Baked Apple Cider Donuts

4.88 from 8 votes

These Baked Apple Cider Donuts are soft and tender, full of warm Fall spices, and covered in a crunchy cinnamon sugar coating!

Prep Time30

Cook Time10

Total Time40

Course: Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: baked donuts, fall breakfast

Servings: - 16 donuts

Calories: 248kcal

Add apple cider to a small saucepan and bring it to a boil over MED HIGH heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to LOW/MED-LOW and simmer until cider reduces to 1/2 cup, pouring into a liquid measuring cup to be precise. This process usually takes me about 15 minutes.
Let cider cool to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 375°F and spray a donut pan with cooking spray. Set pan aside.
In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Whisk together to combine well.
In another mixing bowl, add the buttermilk, brown sugar, granulated sugar, egg, melted butter, vanilla and cooled apple cider reduction. Whisk to combine well.
Pour the milk mixture into the large mixing bowl with the flour mixture. Stir until just combined and no flour streaks remain.
Transfer batter to a piping bag, or large zip top bag. Cut about 1/2 an inch off of the corner of the bag.
Pipe the batter into the donut cavities of the prepared donut pan, filling the cavities about halfway.
Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the donut comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Another way to tell if they are done is to lightly touch the top of a donut. If it springs back, it's done.
Transfer baked donuts to a wire cooling rack. Re-grease donut pan and repeat with any remaining batter.

In a shallow bowl, combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 2 tsp ground cinnamon.
Brush donuts, one at a time, with melted butter, coating all sides. Dip the donut into the cinnamon sugar mixture, then transfer donut back to the wire rack. Repeat with remaining donuts.

Recipe makes approximately 12-16 donuts.
You can reduce the apple cider in advance. Reduce to 1/2 cup, let cool, then refrigerate for a day or two, until you're ready to bake.
If you don't have a donut pan, and don't want to buy one, you can make donut muffins! Scoop batter into a greased muffin pan, filling about 2/3 or 3/4 of the way full. Bake at 350°F for about 17-20 minutes. Brush with butter and roll in cinnamon sugar.
You can also make mini muffins (or baked donut holes), by scooping batter into a greased mini muffin pan, filling about 3/4 of the way full. Bake at 350°F for about 8-9 minutes.