Visit our Bread Recipes page for more wonderful homemade bread recipes!
When I promise an all-desserts week, I mean it. Here’s installment #2!
There are foods I will sprint for—doughnuts aren’t usually one of them. I don’t have a huge sweet tooth (despite the number of dessert recipes on this site) and I spend my “sweet capital” carefully. Donuts often feel too sweet, too sticky, too much. Still, every fall I can’t resist the lure of an apple cider doughnut. The name alone is irresistible: cider makes me drool.
Apple cider doughnuts are often baked rather than fried and, instead of a thick glaze, they are rolled in cinnamon sugar. I can manage one or two doughnut holes of that kind before I’m done. For me, that’s indulgence.
My husband and kids, though, inhale doughnuts. My husband calls them “DARNITS”—as in, “DARNIT! I ate another one!” When I came across a baked pumpkin doughnut recipe recently, I adapted it into a cider-and-pumpkin version. I wanted cider to be a hint, not to overpower the pumpkin. Is there a more autumnal pairing than cider and pumpkin? I don’t think so.
I made the dough, rolled it, cut it, and set the pieces on pans. Soon the little and not-so-little men of the house started wandering into the kitchen. “What are you—OOOOH! Mom’s making DOUGHNUTS!” They hovered and asked, “When will they be done?” and “Did we clean that well?” (No, but they were forgiven—being cute helps.)
I baked, dunked, and rolled the doughnuts in sugar. Technically I didn’t personally roll every one, but after a double batch we all pitch in. I took a few pictures with a child hanging from one leg, another on my back, and my husband and older boys tapping their feet in the background asking when I’d finished. I snapped three photos and stepped away.
They descended on the tray with the speed and voracity of locusts.
When they paused to breathe I tasted a doughnut hole. They were excellent—light, just sweet enough, and beautifully spiced. The crumb had a warm pumpkin-orange color and pumpkin flavor, with just a whisper of apple cider. The brown butter added a nutty richness and helped the crunchy cinnamon sugar cling to the outside. In short, these were doughnuts I could happily eat more than two of. Darnit.
Some Important Cooking Notes:
- This dough is very slack, soft, and sticky. When first mixed it will resemble a batter more than a traditional dough. Be patient: after the first rise the flour hydrates and the dough becomes workable.
- Flour your work surface, rolling pin, and hands generously. Keep adding flour while you work to prevent sticking.
- Use parchment or a silpat on your baking sheets. Without one, cleanup will be difficult.
- Make the brown butter with unsalted butter. If you use salted butter the doughnuts can end up too salty as the browning concentrates the salt.
- These are best fresh and warm, but you can store them in an airtight container for up to three days.
Baked Cider Pumpkin Doughnuts
Ingredients
For the Brown Butter:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick / 4 ounces)
For the Doughnuts:
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup boiled cider, plus 1 tablespoon
- 1 envelope (2 1/4 teaspoons instant dry yeast)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 large egg
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup bread flour
For the Cinnamon Sugar:
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Begin by preparing the dough.
- Warm the milk to just above room temperature. Pour into a stand-mixer bowl, stir in the boiled cider and the yeast, and let stand 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes, using the batter paddle, blend in the granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, egg, egg yolks, and pumpkin puree. Mix on medium at least 1 minute until smooth and even.
- Switch to the dough hook and add all the flour at once. Start on low, then increase to medium-high and mix 4–6 minutes, until the mixture forms a soft, sticky, batter-like dough.
- Butter a large bowl, scrape the dough into it, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise at room temperature until doubled (about 1 hour).
- Line 2–3 baking sheets with parchment or silpats and set aside.
- Generously flour your work surface and rolling pin. Turn the dough out, dust with flour, and knead no more than 1 minute to deflate.
- Roll the dough to about 1/2-inch thickness. Use a 3-inch cutter for the doughnuts and a 1/2–1-inch cutter for the centers, or use the small cutter for doughnut holes. Transfer cut doughnuts to the lined sheets with about 2 inches between each.
- Re-roll scraps and cut more doughnuts until the dough is used up.
- Cover the sheets with plastic wrap and let rise about 1 hour. Avoid over-proofing so the yeast remains active for the oven and the doughnuts stay light.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- While the oven heats, make the brown butter: melt the unsalted butter in a heavy saucepan over medium-high, swirling to prevent burning. When it smells nutty and you see light brown solids, remove from heat and let cool slightly.
- Bake full doughnuts about 20 minutes until golden brown. Bake doughnut holes about 10 minutes until just golden.
- To finish, toss granulated sugar and cinnamon together. Working one doughnut at a time, dunk in the brown butter, drain excess, then toss in the cinnamon sugar until coated. Repeat with remaining doughnuts and holes.
- Serve warm and enjoy.
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided as a courtesy. Calculate nutrition using the actual ingredients you use.
did you make this recipe?
Tag @foodiewithfam on Instagram and use #foodiewithfamily so I can see your baking!