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Baked Apple Fritters are an easy donut shop favorite that you can make at home now. These fritters are baked instead of fried, making them an easy treat to whip up on a whim.
Baked Apple Fritters
This is one of the first recipes I make in the fall and they are an awesome way to warm up the kitchen on a chilly morning.
Apple Fritters are one of my husband’s favorite bakery treats and I love that I can make this hassle-free recipe at home.
Apple Recipes
Apple recipes are a favorite with my family year-round, but there’s something about them that calls to me even more through the winter.
These Baked Apple Cider Donut Muffins are another bakery-style treat that the kids love. And the Caramel Apple Puff Pastries are an impressive pastry that looks so much fussier than they actually are.
(If you haven’t tried Puff Pastry Danishes, put them on your list as well. Because there is honestly nothing else with the ability to impress with such a minimum of effort!)
Last but definitely not least, Caramel Apple Cinnamon Rolls are a brunch favorite.
How to make baked apple fritters with no yeast
This recipe uses no yeast and instead starts with a biscuit-style dough. To start, mix together the dry ingredients.
Flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and baking powder are combined in a mixing bowl. Then, you’ll cut in butter until small crumb sized.
Here’s a tip: Take a stick of frozen butter and grate it directly into the dry ingredients, then stir. It’s a quick and easy way to start the crumb mixture.
Next, toss in some finely diced apples to coat with flour.
Last, you’ll gently stir in some milk to make a thick batter. (The lack of egg in these apple fritters, makes them very tender.)
Drop by big spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
Can you bake apple fritters?
Yes, but I would use a recipe like this one that is meant to be baked. You don’t want to try baking a dough or batter recipe that is intended to be fried.
After you make the dough and scoop it onto the cookie sheets, you’ll bake in a 400°F oven.
After the fritters are baked, you’ll brush them with a thin powdered sugar glaze, and pop them under the broiler for a few minutes, until slightly browned.
I picked up that broiling tip from Maegan at The Baker Mama when she shared her baked blueberry fritters.
Broiling the initial glaze not only gives these apple fritters a nice caramel color, but it crisps the outside of the fritter to make it more similar to its deep-fried cousin.
If you make this recipe, let me know how you liked it. Leave me a comment below or give it a rating in the recipe card. Happy Baking!
Baked Apple Fritters
Ingredients
For the Fritters
- 2 cups flour
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ cup butter cold
- 1½ cups finely diced apples
- ¾ cup milk I used whole milk
For the broiled glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons milk or apple juice
For the finishing glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° F. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender until pea sized. Or I like to freeze the butter and grate it in with a cheese grater.
- Gently stir in the apples. Then add the milk, stirring just until combined.
- Drop by spoonfuls onto a well-greased baking sheet, allowing at least 2 inches of space between them.
- Bake for about 12 minutes or until just lightly browned. Meanwhile, make the broiling glaze by mixing the powdered sugar and apple juice together until smooth. Remove the fritters from the oven, turn the broiler on and immediately brush with the glaze.
- Place the fritters under the boiler, about 3 inches away and broil for 2-4 minutes until the glaze is browned and caramelized. Rotate the pan if needed.
- Let cool on wire rack for several minutes. Whisk together the powdered sugar and milk for the last glaze and brush onto the warm fritters. The are best enjoyed warm.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
{originally published 9/9/19 – recipes notes and photos updated 1/20/21}
Would I be able to use something else in place of the brown sugar?
White sugar would probably work, but change the flavor a bit.
Ii made the apple fritters and they were yummy but mine ran can you tell me what I might have done wrong. Thank you
Just made these and they were delicious! The only thing I changed was to the finishing glaze – I added a hint of maple extract and pure maple syrup to it. Definitely will make them again
Any recommendations on how to store these? I made them yesterday and they looked and tasted so good. Foiled them on a plate on the counter over night and they’re now soggy. Wonder if there is a way to prevent that from happening…
These turned out awesome! I microwaved my chopped apples till they were tender with half of the brown sugar, let them cool and then made them. I also used my Belgian waffle iron to make half of the batch as I was getting impatient and they were AWESOME!!!
Made these just this morning. What a delight. Now there’s a whole batch ready for school lunches this week.
Just made them, used 2 large apples, a bit more than the recipe. Used 2 tbsp each, were more like cookies and had to bake for 23 minutes to get a browning. I only used 1 layer of the glaze, they were plenty sweet. Quite delicious! I put half of the dough in the refrigerator to bake tomorrow.
These are delicious! Love the caramelization broiling gives them. These were better than some I made in the air fryer. Thank you!
This was super easy to make and my family loved them. Will make this again!
These were absolutely delicious. I followed the recepie exactly and couldn’t have been happier.
I made these apple fritters and mine flatened out like a pancake. What did I do wrong?
Thanks so much,
Baking powder can go flat (stale) if stored near heat or if old. If you haven’t used baking powder for a while or if it is stored close to your stove or oven, that might be why.