Warm Apple Fritters

Apple fritters have to be one of my fav “donuts”. They are so comforting, and the smell of cinnamon sugar as they fry up is absolutely to die for. These apple fritters are so delicious served warm as a dessert or served with coffee or tea. Don’t let the lengthy steps for this recipe intimidate you. If you follow the recipe, you’ll have an amazing end result that will be worth the effort!

Why you’ll love these apple fritters:

• Comforting: These are the ultimate comfort food. You’ll love them 
• Great for fall: Nothing screams fall more than cinnamon sugar and apples 
• Impressive: These fritters will wow your friends and family 

Ingredient Notes: 

Apples: I used granny smith because I love the flavor of them but you can use whatever you have available. Each type of apple will add a different flavor profile to the apple fritters, but each will be delicious!

Sugar: If you’re sugar-free, I suggest Lakanto! It’s a 1:1 sugar replacement and it’s great!

Glaze: The glaze is made with icing sugar, plant-based milk, vanilla, and lemon juice and should not be skipped because it adds a special something-something to these that is so good. 

How do you make apple fritters?

1. In a small bowl, combine vegetable oil and lukewarm water.

2. In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Whisk to combine. Push the flour to the sides of the bowl and create a small well in the center. 

3. Pour the water and oil mixture into the middle of the well. 

4. Fold in by hand or use a wooden spoon until it comes together. As soon as it does, move the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky- add a small amount of water if you find it to be on the drier side.

5. Form the dough into a round. 

6. In a new large bowl, use a small amount of vegetable oil to gently cover the sides. Place the dough in the bowl, lightly oiling the top OR dusting with a little extra flour. Cover with a tea towel or cloth, and place the bowl in a warm place to rise for 30-40 minutes, until doubled in size. This may also depend on your environment. 

7. As the dough rises, prepare the apple filling, cinnamon sugar, and 2 baking trays with parchment paper.

8. In a medium-sized bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon. Whisk, and set aside.

9. For the apple fritters filling, dice the apples to approximately 1 cm thickness. Melt the earth balance in a pan over medium heat. Add the diced apples, sugars, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla. Stir until combined and cook until the mixture thickens and is syrupy. This will take about 6 – 8 minutes. Transfer the filling to a small bowl, allowing it to cool completely. 

10. Once the dough has doubled in size, remove it from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the top with flour. Using a rolling pin, roll out to ½ inch thick, making approximately a 10×10 inch circle or oval.

11. Pour the cooled apple filling and syrup on half of the dough, spreading it out evenly. Fold the other half of the dough over the top of the apples and pinch around the edges with your fingers to seal. 

12. Using a dough cutter or a knife, gently cut 1-inch rows in both directions to create a grid on the dough. 

13. Lightly flour the top of the dough and your hands, and smash the entire dough together until you form a loaf. Using a dough cutter or a knife, cut the loaf diagonally 4 or 5 times, and then crosswise again from the other direction, making about 12-16 divided pieces.

14. Next, you can lightly flour this mess and your hands. Grab the divided dough pieces, gently smashing them together to form small mounds to seal in the apples as best as you can. The mounds should be about 2- 2 ½ inches in diameter. Place the mounds onto the two baking trays with parchment paper, leaving space to rise. 

15. Cover the baking trays with a tea towel or cloth and let the mounds rise in a warm place for 30-40 minutes or until doubled in size. This may depend on your environment.

16. As the dough rises, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, combine icing sugar, milk, vanilla, and the juice of half a lemon. Whisk until smooth, set aside. 

17. After making the glaze, pour 6-8 cups of vegetable oil into a deep large pot. You will need about 2-3 inches of oil. Heat the oil to 360-365F on deep-frying or candy thermometer. If the oil is too cooler, the fritters will get soggy; and any hotter, they will be too dark and harden.

18. To prepare for frying, line two baking sheets with a paper towel, placing a wire rack on top of each one. These trays will hold the completed fritters.

19. Once the fritters have risen and the oil is up to temperature, gently place 2 or 3 fritters into the hot oil. Adjust the temperature if needed. Fry the fritters for 1 ½ minute on each side, using a slotted spoon to flip. You may lose a few apples during the frying process, which you can scoop out into a bowl to discard later. Once the fritters are golden brown, lift them out of the oil, one at a time, and drain any excess. Place fritters onto the wire racks.

20. Make sure that the oil is at 360-365F before frying more batches.

21. After each batch, allow the fritters to cool for 1 minute, then toss into the cinnamon sugar mix, coating it evenly. 

22. To serve, take a large spoonful of the glaze and drizzle it over top of the fresh apple fritters.

Expert Tips & FAQ: 

What should I serve these apple fritters with? Serve the fresh fritter with vanilla ice cream if desired.

Use caution when frying. Ensure safety when frying the fritters, keeping your workspace clean, removing all obstacles, wearing an apron, and heat-safe gloves (if desired). Please keep children and other people at a distance.

Can I make this gluten-free? Baking can be tricky, I suggest sticking to this exact recipe for now while we work on a GF option. If you’re not vegan, regular butter and milk will work just fine.

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How do I store these? Here’s the thing, these are best to eat fresh so they won’t be awesome if you store them. 

Other sweet recipes you’ll love: 

• Strawberry Crumble Bars
• 10-Minute Peanut Butter Almond Bars
• Vegan Cashew Chocolate Mousse Cake
• Chocolate Chunk Vegan Blondies

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Warm Apple Fritters

5 from 3 votes

Warming, comforting apple fritters that are perfect for fall. They'll please your entire family and all your friends because they're so delicious!

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Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Course Vegan Desserts

Cuisine Baked Goods

Servings 14 -16

Calories 263 kcal

Ingredients

  

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For the dough:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp quick rise yeast
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp white or brown sugar sugar
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil we used sunflower
• 1 ½ cups water

For the filling:

• 2 tbsp earth balance vegan or regular butter of choice
• 1 ½ granny smith apples cubed
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp granulated white sugar
• 1 ½ tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp vanilla
• ½ tsp salt

For the cinnamon sugar:

• 1 ½ cup white or brown sugar
• 3 tsp cinnamon

For the glaze:

• 2 cups icing sugar
• 1-2 tbsp almond milk or plant-based milk
• 2 tsp vanilla
• ½ tsp fresh lemon juice

Instructions

 

• In a small bowl, combine vegetable oil and lukewarm water.
• In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Whisk to combine. Push the flour to the sides of the bowl and create a small well in the center. 
• Pour the water and oil mixture into the middle of the well. 
• Fold in by hand or use a wooden spoon until it comes together. As soon as it does, move the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky- add a small amount of water if you find it to be on the drier side.
• Form the dough into a round. 
• In a new large bowl, use a small amount of vegetable oil to gently cover the sides. Place the dough in the bowl, lightly oiling the top OR dusting with a little extra flour. Cover with a tea towel or cloth, and place the bowl in a warm place to rise for 30-40 minutes, until doubled in size. This may also depend on your environment. 
• As the dough rises, prepare the apple filling, cinnamon sugar, and 2 baking trays with parchment paper.
• In a medium-sized bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon. Whisk, and set aside.
• For the filling, dice the apples to approximately 1 cm thickness. Melt the earth balance in a pan over medium heat. Add the diced apples, sugars, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla. Stir until combined and cook until the mixture thickens and is syrupy. This will take about 6 – 8 minutes. Transfer the filling to a small bowl, allowing it to cool completely. 
• Once the dough has doubled in size, remove it from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the top with flour. Using a rolling pin, roll out to ½ inch thick, making approximately a 10x10 inch circle or oval.
• Pour the cooled apple filling and syrup on half of the dough, spreading it out evenly. Fold the other half of the dough over the top of the apples and pinch around the edges with your fingers to seal. 
• Using a dough cutter or a knife, gently cut 1-inch rows in both directions to create a grid on the dough. 
• Lightly flour the top of the dough and your hands, and smash the entire dough together until you form a loaf. Using a dough cutter or a knife, cut the loaf diagonally 4 or 5 times, and then crosswise again from the other direction, making about 12-16 divided pieces.
• Next, you can lightly flour this mess and your hands. Grab the divided dough pieces, gently smashing them together to form small mounds to seal in the apples as best as you can. The mounds should be about 2- 2 ½ inches in diameter. Place the mounds onto the two baking trays with parchment paper, leaving space to rise. 
• Cover the baking trays with a tea towel or cloth and let the mounds rise in a warm place for 30-40 minutes or until doubled in size. This may depend on your environment.
• As the dough rises, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, combine icing sugar, milk, vanilla, and the juice of half a lemon. Whisk until smooth, set aside. 
• After making the glaze, pour 6-8 cups of vegetable oil into a deep large pot. You will need about 2-3 inches of oil. Heat the oil to 360-365F on deep-frying or candy thermometer. If the oil is too cooler, the fritters will get soggy; and any hotter, they will be too dark and harden.
• To prepare for frying, line two baking sheets with a paper towel, placing a wire rack on top of each one. These trays will hold the completed fritters.
• Once the fritters have risen and the oil is up to temperature, gently place 2 or 3 fritters into the hot oil. Adjust the temperature if needed. Fry the fritters for 1 ½ minute on each side, using a slotted spoon to flip. You may lose a few apples during the frying process, which you can scoop out into a bowl to discard later. Once the fritters are golden brown, lift them out of the oil, one at a time, and drain any excess. Place fritters onto the wire racks.
• Make sure that the oil is at 360-365F before frying more batches.
• After each batch, allow the fritters to cool for 1 minute, then toss into the cinnamon sugar mix, coating it evenly. 
• To serve, take a large spoonful of the glaze and drizzle it over top of the fresh apple fritters.

Notes

Serve the fresh fritter with vanilla ice cream if desired.

This recipe is vegan-friendly.

Ensure safety when frying the fritters, keeping your workspace clean, removing all obstacles, wearing an apron, and heat-safe gloves (if desired). Please keep children and other people at a distance.

Baking can be tricky, I suggest sticking to this exact recipe for now while we work on a GF option.  If you're not vegan, regular butter and milk will work just fine.

If you're sugar-free, I suggest Lakanto! It's a 1:1 sugar replacement and it's great!

Nutrition

Serving: 16 | Calories: 263kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 2.7g | Fat: 2.6g | Saturated Fat: 1.6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 3.8mg | Sodium: 221.8mg | Fiber: 1.4g | Sugar: 38.6g

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