Apple Cider Donut Muffins
Your favorite apple cider donut, turned into a perfectly spiced and moist muffin, coated in cinnamon and sugar. Enjoy a taste of Fall!
As I type this, I’m sitting in Aruba’s airport waiting for a flight home. Yup, Aruba was the surprise trip I had planned for the Mr. But, I’ll tell you more about that in a upcoming post!
It’s going to be hard switching gears from tropical life back to regular days back at home with schedules and things that have to actually be done. It sure was nice to get away though!
Nothing like being submerged in a laid back tropical vacation and immediately thrown into Fall! Okay okay… It’s not technically Fall, we still have a few weeks left of Summer, but the weather is changing, as are the leaves and of course there’s the food!
It’s apple season!! I’ve been looking forward to this since I could no longer get my favorite apples at the store! The apple farm is open and the grocery stores have plenty of fresh local produce!
I actually made these apple cider donut muffins weeks ago. I’m a planner like that. I’ve been itching to share these babies with you!
Super flavorful apple cider donut muffins. All of the flavor you expect from your favorite cider donuts but in a fun muffin shape and a big bonus that they’re baked, no fried! That means no specialty equipment required!!
Definitely add these moist apple cider donut muffins to your Fall plans!
Apple Cider Donut Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 C all purpose flour
- 1/2 C granulated sugar
- 1/2 C light brown sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 3/4 C apple cider
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Topping:
- 7 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 3/4 C granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a muffin pan. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine apple cider, egg and vanilla extract.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer combine flour, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. With mixer running on low, slowly incorporate wet ingredients. Mix until batter is just combined and no streaks remain. Using a large cookie scoop, divide batter between prepared muffin cavities.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Immediately turn out onto a baking sheet or cutting board.
- Melt butter in a medium bowl. Combine remaining granulated sugar and cinnamon in another medium bowl. Coat each muffin entirely in melted butter then roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture. Transfer to a wire cooling rack, positioned over a baking sheet, to cool completely.
Notes
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These look amazing!
I want 6 of them. In my mouth. Now.
Oh my!
I’ve actually never had an apple cider donut! But these muffins look like a great treat to make:-)
I would love a few of these to dunk in my morning coffee!!
I want to sink my face into these!
I am so excited for my first sip of apple cider this season!
I love that moment! :)
Aruba? I’m so jealous. These muffins look awesome :)
Thanks Aimee! :)
I am so ready for fall time – so these are right up my alley. So glad you had fun in Aruba (minus the sunburn ;) )
Ugh don’t get me started on the sunburn lol
Thank you for the recipe. I usually have my husband, ( Lou ) get the donuts for me, but this year I will ask my daughter to make these. I don’t bake anymore after retiring. I was a baker for 30+ yrs. 20 of those at Le’ Bakery in Peoria IL.
I hope you enjoy them! :)
Wow, Aruba. So jealous right now! But at least you’re not coming back to freezing temps.
These look perfect! That sugar coating looks incredible.
Yes, it could be much worse! And thank you :)
I’ve never had an apple cider donut but yesterday I did a google search of where to get some in San Diego…road trip to follow! In the meantime, these look scrumptious and a muffin I need to make soon.
You NEED some asap :)
Apple season (in particular apple cider!) is my favorite season. These donut muffins look great. Apple Cider donuts are a fond memory of my childhood. We would always get them at the local apple picking orchard. Can’t wait to try your recipe. Good luck in the transition back from Aruba!
Thanks Liz!
You’ve combined two of my fave things here!!! donuts and muffins. . love love love!
Thanks Alice!
These couldn’t be more perfect! They are going on my to make list.
Thanks Jen! I hope you enjoy them :)
I have been waiting for someone to post a Apple Cider recipe… love this!
I’ve been waiting super impatiently to do so ;) And thanks!
I hope you had an amazing time in Aruba! These apple cider donut muffins look incredible. Apple muffin are my favorite and I just love the cinnamon sugar coating on these!
Thanks Danae!
I was going to make cinnamon apple muffins tonight actually, but never thought to ROLL them in cinnamon and sugar! #genius
Definitely give it a try :)
There is no way I could not eat at least a half-dozen of these in one sitting if they were right in front of me. SO GOOD!
Thanks Stephanie!
I need to make these right now!
You really do! :)
I’ve actually never tried an apple cider doughnut before, but it sounds awesome! These look like perfect little cinnamon sugar doughnut holes. Hope you had a lovely vacation!
Put them on your Fall must try list this year :) And thanks Stacey!
These look divine! I’m a huuuuggee donut fan and anything with apple cider flavoring is right up my alley!
Thanks Christine!
I adore apple cider donuts so I am really loving this muffin version! I’m so ready for fall!
Thanks Stephanie!
Oooh these donut muffins look divine! I just love the neat flavour idea – apple cider! So cool!
Thanks Jessica! :)
I think the best word to describe these muffins is Perfect!
Thanks so much Medeja :)
SO pleased to have discovered your blog today! These muffins look spectacular… just the thing to kick off the apple season (and ease you back into normal life after your vacation)! Bookmarking this to try soon.
So glad you found me. I hope you enjoy the muffins! :)
Ahh I’ve been craving an apple cider donut! I need to make a batch asap!
I made these this morning with my kiddos, they inhaled almost half of them before I even got a chance to douse them in the cinnamon/sugar mix! Total winners!
Yay!! So glad they enjoyed them :)
Hi there!
I just realized I need to get a new muffin pan as mine is a disaster right now. Any other way you recommend baking this recipe? As a cake perhaps? I ask because I just went out , bought all the necessary ingredients only to realize I can’t use my pan !!
I wouldn’t personally recommend adapting this to a cake recipe. If your pan is still in okay shape to use liners with, you could go that route instead and simply coat the tops with butter and cinnamon-sugar after baking. Good luck!
I just made these and they turned out fantastic!!
Everyone in my house loved them. They were super moist inside and had nice texture from the sugar on the outside. There is a store near me that sells fresh baked donuts that taste exactly like this. The donuts were my favorite, but very over priced. I will make these again! Thanks!! :)
So glad to hear everyone enjoyed them! Thanks for sharing! :)
I have made these twice now- they are fabulous!
So glad to hear it! Thanks for sharing :)
I just saw these yesterday, went to the store and made them last night! So good for fall! Apple with spice,um! Thank you! I also made your stuffed shells recipe. Yummy but I added too much spinach for my liking. I will remake it though, thank you!
So glad you enjoyed them! :)
Just made these about 10 min ago. I should have made 2 dozen because my family has almost devoured the first batch. These are amazing! I love cider donuts but now I won’t have to leave the house to have some. Thanks!
So glad everyone enjoyed them! Next time a double batch is a must! Thanks for sharing!! :)
these are so easy and delicious — also tried adding some extra spices to the garnish, including allspice and garam masala. so good
So glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for sharing :)
Do you think these would be good in a mini muffin pan?
They definitely could be. Just keep in mind that the bake time will be different for smaller muffins. Good luck!
Have you ever tried these as mini muffins?
I have not. They should work fine as mini muffins but the bake time will need to be adjusted. Good luck!
These look great, but noticed there is no fat (butter/oil) listed in muffin ingredients. Is that correct? Just wanted to check before I make these. Thanks!
Correct, there is no butter or oil in the actual muffin, only butter to coat in at the end.
The muffins were fabulous, moist and tasty. I think next time I will dip only the top in the sugar. It was a bit too sweet for us fully dipped. Of course saying that they were sweet didn’t prevent my family from enjoying them, lol.
I’m glad everyone enjoyed them! :)
Hi Rachel, these look delicious, and I plan on making them for my parents’ visit this weekend. Can you make them the night before? Do they retain their texture and taste? I’m sure they are the best served immediately, but I am trying to plan ahead. Thanks!
Texture and taste of the muffins will absolutely be retained. However, if making ahead, I’d recommend either only sprinkling the top with cinnamon and sugar or coating the muffins the day of. Enjoy! :)
These look delicious! I’m going to make them for a dessert for my office’s potluck! It says the recipe yields 10 muffins; How high did you fill each muffin tin?
Use a large cookie scoop to divide batter between muffin cavities. It will be roughly 3/4 full. Enjoy!
This recipe looks amazing! Do you think they’d work in a donut pan instead of muffins?
It’s possible that they might, but I can’t promise that as I haven’t personally tried it that way.
I am totally intrigued by these donut muffins, due to the lack of any fat in the recipe. I can’t wrap my mind around how they will turn out properly, but I dying to try! Here is the problem….I can’t find apple cider anywhere right now. Would apple juice work the same if I cut back on the sugar in the recipe? Or maybe blend some apple cider vinegar with apple juice? In the meantime…I’ll keep hunting for cider.
Apple juice is an acceptable replacement for apple cider but please note that the final flavor will be different if using juice vs cider. Also, Apple cider vinegar should not be used. Goods luck and I hope you enjoy them!
these are easy to make and taste even better
So glad you enjoyed them, Dawne!
OMG! I just made these and my husband asked how many he had to leave for others. LOL the recipe made 12 regular size muffins all beautifully shaped!
Since Apple cider is still a little out of season I used an all natural organic unfiltered Apple juice. Can’t wait to try them with Apple cider from my favorite orchard.
So glad everyone enjoyed them! :)
This recipe looks amazing! I love muffins, especially if they taste like donuts!
Thanks Eden!
I made these yesterday! They are fantastic! But I do have one question, do you really make these without butter in the batter? I was worried they would be dry so I added a couple of TPSP melted butter in with wet ingredients, but would love to try it without the butter next time. These were gobbled up quickly at our house. Thanks for a fantastic recipe! :)
So glad you enjoyed them, Sheri! The recipe is correct as written, but you’re more than welcome to adapt to your personal taste preferences. :)
How do you store them after being made? How long can they be kept for?
Store them as you would other muffins, in an airtight container up to several days.
Have a excess of cider, so … Can’t wait to try these. Thanks!
Enjoy! :)
Is this alcoholic apple cider or ? What is the difference between apple cider and apple juice?
Regular non-alcoholic apple cider is used for this recipe. However, if you do not have access to apple cider, apple juice may be used instead. The difference between juice and cider is how it’s made. Typically juice has been processed to remove more pulp and has a much lighter color. Cider has a richer flavor.
Question about the melted butter at the end. Am I simply brushing them all the way around with butter and then rolling in cinnamon sugar, or am I actually dunking the entire muffin in butter and then putting it in cinnamon sugar?
[like drop the muffin in the butter, or just roll it around in the butter?]
They should be coated well in butter before rolling in the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Use whatever method you find easiest to get a nice buttery coating! Enjoy! :)
I just made a batch and they turned out so good! I went a bit lighter after I realized it was just saturated I the butter when you rolled them in cinnamon and sugar, but they were delicious! I sent some with a coworker and she enjoyed them to. Thank you so much for the recipe!
So glad you enjoyed them, Danielle!
I chopped up a Granny Smith apple and added the bits to the batter. I think it made a great recipe even better.
So glad you enjoyed them, Alan!