Baked Apple Cider Donuts are full of warm spices, candied pecans, and a delicious maple cinnamon glaze. It’s the best of the wonderful fall flavors in a perfect, little handheld treat.
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Apple and cinnamon go together like crusty bread and salted butter. They were made for each other and one of my all-time favorite flavor combinations. These Baked Apple Cider Donuts are the embodiment of apple cinnamon perfection.
This recipe is super simple to put together and needs only a few minutes in the oven to bake. A gentle dunk in the maple cinnamon glaze at the end send these bite-sized beauties over the top.
Serve them with coffee in the mornings, for the perfect sweet treat after a meal, or for hungry mouths coming in from school. They’re fantastic for the upcoming holiday season and so delicious, you’ll make them year round.
apple cider donuts ingredients
Here’s everything you’ll need to make the best Baked Apple Cider Donuts ever!
- Apple Cider Concentrate
- Brown Sugar
- Avocado Oil
- Whole Milk
- Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- AP Flour
- Ground Cinnamon
- Ground Nutmeg
- Ground Clove
- Baking Powder
- Kosher Salt
- Maple Syrup
- Powdered Sugar
- Pecans
how to make baked apple cider donuts
maple-candied pecans
Making these Baked Apple Cider Donuts is so easy. To begin, we need to make the maple-candied pecans. Do you have to do this step? No. But, this will only take about 5 minutes, and they are so good that I highly suggest not skipping this step.
All you have to do is add the pecans to a skillet over medium high heat. Next, add the maple syrup and stir until the syrup starts to thicken just a bit. Remove the pecans from the skillet and sprinkle them with a little flaky sea salt. That’s it!
apple cider donuts
For the donut batter, you don’t even need a mixer, just a whisk and a large bowl. Start with the wet ingredients. Add the sugar, oil, milk, eggs, apple cider concentrate, and vanilla to a large mixing bowl. Whisk everything together until it’s well combined.
Next, it’s time for the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix together the AP flour, ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove, baking powder and kosher salt. Whisk those things until they are evenly distributed.
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients mixing until just combined. Don’t over mix or you’ll end up with a tough donut. And, that would be a travesty.
Carefully fold in those glorious maple-candied pecans.
getting the batter into the donut molds
The easiest way to get the Apple Cider Donut batter into the donut molds is by piping it in. If you do not have piping bags, grab a large zip top bag and fill it with the batter. Snip a small piece of the corner of the bag off and you have a homemade piping bag.
Pipe the batter into the molds. I fill mine almost to the top, but not quite. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 11-13 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let them cool in the molds for about 5 minutes and onto a cooling rack for another 10-15 minutes.
the glaze
The maple cinnamon glaze is just that. In a small mixing bowl, combine the maple syrup, powdered sugar, cinnamon, and pinch of salt and whisk until smooth.
Take a cooled donut and dip it into the glaze so that it comes halfway up the sides of the donut. Repeat until all of the donuts are glazed.
If you have the strength and fortitude to resist, the glaze with set up in about 15-20 minutes and will be a little less messy while eating. Otherwise, dig in and enjoy! FYI, I have no strength or fortitude.
apple cider concentrate
For this Apple Cider Donut recipe, you’ll need apple cider concentrate. If you don’t use a concentrate, the apple cider flavor is not strong enough to taste. I made it easy on myself, and also because I was feeling a little lazy, and bought the concentrate online. I found mine on Amazon and have it linked below.
However, you can also make the concentrate from scratch. Simply bring about one and a half cups of apple cider to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the liquid has reduced to about 1/2 a cup. It’s very simple and doable. Once it’s reduced down, remove it from the heat and let it cool.
recipe frequently asked questions
You do not have to add the pecans to this Apple Cider Donut recipe. They add a sweet, salty crunch, but the donuts will be great fantastic without them.
To me, these donuts are both a dessert and a breakfast. They’ll be amazing served in the morning with a cup of hot coffee or tea. They’re also great for a sweet treat after dinner. My kids love to have them after school for a special snack. They’re good no matter what time of day.
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Baked Apple Cider Donuts
Ingredients
Candied Pecans
- 1 cup pecans, finely diced
- 2 tbsp maple sugar
- pinch of flaky sea salt
Apple Cider Donuts
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup avocado oil
- ½ cup apple cider concentrate
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups AP flour
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp ground clove
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp kosher salt
Maple Cinnamon Glaze
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
Candied Pecans
- Add the pecans and maple syrup to a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir until the syrup starts to thicken just a bit. Remove the pecans from the skillet and sprinkle them with a little flaky sea salt. Set aside to cool.
Apple Cider Donuts
- Add the sugar, oil, milk, eggs, apple cider concentrate, and vanilla to a large mixing bowl. Whisk everything together until it's well combined.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the AP flour, ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove, baking powder and kosher salt. Whisk to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients mixing until just combined.
- Fold in the pecans.
- Pipe the batter into a greased donut pan. I fill mine almost to the top, but not quite. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 11-13 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Let them cool in the molds for about 5 minutes and onto a cooling rack for another 10-15 minutes.
Maple Cinnamon Glaze
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the maple syrup, powdered sugar, cinnamon, and pinch of salt and whisk until smooth.
- Take a cooled donut and dip it into the glaze so that it comes halfway up the sides of the donut. Repeat until all of the donuts are glazed.
- The glaze with set up in about 15-20 minutes and will be a little less messy while eating. Otherwise, dig in and enjoy!
Notes
- You can make the apple cider concentrate from scratch. Simply bring about one and a half cups of apple cider to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the liquid has reduced to about 1/2 a cup. It’s very simple and doable. Once it’s reduced down, remove it from the heat and let it cool.
- The easiest way to get the Apple Cider Donut batter into the donut molds is by piping it in. If you do not have piping bags, grab a large zip top bag and fill it with the batter. Snip a small piece of the corner of the bag off and you have a homemade piping bag.
- Depending on the size of your donut pan, you’ll get between 12-18 donuts.
Nutrition
Thank you!
I am so incredibly happy that you are here! I hope you try my Baked Apple Cider Donuts recipe and fall in love with it. If you make this recipe, please share and tag me on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok! And, please leave a comment or star rating below. I absolutely love seeing each and every one of your kitchen masterpieces. And, as always, if you ever have any questions about any of my recipes, please don’t hesitate to contact me!
Happy Cooking!
–Rufus
Rufus for Real is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. I may earn a commission, with no additional cost to you, if you purchase through those links.
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