Caramel Apple Baked Donuts
These caramel apple baked donuts are extremely moist, soft, and topped with my homemade caramel sauce. If you're looking for a great fall breakfast, this baked donut recipe would be perfect!
Servings: 6 donuts
Calories: 509kcal
Equipment
- Donut Pan
- Mixing Bowls
- Saucepan
Ingredients
Salted Caramel
- 1 cup sugar (make sure it's labeled "pure cane")
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed, room temperature
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Apple Donuts
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup milk, room temperature
- 2 tablespoons yogurt (plain or vanilla), room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 medium-sized or large apple, cored, peeled (optional), and shredded
Instructions
Salted Caramel
- In a medium saucepan over medium-heat, add the sugar. Once the sugar starts to melt and clump together, continuously whisk it until completely melted.
- Allow the melted sugar to sit until it starts to turn amber in color (about 10-15 seconds). Then remove it from the heat.
- Add the cubed butter and constantly whisk it until melted. Then add the heavy whipping cream, whisking constantly until incorporated. Then whisk in the salt and vanilla extract.
- Pour the hot caramel into a glass bowl and cool completely before using. The caramel will thicken up as it cools down.
Apple Donuts
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 6-count donut pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, egg, brown sugar, milk, yogurt, and vanilla extract until combined. Add the dry ingredients into the wet and gently fold together using a silicone spatula or wooden spoon until combined (be careful not to over mix).
- Then gently fold in the shredded apple. Scoop the batter into a piping bag or a zipped-up sandwich bag. Simply cut a corner off of the bottom of the bag and pipe the donut batter into each donut cup, filling it up just barely to the top.
- Bake the donuts for 10-12 minutes. Use a toothpick to check the center. If it comes out clean, then they're done. Allow the donuts to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully removing them and setting them on a wire rack to finish cooling.
- Once the donuts have cooled, dip them into the salted caramel and place them back onto the wire rack (feel free to dip the donuts twice!). Once set, serve immediately and enjoy!
- Keep leftover donuts in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Notes
Donut Pan: You'll need a 6-count donut pan.
Apple: I used a cheese grater to finely shred the apple. You can use tart green apples or sweet honeycrisps like I did.
Donut Batter: I find it so much easier to scrape the donut batter into a piping bag or a zipped-up sandwich bag and pipe the batter into the donut cups. This method makes it less messy too.
Caramel: Make the caramel first so it has enough time to cool completely.
Nutrition
Serving: 1donut | Calories: 509kcal | Carbohydrates: 75g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 67mg | Sodium: 589mg | Potassium: 105mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 56g | Vitamin A: 659IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 1mg
