Apple Fritters

Everything you'd expect from a really good donut shop apple fritter, plus an extra touch of maple!

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Prep Time 30

Cook Time 30

Rising Time 2

Servings 12 donuts

Ingredients

Fritter Dough

125 mL warm water
17 g active dry yeast
9 g sugar
35 g lard or shortening
1 egg
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
310 g all-purpose flour
50 g sugar
1 g nutmeg
5 g salt

Apple Filling

500 g apples chopped 1/2"
50 g sugar
12 g apple cider vinegar about 2 Tbsp
2 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp all-purpose flour

Maple Glaze

375 g powdered sugar 3 cups
2 g salt
80 g boiling water 1/3 cup
1/4 tsp maple extract

Instructions

Mix Dough

Add yeast and 9g sugar to warm water. Let stand 15 minutes. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, 50g sugar, nutmeg, and salt.
Once the yeast mixture is foamy, whisk in the lard, egg, and vanilla. When mixed, add the dry ingredients in thirds. Knead until all flour is incorporated. Cover and let rise for at least 1 hour, or refrigerate overnight, until roughly doubled.

Make Apple Filling

Peel, core, and chop the apples into 1/2" dice. Toss with sugar and vinegar. Place a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add butter and wait until it is brown and foaming. Add apples, stir often, and cook until softened for about 5-8 minutes. Cool completely before using.

Shape Fritters

Turn dough out onto a floured board. Roll into a 10×10-inch square. Spread the cool, cooked apples on the top half of the square. Sprinkle the apples with cinnamon and about 2 Tbsp extra flour. A little flour will help them adhere to the dough.
Fold the empty bottom half over the top with the apples. Then cut into 1/2-inch squares.
Mix pieces with floured hands. Then gather, roll, and press all the pieces into a roughly 12-inch x 3-inch log. Using dental floss, cut twelve 1-inch disks.
Flatten disks between your palms and lay onto greased parchment paper. Leave about 1-inch of space to allow them to proof. Cover and proof at least 45 minutes, until roughly doubled in size.

Prepare Maple Glaze

Whisk the powdered sugar together with the salt. Whisk in hot water and 1/4 tsp maple extract until smooth. Don't overdo it on the maple extract.

Fry & Glaze

When your fritters are proofed and the glaze is ready, fill a deep fryer or stock pot with plenty of neutral-flavored cooking oil or lard and heat it to 370F. Fry each apple fritter until deep brown on the bottom, then flip and finish cooking, about 2 minutes on each side. You might need to adjust the cooking time, so watch the clock but let the color guide you. Take your time and do not overcrowd them, or the oil temperature will not recover and your dough will become greasy. The internal temperature of the thickest part of the dough should reach 208F.
Let drain on a cooling rack set over a sheet pan. While still hot, dip each side into the maple glaze. Let any extra glaze drip back onto the pan. Cool completely to set.

Notes

People on the internet swear you have to use certain kinds of apples, but I used Fuji in this recipe and have also used whatever Granny Smith, Red Delicious, and Honeycrisps I had on hand. There was no discernible difference, just cook them until they are tender but not falling apart.

You can easily adapt this recipe to get creative! Try:

Cherry Fritters with Vanilla Glaze (my fav)
Pumpkin Fritters with Spiced Glaze
Mixed Berry Fritters with Lemon Glaze

Frozen or fresh fruit in season works well, you will just need to adjust the cast iron skillet cooking method. For example, whole cherries and berries can be added frozen to the dough, or sauteed in advance as with the apples above. Pumpkin needs to be cooked with extra liquid to become soft. If the fruit you choose gives off too much liquid, it might weight down your dough during the final proof.

Let me know if you try these!

Maple Glazed Apple Fritters