Bourbon Apple Cider Chai Donuts

Let’s just deal with the elephant in the room.  Donut or doughnut?  Both are right.  Donut is American, Doughnut is Canadian.  I picked ‘donut’ ‘cuz it’s shorter to type!

Today is a pristine September day.  The sun is shining, there’s not a cloud in the sky.  There was a little chill in the air when we woke up, but now it the kind of day you could spend just hanging out in a hammock watching the leaves start to take on those first bright russet hues of Autumn.

I think I may have used the last of my summer stone fruit this week, in a pork chop dish. I also added some sliced plums to my rumtopf (German crock or jar filled with fruit, rum and sugar for preserving for the winter months)  And now it is time to move on to apples.  The clue that autumn baking has begun in earnest.

I’m just going to say it, apples are to autumn, what strawberries are to spring/summer.  There are probably more recipes using either of these fruits than most other fruit recipes combined.  Or am I totally out in left field with that statement?  It sure does feel like it.  Not that I’m complaining.  We all have our go-to recipes using apples.  Of course mine is pie.  And Jim is fine with this.  The first apple recipe I ever learned to make was an apple crisp.  I was probably in grade 2.  Apple sauce, apple butter, apple galettes, apple cakes, apples and pork, the list goes on and on.

So I thought I’d try something new for apples this year.  I have some recipes that I want to try, and then there is this one.  I took a cake recipe and basically turned it into a baked fritter or donut.  The original recipe was pretty straightforward.  Applesauce, cider, cinnamon were the main components.  But I knew that this would not be enough for me.  The flavour was lacking just some oomph and depth.  So out came the bourbon, and the chai spices.  They are really useful in taking this from a ‘adequate’ recipe to a ‘I need another one please’ recipe.  Also, if you have a nice spicy applesauce or apple butter, this is a great time to use it.  I’ve just made up some luscious crabapple butter, and I’m thinking that this is what I’ll use next time.  It would even work with an apple-pear combo.   For the cider, you can use whatever cider you have on hand.  I usually have a few small bottles of the Black River Sweet Apple Cider in the fridge at any given time come September and October, and they work perfectly- just the right amount for most recipes.

The best part of this recipe, is that you can bake up the batter in just about anything you want: mini bundt pans, baked donut pan, muffin tin, even a madeleine pan, as I did.  You could drizzle them with caramel or top them with a cider glaze. And either option would be amazing. But I decided to stick to the recipe for this part.  Brush the baked donuts with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.  This really gives them that donut appeal.

So I made the whole recipe.  And froze half of the little darlings.  I did this before adding the butter, and cinnamon sugar.  Then after defrosting, I warmed them through in a 325F oven till warm.  And finished them off.  They were as tender as the fresh batch a couple of days earlier.  You can also rewarm any sugared ‘cakelets’ the next day in a toaster oven for a few minutes to bring back the fluffy interior.

This week we’ve been catching up on Downton Abbey.  Are any of you guys fans?  When it first aired, do you think I could convince Jim to watch it with me?  No way on earth.  But then last year or maybe the year before, Jim had enjoyed watching ‘Mr Selfridge’ on PBS.  And I told him, then for sure he would like DA.  So we gave it a go together.  And he loved it!!  In fact, it was Jim who came home with the news, “Did you hear, they’re making a Downton Abbey movie!”  So now I’m eagerly waiting for tomorrow evening when we’ll go out with friends to dinner and then the movie. 

I said all this, because as I was baking up these ‘donuts’, I though that they would be perfect for tea.  The kind of tea that you would picture Violet have served on a perfect afternoon in Yorkshire.  And you know that there would have been bourbon in her tea, how else could she come up with some of those zingers!?

Happy Autumn everyone.  The actual official day is just around the corner.  And I’m so excited!

Love Jen

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Bourbon Apple Cider Chai Donuts

Fluffy tender baked donuts with the flavours of applesauce, cider, a touch of bourbon, and warm chai spices make this a perfect treat to welcome Autumn.  Bake these up and your kitchen will smell like a hug!

Course Baking

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 24 donuts

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 1/3 cup sugar , more if you are using unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup apple cider
• 1/2 cup bourbon
• 3/4 cup applesauce or apple butter
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 large eggs
• Topping:
• 3 tablespoons butter melted
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cinnamon

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray your donut (mini-bundt cake) pan with a baking spray. These days you can find a baking spray that has flour already added in. This works great for pans with a lot of grooves etc. You can also use a madeleine pan or even a mini muffin tin. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, all the spices and the salt.
3. In another bowl, whisk together the sugar, apple cider, bourbon, olive oil, applesauce, vanilla, and eggs. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir to combine. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan filling each cavity about two thirds full.
4. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, depending on the size of your pan it could be as early as 15 minutes, or up to 20 minutes. Keep an eye- if they puff up and start cracking, they are probably done.
5. While the donuts are baking, melt the butter in a small pan on low temperature. Set aside to cool a bit.
6. Allow the donuts to sit in the pan for 3-4 minutes. Then invert the pan to remove to a cooling rack.
7. In a small bowl, make the topping by whisking together the cinnamon and sugar. Brush each donut with melted butter. Then, using your hand, press the cinnamon sugar mixture onto each donut.

8. The donuts can be stored, covered, at room temperature for up to 2 days. You can bring these up to a lovely warmth in a toaster oven at 325 for about 6-7 minutes or so.

Recipe Notes

I state that this recipe makes about 24 small donuts.  It really depends on the size of the pan you are using.  Some mini bundt pans or seasonally shaped pans may give you less.  Mini muffin tins or madeleine pans will give you more.  Spray between each use.

You can freeze half of the baked donuts before brushing them with butter. Thaw and rewarm on a parchment lined baking sheet in a 325F oven till warmed through. Then brust with the butter and dust with the cinnamon sugar.

Original recipe can be found here on the Inspired by Charm website