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“This Apple Cider Doughnut Cake is the most delicious cake I ever made — and I bake a LOT! I could have eaten the whole cake.” ~Carol
if you love fall, you’ll love apple cider doughnut cake!
I highly recommend this wonderful apple cider doughnut cake, it’s pretty much everything you want in an easy fall treat. There’s nothing fancy or fussy about it, but it’s soft and tender, with a thin cinnamony-sugar crust just like those cider doughnuts you get when you go apple picking. The aroma is intoxicating, and it’s the perfect thing to take to a gathering or party. It’s also ideal for housewarmings, new neighbors, new parents, or anyone who could use a little extra comfort or care.
This cake is not overly sweet, so it’s appropriate for breakfast or mid-morning, with a cup of coffee, tea, your pumpkin spice latte (or hot cider!)
more doughnut cake recipes
ingredients for apple cider doughnut cake
- all purpose flour + oat flour
- I use both all purpose and oat flour in this cake, which gives it a nice, tender crumb. Oat flour can be found in your supermarket baking aisle, and you can easily make oat flour at home.
- sugar
- cinnamon
- vanilla extract
- apple cider
- fresh apple cider is amazing, but you can use apple juice if necessary. Do not use apple cider vinegar!
- applesauce
- you might also try apple butter.
- vegetable oil
- butter
- eggs
- baking powder, baking soda, and salt
I attribute the pillowy texture of this apple cider doughnut cake to the applesauce and the oat flour in the recipe. Oat flour is readily available in most large grocery stores, and Bob’s Red Mill makes a good one, but it’s essentially oats that have been ground into a fine powder, so if you don’t have any on hand you can actually process rolled oats in a food processor or high speed blender, like a Vitamix, to make your own. For more details, check out my post on how to make your own oat flour!
how oat flour changes the texture of this apple cider cake
Oat flour gives baked goods a nice soft texture and a little extra flavor. I love it to add it to regular flour in lots of different types of recipes. It does wonders for my Irish oatmeal soda bread and my quick whole grain rolls.
Oat flour has a slightly higher moisture content than wheat flour, which helps keep cakes moist and tender.
Oat flour has a lovely nutty, earthy taste that adds depth to the flavor of this cake.
a basic bundt pan
This is a must in any kitchen. Recipes that call for bundt pans rely on the shape to bake the cake properly
Bundt pans come in all sorts of wonderful shapes and sizes, which is great, but if you only buy one, I like to use this one from Wilton. It’s a basic, all purpose pan that’s sturdy, nonstick, and a standard size. The simple fluted shape insures an easy release, and isn’t that what it’s all about? Click here for details.
check out the comments for great reviews and variations
I don’t expect you to read through 400+ comments, so here are some highlights!
- Karen and Susan get a gold stars for creating gluten free versions of this apple cider doughnut cake. Many used Bob’s Red Mill gf baking mix with great success.
- Karla makes her own gluten-free flour blend (rice flour, tapioca flour, coconut flour, millet flour, + sorghum flour)
- Jen drizzled the cake with a cider icing.
- Sandy added a cup of grated apples to the batter.
- Judy dusts her greased bundt pan with cinnamon sugar for an extra crunchy crust.
- Lorraine and Susan use boiled cider from King Arthur Flour.
- Linda substitutes butter for the vegetable oil.
- Anne made her apple cider cake flavored with a little apple brandy!
- Enid actually subs apple cider vinegar diluted with water for the cider and loves it.
- Amanda and Eyvonne made their own oat flour in the NutriBullet and food processor and it turned out perfectly.
- Dee turned the bundt cake into a layer cake.
- Bella adds a layer of cinnamon sugar to the bottom of the cake before flipping it over, which is genius.
- “A” made half of the recipe, and baked it in a 8X8 pan for 27 minutes. It was perfect.
- and that’s just a few of the great ideas you guys have come up with 🙂
more ways to cook with cider
Apple cider adds natural sweetness, flavor, moisture, and a pop of acidity to so many foods! I make it a point to keep a quart in the fridge all season long.
- Kale and Fall Fruit Salad with Cider Poppy Seed Dressing
- Baked Apple Cider Doughnuts ~ New York Times Recipe
- Homemade Apple Cider
- Apple Cider Doughnut Loaf Cake
- Hot Buttered Apple Cider
- Mulled Cider Jelly
- Slow Cooked Cider Brats with Apple Onion Relish
- Wild Rice Salad with Maple Cider Vinaigrette
- Hard Cider Braised Pot Roast with Fresh Sage
Apple Cider Doughnut Cake
Equipment
- standard bundt pan (10-12 cup capacity)
Ingredients
dry ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups oat flour
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
wet ingredients
- 1 cup apple cider
- 3/4 cup applesauce
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil, I use safflower
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
topping
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F
- Generously butter and flour your bundt pan, making sure to get into all the nooks and crannies. Don’t skip this step!
- Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
- Whisk the wet ingredients together in a another bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk until just combined, don’t over mix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out without wet batter clinging to it. Set the pan on a cooling rack for 15 minutes.
- Stir the sugar and cinnamon together for the topping.
- Invert the cake onto a plate. Brush with the melted butter, and sprinkle generously all over with the sugar.
Video
Notes
- Sub cardamom for cinnamon, yum.
- Fold in some finely diced fresh apple for texture.
- You might use apple butter instead of applesauce.
- Instead of the sugar coating you could make a simple glaze out of cider and powdered sugar to drizzle (liberally!) over the cake.
Nutrition
Just made this today, wanting to make a warm treat for the family on a cold, snowy day. We had just enough apple cider left over from the holidays! I used my own gluten-free flour blend (rice flour, tapioca flour, coconut flour, millet flour, + sorghum flour), sucanat for the sugar, and added 1/4t ground cloves. A hit with the family! Will make again, and I could see adding some chopped apples, maybe even some nuts.
I’m really interested to hear that this works with your gf flour blend Karla, I’m going to have to try that (I have it all except for the sorghum)
My original mix didn’t call for the sorghum flour, but I purchased it when I ran out of millet. Now, I include both!
I’ve never used millet flour either, I need to find some.
I just made this cake, and it’s wonderful! So moist, not too sweet–it will be a keeper. It tasted exactly the way I thought it would! I added 1/8 tsp nutmeg to the dry ingredients in the batter, and I didn’t have apple cider or apple juice, so diluted 1/2 apple cider vinegar with water. Love it!
That’s nice to know about the vinegar substitution, Enid, and I’m thrilled that you enjoyed it.
I have a mini bunt tray, which is more or less a fancy cupcake tray. Do you think this recipe would work well making mini cakes? I assume I’d need to adjust the baking time and temp.
I think that should work fine, Jenny, as long as you prep your pans well so they release the little cakes. Good luck!
Looks delicious. Do you think you could substitute BOB’S RED MILL 1 to 1 gluten free flour for the all-purpose flour?
I assume you could, Libby, but I’ve never tried it. I do know the texture will change, but if you’re used to gluten free flour then you probably know what to expect.
What a beauty Sue and I’m completely smitten with your photographs! You’ve gotten me in the mood to bake something appley! Thank you for sharing! xo
Made this yesterday – and bringing to ECFE tonight – wanting to do the icing instead of the sugar. Any chance you would share the ratio for the two?
I’d start with a cup and a half of sifted confectioner’s sugar, and then drizzle in the cider until you have the consistency you like. I could be a thin or a thick glaze (I like thick) Start with a couple of tablespoons of cider and go from there. If it gets too thin, just add more sugar, and vice versa.
PS let us know how it turns out!
Thank you and will do.
Looks like an awesome recipe! I’d love to make this for a vegan friend…how can I replace the eggs without compromising the texture of the cake as intended in original recipe?
Thank you!
I haven’t experimented much with egg replacements, and I would think it’s quite a challenge to get a good result in a cake like this, but here’s a link to an article from thekitchn that might help you
And maybe another reader can help us out?
Wow. 🙂
Hi Sue – The cake looks amazing! One question…did you use regular applesauce or unsweetened? Thanks!
I believe mine was unsweetened, Kelly, but the cake isn’t overly sweet, so you could also use a sweetened one without any trouble.
I don’t usually comment on a recipe…but WOW was this cake really good, and very easy. I made half of the recipe, and baked it in a 8X8 pan for 27 minutes. It was perfect.
Thank you
I love these quick reviews, thanks so much! It’s great to know that it works in a square baking pan, too 🙂