Apple Fritters

Fried doughnuts filled with apples and cinnamon, coated with an easy three-ingredient glaze. Serve warm for a delicious snack or dessert.

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What is an Apple Fritter?

A quick search for the history of Apple Fritters will give you all kinds of results. Some say Apple Fritters date back to the Romans, others say Medieval England. But if you ask a Canadian, you may get, “Tim Horton’s” since many Canadians enjoy an apple fritter right alongside a double-double.

Basically, an apple fritter is a fried doughnut filled with bits of apple and tons of flavour. The flavours come from the spices that are added to the apples and the dough.

Then these fritters are coated in a sweet glaze that is so easy to make and has only three ingredients.

Tips for making Apple Fritters

The apples for this recipe are cooked into a sauce that resembles apple pie filling. You can use canned apple pie filling as a shortcut if you like and skip the filling preparation in the recipe. If the apple chunks in the filling are large, they may have to be mashed down a bit or chopped into smaller pieces.

For the apples, I like to use Granny Smith. The tartness of the apples mixed with the sweetness of the glaze works well together. The tart and sweet flavours complement each other in this recipe.

A thermometer to check the oil temperature is an easy way to help keep the oil at 375°F so the fritters cook evenly. The kind that stays in the pot works best.

For the glaze, it is easier to coat the fritters while they are still warm. Also, the glaze is easier to use when it is warm. I like to keep it warm by making it in my rice cooker. Setting the rice cooker on the keep warm setting allows the glaze to stay warm without it cooking. A small slow cooker works as well.

In the fall when we go apple picking, I usually have tons of apples left over. That is when I make a large batch the apple filling for these doughnuts. I store the filling in the freezer for later use.

Serving and Storing Apple Fritters

These Apple Fritters are best served warm. Leftover fritters can be warmed in the microwave for 15 to 20 seconds.

Keep Apple Fritters stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

If you can’t use up all the fritters within 2 days of making them, they can be frozen. It is best to freeze them without the glaze, then thawed at room temperature. Then glaze once thawed.

Apple Fritters

5 from 4 votes

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Rising Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 40 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Canadian

Equipment

• Deep Fry Thermometer
• Stand Mixer

Ingredients

  

• vegetable oil for frying

Apple Filling

• 6 Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored and cubed
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 6 Tbsp butter
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg

Dough

• 1 Tbsp yeast
• ¼ cup warm water
• 1½ cups warm milk
• ½ cup white sugar
• 3 eggs
• 6-7 cups flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp salt

Glaze

• 2 cups confectioners sugar
• ¼ cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

 

Apple Filling

• Pour lemon juice over apple cubes, toss to coat, set aside
• Melt butter in a large skillet, over medium heat.
• Add apple cubes to melted butter
• Cook to soften apples, about 3-4 minutes, stirring.
• Add brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Continue cooking 1 minute.
• Stir cornstarch into mixture and continue cooking for 3-4 minutes until thickened and apples are soft but not mushy.

Dough

• In the bowl of stand mixer, stir yeast, warm water and 1 tsp of the white sugar together.
• Let yeast activate for 5 minutes or until foamy.
• On low speed, stir in warm milk and sugar.
• Add eggs, one at a time, beating on medium between additions.
• Add cinnamon and nutmeg to one cup of flour.
• Knead in flour, one cup at a time with mixer set to medium speed. (Use Dough hook for this step and remaining steps)
• Continue to add flour until dough starts pulling away from sides.
• When dough starts to form a ball, add apple filling.
• Knead 5 minutes, adding more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, if dough is sticking to sides of bowl. (You want the dough to form a ball)
• Cover bowl with a tea towel and allow to rise for 1 hour in a warm place.

Frying Apple Fritters

• When dough is almost done rising, start heating oil to 375°F
• Mix together glaze ingredients and place either on top of double boiler or in a slow cooker on warm.
• Punch down dough
• Using pieces of dough a little larger than a golf ball, and flatten to about ½ inch thick
• Place one piece of dough at a time in hot oil, cooking about three to four pieces at a time.
• Cook 2-3 minutes per side or until golden on both sides.
• Remove from oil and let stand 1 minute before dipping in the glaze
• Repeat with remaining dough.
• Place glazed fritters on a wire rack and let cool to warm.
• Serve

Keyword Apples, Doughnuts

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