly as 350 grams. If you’re scooping flour directly out of the bag, the flour is often compacted into the measuring cup and you end up with more flour than needed. If not using a scale, be sure to spoon and level your flour to prevent compacting. Another thing to check is your baking powder and baking soda. Baking powder can start to lose its effectiveness about 9 months after being opened. For baking soda, it’s about 6 months after the package is opened.
Yep! If you don’t have donut pans or are craving muffins, bake these donuts in a greased muffin tin at 400°F for 8-10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake for another 6-8 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
These apple cinnamon donuts really encompass the spirit of fall. They’re hard to resist!
These donuts are also phenomenal when rolled in cinnamon sugar instead of frosted–the choice of topping is completely up to you!
Make Ahead Instructions
These donuts can be made up to 2 days in advance of when you plan to serve them. Store the donuts in an airtight container at room temperature.
The frosting can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use. Let come to room temperature before spreading on the donuts.
Storage Instructions
Store leftover baked apple donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Bring back to room temperature before serving.
Freezing Instructions
These donuts can be frozen for up to 3 months, both frosted and unfrosted, although I recommend freezing the donuts and frosting separately.
- Freeze the donuts in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet until solid, about 1-2 hours. Transfer to an airtight container or Ziplock bag to store.
- Freeze the frosting in a Ziplock bag for up to 3 months.
Let both the donuts and the frosting come to room temperature before serving.
Substitutions
- If you don’t have buttermilk, you can substitute ¾ cup of regular milk and stir in 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes and stir once more before using it as a substitute for buttermilk.
- Feel free to use apple pie spice in place of the cinnamon and nutmeg!
- Use your favorite variety of crisp apples, such as Honeycrisp, Jonagold, Golden Delicious, Fuji, or Gala.
- In the frosting, use light brown sugar for a more mild taste or dark brown sugar for a bolder taste.
- To make these donuts gluten-free, use a gluten-free 1:1 flour in place of the all-purpose flour.
Scaling Up
Easily double this recipe to feed up to 36 people!
Nothing will put you in a fall festivities mood like these delicious baked apple donuts. Happy fall, y’all!
If you make this recipe be sure to leave us a comment or rating. Enjoy!
Baked Apple Donuts Recipe
Ingredients
For the Donuts
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour 350 grams
- 2 teaspoons baking powder 8 grams
- ½ teaspoon baking soda 3 grams
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3 grams
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ cup unsalted butter 60 grams (½ stick), partially melted (about 30 seconds in the microwave)
- ¼ cup vegetable oil 50 grams
- 1 cup granulated sugar 200 grams
- 2 large eggs 100 grams
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 9 grams
- ¾ cup buttermilk 170 grams, full fat (SEE NOTE)
- 1 cup finely chopped apple 113 grams, from about 1 apple (SEE NOTE)
For the Frosting
- 2 cups powdered sugar 240 grams
- ¾ cup unsalted butter 175 grams (1½ sticks), partially melted (about 30 seconds in the microwave)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar 27 grams
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Equipment
- Kitchen Scale (optional)
Instructions
For the Donuts
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray a donut pan with nonstick spray. Set aside. (For 18 donuts, I used donut pans that make 3-inch sized donuts.)
- In a medium bowl, stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg together. Set aside.2½ cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- In a large bowl, beat together butter, vegetable oil and sugar on high until well mixed (about 1 minute).
- On high speed, beat the eggs and vanilla extract into the wet ingredients until well mixed, about 1 minute.2 large eggs, 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- On low, beat half the flour mixture into the wet ingredients just until combined. Do not overmix.
- Add in all the buttermilk and beat (on low setting) until combined.
- Add in the remaining flour mixture and beat on low just until fully combined. It’s okay if the batter is still slightly lumpy. Do not overmix or the donuts won’t bake up fluffy.
- Gently fold in the apples until mixed well.1 cup finely chopped apple
- Place the donut batter into a large piping bag and pipe the batter into the donut tin wells. Fill each well up only ¾ of the way full so they have room to grow without overflowing.
- Bake for 15-16 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in a donut comes out clean.
- Cool for 15 minutes in the tin before removing from the tin to cool completely. Let cool completely before frosting. Repeat until all batter has been used.
For the Frosting
- In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, beat the powdered sugar, butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon together until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.2 cups powdered sugar, ¾ cup unsalted butter, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pipe or spoon the icing over the cooled donuts.
Notes
- Buttermilk: If you don’t have buttermilk, you can substitute ¾ cup of regular milk and stir in 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes and stir once more before using it as a substitute for buttermilk.
- Apples: Choose an apple that doesn’t get too mushy during the baking process. I suggest using Granny Smith, but you could also use Honeycrisp, Jonagold, Golden Delicious, Fuji, or Gala.
- Feel free to use apple pie spice in place of the cinnamon and nutmeg!
- In the frosting, use light brown sugar for a more mild taste or dark brown sugar for a bolder taste.
- To make these donuts gluten-free, use a gluten-free 1:1 flour in place of the all-purpose flour.
- Easily double this recipe to feed a crowd!
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