My fam and I just can’t leave apple cider alone once fall hits. We sip homemade spiced apple cider, turn it into Apple Cider Layer Cake, and now this apple cider donut cake. Think of it as one giant apple cider donut, no frying required. Moist, a lil dense, and covered in cinnamon sugar. The smell when it’s in the oven, y’all… Unreal! Serve a warm slice with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce, and dig in.
My girl Courtney from Cake by Courtney put her foot in this apple cider donut cake. Thanks for sharing it with me, boo!
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How to Make Apple Cider Donut Cake
These step-by-step photos show how to make an apple cider bundt cake, but be sure to check the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and detailed instructions. Skip to the → Apple Cider Donut Cake Recipe
1. Mix the apple cider donut cake batter until smooth
Whisk the dry ingredients separately, then combine the sugars, oil, eggs, applesauce, vanilla, flour, and apple cider together.
2. Pour the batter into a greased bundt pan
Grease and flour every nook and cranny of the pan, then pour in the batter. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
PRO TIP: This cake already has plenty of apple flava, but whenever I wanna amp it up even more, I simmer 1 ½ cups of cider down to 1 cup. Just let it cool completely before adding it to the batter.
3. Coat your apple cider doughnut cake in cinnamon sugar
Let the cake cool in the pan before turning it out. While it’s still slightly warm, brush the entire apple bundt cake with melted butter and press the cinnamon sugar over the top and down the sides.
PRO TIP: Don’t be shy with that sugar, boos! Scoop it into your hand and use your fingers to gently pat it down the sides so the cake resembles a true apple cider donut. If any spots look bare, brush on a little more melted butter and press more cinnamon sugar on top.
Full Apple Cider Donut Cake Recipe
Apple Cider Donut Cake Recipe
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Ingredients
For the Cake
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1 1/2 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs room temp
- 1 cup applesauce room temp
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup apple cider room temp
For the Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted
- 1/4 cup coarse sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a bundt pan with non-stick spray and then dust with flour. Set aside.
- In a medium size mixing bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and baking powder. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the sugar, brown sugar and oil. Mix on medium speed to combine.
- Add the eggs to the sugar mixture and mix on medium speed for about two minutes.
- Add the applesauce and vanilla. Mix to combine.
- With the mixer on low speed, add ⅓ of the flour mixture, followed by half of the apple cider. Continue alternating the flour mixture and the apple cider, finishing with the flour mixture. Mix until no streaks of flour remain. The batter will be slightly thin, not thick.
- Pour the batter into the bundt pan and bake for 55-60 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Let the cake cool for an hour in the bundt pan before turning it over onto a cake plate or cooling rack.
- Using a pastry brush, coat the cake in butter.
- Combine the ¼ cup sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon and then sprinkle onto the top and sides of the cake. To coat the sides, it's best to fill your hand with the mixture and pat it on the cake.
Notes
How to Store
- Room Temperature: Store the cake under a cake dome or tightly wrapped at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Fridge: Keep it tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Let slices come back to room temperature before serving.
- Freezer: Wrap the whole cake or individual slices tightly in plastic wrap, then place them in a freezer-safe bag. Freeze for up to 3 months and thaw overnight in the fridge or for a few hours at room temperature.
Nutrition
Recipe Tips
- Use real apple cider. Don’t mistake sparkling cider, which is basically carbonated apple juice, for the apple cider this doughnut cake recipe calls for.
- Adjust the sweetness carefully. The full 1 ½ cups of granulated sugar and ½ cup of brown sugar is a good starting point. If your cider is very sweet or you’re using sweetened applesauce, reduce the granulated sugar to 1 ¼ cups. I wouldn’t cut more than ¼ cup since sugar also affects the cake’s moisture and texture.
- Mix just until combined. Once the flour goes in, keep the mixer on low and stop when you no longer see streaks. Overmixing can make an already dense cake turn tough.
- Grease every nook and cranny of the pan. Bundt cakes will humble ya, boos! Get the baking spray or cake release into every ridge and all around the center tube.
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I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Recipe Help
The texture of this “cake” is more like a donut than a typical apple spiced bundt cake. That’s part of its magic. It is super moist, but it will be a bit more tender and dense than your typical fluffy light cake.
Bundt pans and ovens can bake differently, boos. Keep baking the cake in 5-minute increments until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter. If the top is getting too dark, loosely cover it with foil while the center finishes baking.
Yep! The apple cider and applesauce make this batter looser than your usual Bundt cake batter. Don’t add extra flour!!
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I loved this recipe. I made plain cupcakes. The crumb is tender with a subtle sweetness and spice. So easy to make. My grandson loved it. I will definitely make again and again.
So glad you liked it!
Flavor was good, cake was gummy. I’m not sure what I did wrong. I’ve been baking for years and haven’t had this issue.
I’m so sorry you had a problem with that. This cake is a bit more donut in texture and not as much cake like.
Turned out great! My very picky son loved it. I read some of the comments and ended up going with the longer bake time. It didn’t need it. The apple flavor is a bit subtle but maybe it’s because I used unsweetened apple sauce? Will definitely make again!
Couldn’t wait until fall to try this delicious Apple Cider Donut Bundt cake. Glad I didn’t wait. A delicious cake. Moist, light and very tasty. Need a cake that’s good with your coffee? This is the cake. Full of flavor❤️
can you use apples instead of applesauce
No it is best to follow the instructions and not make this substitution.
I made this cake to take to my Mother-n-laws for a fall get together. I was to embarrass to take it. Like some of the others it was to gummy. I went strictly by the recipe. It doesn’t matter whose recipe this is, I will never make it again. This was a miss.
Hi Evie, I spoke with the author of this recipe and she said that it could be that the cake wasn’t baked enough. She also said that the texture of the cake should be more like a donut instead of a typical bundt cake.
I have a recipe for baked apple cider donuts, which I love, so was excited to try this one. I agree with what others are saying that the flavor is delicious but there’s something off. There’s a moist cake but this was gummy. I followed the recipe as written except used avocado oil instead of vegetable oil since that’s what I had and will not be trying this one again due to the texture. I used not only a long wooden cake tester but also my Bundt cake tester, too. Both indicated this was done but in reality, only the outside edge of the cake was really good. The flavor was amazing but baking is a science and an art. This recipe clearly demonstrated the artistic side but the science was lacking.
This sounds delicious! I cannot eat vegetable oils because I have a metabolic problem. What can I use to substitute? I would like to make this for Thanksgiving. Thanks!
This cake was delicious! Made it for my son’s 14th birthday. Followed the recipe to the t and it worked out perfectly!
I followed the recipe exactly, Jocyln, but even after putting it back in the oven and raising the temp to 350 for 15 more minutes it stayed way too moist, almost to the point of gumminess. The flavor was tremendous and it raised properly but I wonder if anyone else has had this problem? I generally love and trust your recipes, and have had such good luck with them. Help!
Hi Marj, thank you so much for writing to me. This isn’t my recipe. It is my friend Courtney’s from her new cookbook that I mention above so it wasn’t developed by me however when I mad eit, I didn’t have the same issue. I am wondering what may have happened. Did you end up baking it longer?
I baked it miuch longer and it is still too moist to the point of gumminess. Oh well. Maybe I can make a trifle out of it.
I had this problem too but I realized after the fact that I forgot to add the baking powder! Still loved the cake though. Can’t wait to try it again with the baking powder : )