Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (2024)

Are you looking for the BEST Apple Fritter recipe? You should give this easy homemade version a try. The apple rings are fried and then dipped into cinnamon sugar – fall perfection!

I love old fashioned desserts like grandma used to make, and these apple fritters are no exception. Full of all your favorite autumn flavors, they’re the perfect treat to enjoy in your favorite sweater on the porch on crisp fall days! For more cozy apple recipes, see my Quick Apple Crisp and my Brown Sugar Cinnamon Apples!

Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (1)

Old-fashioned apple fritters like from your best friend’s German grandma? The ones you get at those tiny country fairs? Yes, they’re the best.

These cute little apple rings are a favorite come fall with all the fairs around.

But what can I say – they can be hard to come by. And let’s be honest: To buy them in the quantities the kids NEED to eat them gets way too expensive.

All you need to make a just as tasty but cheaper (and more accessible!) alternative at home are a few apples, ingredients for a simple batter and some oil.

Ok, a lot of oil…

And don’t be afraid of the frying part, these apple rings are probably one of the easiest things to make!

This Old-Fashioned Apple Fritter Recipe

  • only needs a few ingredients you either have in your pantry already or can buy at the regular grocery store
  • is super easy to make – even though the apple fritters are such a special treat!
  • makes your home smell like fall – apples, cinnamon and all the warm and cozy flavors!

I’m really trying to make a few simple family traditions happen around the year, and these apple fritters are one I want to keep up for the autumn season.

Along with some other fall recipes (like my absolutely-not-healthy-but-oh-so-good Pumpkin Bread and my Pumpkin Waffles), these are the thing I want my kids to talk about when they remember the autumn days of their childhood ?

How to Make Apple Fritters

Read on for the detailed steps, or scroll down formore tipsto make this recipe foolproof and theprintable recipe card.

Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (2)

► 1 Prep: Prepare your vessel for frying. You can either use a deep fat fryer (just follow manufacturer’s instructions on how to preheat it). Or make them on the stove!

I don’t even own a fryer, I just make them in a deep cast iron skillet. I slowly heat the oil over medium heat and check it often with a kitchen thermometer.

This skillet is similar to the one I have. (This is an affiliate link and I’ll earn a commission for purchases made after clicking through.)

For further prep, put a few layers of paper towels on a large plate (for draining the hot fritters), along with a medium bowl of cinnamon sugar and a plate for the finished fritters.

► 2 Prepare Apples: I’m generally too lazy to peel things like peaches and apples when making desserts, but for apple fritters I take the burden of peeling upon myself ?

Peel, core and then slice the apples into ½ inch thick rings. If you want to keep them from browning, place them in a bowl with ice cold water plus lemon juice.

Coring works best with an apple corer, but if you don’t have one you can first slice the apples and then cut out the core with a knife or a small round cookie cutter.

► 3 Make Batter: Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk together well (you want to evenly distribute that baking powder!) – then add all the wet ingredients and whisk until a smooth batter forms. You cannot overmix this apple fritter batter. Easy peasy!

► 4 Make Apple Fritters: Drop a small amount of batter into the hot oil to check if it’s ready. If the batter browns and floats to the surface, you’re ready to go!

Using metal tongues coat an apple ring with batter and gently drop it into the hot oil (I can do 3 fritters at a time in my 12 inch skillet). Fry for 1-2 minutes on each side until golden and puffy.

Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (3)

Remove from the oil and quickly drain on the paper towels. Toss it in the cinnamon sugar mixture while still warm (important, or the cinnamon sugar won’t stick to the apple fritters) and set aside on the plate.

Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (4)

Keep going until you’ve used all the batter (or all the apple rings, but I usually run out of batter before I run out of apple).

Absolutely serve these warm! They serve warm vanilla sauce with the apple fritters at our country fair, but I usually don’t feel like doing even more cooking ?

Tips for the BEST Apple Fritters:

  • use firm, tart apples for best results – definitely apples that hold their shape during cooking! Something like a Honeycrisp or Granny Smith would work well.
  • if you don’t like cinnamon, you can just toss them in some sugar, or dust the apple fritters with powdered sugar instead
  • these don’t keep well, so only make as many as you’re wanting to eat immediately (scroll down to see how to scale down this recipe for less people)
Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (5)

Can you make this apple fritter recipe with other types of fruit?

Yes, you can use this batter on many fruits!

You can coat banana pieces, firm peach slices, firm pears or even quartered plums in this batter and then deep fry it to make all kinds of fritters!

Healthy? Not so much (maybe a little, there’s fruit in it?!). Worth it? You bet.

More Apple Recipes You’ll Love:

  • Crockpot Apple Cobbler
  • Brown Sugar Cinnamon Apples
  • Apple French Toast Bake

And if you liked these recipes, there’s plenty more to make family meals easier for you! Be sure tojoin my FREE recipe circle hereto get easy recipes by email.

Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (6)

P.S: If you tried this apple fritter recipe, why not leave me a comment below to let me know how you liked it? I LOVE interacting with you and hearing about your experience with my recipe. Also, by adding a comment and star rating you’re helping Savory Nothings grow and get even better for you!

Printable recipe

Printable Recipe Card

Cinnamon Sugar Apple Fritters

These Apple Fritter Rings are a delicious fall treat you can easily make at home with just a handful ingredients and time!

Recipe by Nora from Savory Nothings

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4.93 from 27 votes

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Recipe details

Prep 15 minutes mins

Cook 25 minutes mins

Total 40 minutes mins

Servings 20 fritters

Ingredients

For Frying

  • 2 cups vegetable oil

For the Cinnamon Sugar

  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

For the Fritters

  • 1 ½ cups flour
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • teaspoon salt
  • 1 cups milk
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 4 medium apples peeled, cored and cut into ½ inch thick rings

Instructions

  • Prep: Slowly heat the 2 cups vegetable oil in a deep cast iron skillet or prepare the deep fat fryer. Set a plate next to your fryer with a thick layer of paper towels. Mix the sugar and cinnamon for the cinnamon sugar coating in a medium bowl and set it next to the paper towel lined plate. Add a large plate for the finished fritters.

  • Make apple fritter batter: In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Add the milk, maple syrup, egg and 1 tablespoon oil and whisk until a thick and smooth batter forms.

  • Check the oil: Check if your oil is hot enough by dropping a small amount of batter into it. If the batter browns and quickly floats to the surface you're ready to go!

  • Fry the apples: Using metal tongues coat an apple ring with batter and gently drop it into the hot oil. Fry for 1-2 minutes on each side until golden and puffy. Remove from the oil and quickly drain on the paper towels. Toss it in the cinnamon sugar mixture while still warm and set aside on the plate. Proceed in the same way with the remaining apple slices until the entire batter has been used. Depending on the size of your skillet or fryer you can do multiple rings at the same time.

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Nutrition

Calories: 106kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 2gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 9mgSodium: 24mgPotassium: 92mgFiber: 1gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 55IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 30mgIron: 1mg

Nutrition is an estimate.

More recipe information

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (8)
Apple Fritter Recipe with Cinnamon Sugar: An Easy Fall Dessert (2024)

FAQs

Why are my homemade apple fritters soggy? ›

Why are my apple fritters soggy? This is most likely the result of oil temperature. If your oil is too cool, your fritters will take a long time to fry and will end up greasy.

Why are my apple fritters not crispy? ›

Best tips for apple fritters:

Use two spoons to drop the batter into the oil and spread gently. If you drop a scoop of batter into the oil, the outside will be crispy and the center will be raw. To make them really crispy, I prefer to fry them until they are dark brown not just golden brown.

What's the difference between apple cider donuts and apple fritters? ›

Apple Fritters vs Apple Donuts

Many apple cider doughnut recipes are cake-based, not yeast-based. And most apple fritters don't have cider in the dough, they just rely on the apple chunks to provide flavor.

What are the two categories of fritters? ›

Plain fritters are deep-fried cakes of chou paste or a yeast dough. In another type, bits of meat, seafood, vegetables, or fruit are coated with batter and deep-fried. Small cakes of chopped food in batter, such as corn fritters in the southern United States, are also called fritters.

Does baking soda make fritters crispy? ›

Is baking soda or powder best for frying? A pinch of baking soda can help produce crispy fried foods. It reacts with the acid in the batter to create carbon dioxide bubbles. These lead to an airy batter and a crisper, fluffier result.

Why are apple fritters unhealthy? ›

Apple fritters are among the unhealthiest doughnuts. Just because a doughnut has fruit it it doesn't mean it is a good choice. Apple fritters are deep fried in fat. A medium sized apple fritter contains approximately 17 grams of fat (almost half the fat from saturated fat) and 450 calories.

What does baking soda do in fritters? ›

So we use both to get the best of both worlds; Baking soda (bi-carb) OR baking powder – just a touch, to aerate the batter every so slightly (without it, it's slightly denser); Parmesan – for a good hit of savoury flavour AND to make the fritters extra crispy! Green onion and coriander – for a hit of freshness.

Why are my apple fritters falling apart? ›

Sprinkle it with more flour on top and use your hands to squeeze and pat into a patty. All the extra flour is really important because it will help bind and seal the fritter so it doesn't fall apart when frying.

How do you keep fritters from falling apart? ›

Get the skillet searing hot.

A hot skillet will start cooking the fritters as soon as they hit the pan. That helps sear a crust on each fritter that will hold them together. A pan that's too cool will create a lackluster crust that could result in a floppy fritter if you're not careful.

Is pancake batter the same as fritter batter? ›

A fritter batter is a muffin batter without butter (fat). How does pancake batter fit in? Right in the middle of the two because it use 1/2 part fat, but keeps the other core components the same. These all fall under the quick bread family, which use baking powder or soda as a leavener.

What is the unhealthiest doughnut? ›

The Honey Dew Coconut Jelly Stick is the most calorie and sugar-heavy donut on our list with 590 calories and 40 grams of sugar per stick. Not only that, but it has a whopping 680 milligrams of sodium, which is almost a third of the recommended daily limit.

What is a bear claw vs apple fritter? ›

A bear claw is a folded circle of danish dough that is filled with almond paste and then slit multiple times so they open up in the oven resembling a claw. An apple fritter is a thick batter of diced apples, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice with a chemical leavening that is dropped by the 1/2 cup into a deep fryer.

What are Florida's famous fritters? ›

Conch fritters are a dish commonly served in The Bahamas and the Florida Keys.

What do Americans call fritters? ›

Definition. The 1854 edition of An American Dictionary of the English Language by Noah Webster defines fritter as a transitive verb meaning "to cut meat into small pieces to be fried". Another definition from 1861 is given as "a pancake cont. chopped fruit, poultry, fish; also a small piece of meat fried".

What is a British fritter? ›

A fritter is a fried food. The food is a portion of batter or breading. It is filled with either meat, seafood, vegetables or fruit. In the United Kingdom, fritters can be with fish and chips. There is also a food item, like an apple ring or a slice of potato.

Should fritter batter be thick? ›

You want a thick batter for these fritters. If you find it's a little too thin simply add in some more flour. If the batters too thick (can still see flour etc), add a dash of milk. The batter should be thick enough to hold its shape on a tablespoon without pouring off everywhere.

Why are my fritters raw inside? ›

The food inside my fritters is undercooked

It the food inside the batter is undercooked, it is most likely that the fat is too hot and is cooking the outside of the food too quickly. Alternatively, the food pieces inside the batter might be too big.

Why are my fritters tough? ›

Overmixing can cause the fritter to be gummy and tough. Only mix as much as you need to. I recommend skipping a mixer and doing this by hand to avoid overmixing. Use a cookie scoop.

How do you keep apple fritters fresh overnight? ›

Wherever you keep these apple fritters, make sure to store them in an airtight container so they don't dry out. They will last 2 days at room temperature, 1 week in the fridge, and 2-3 months in the freezer. If you freeze them, thaw them by leaving them at room temperature for a few hours until they're soft.

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