Apple Pie Doughnuts #RubyFrost

I’ve been kind of getting off of the “healthy band wagon” when it comes to blog post lately. I really tried though, I tried to be all like “I love Lettuce XOXOX” but I just can’t keep it up. haha. I can handle the salads, piles of steamed vegetables and endless grilled chicken once in a while but I can’t, y’all I just can’t eat it all the time. It isn’t going to happen. I’m the worst, I know.

But I mean there are other healthy option right? Like fruit! I can do fruit. I can eat fruit all day long.

I can really get into eating fruit when it’s stuffed into homemade donuts and fried.

Oh and did I mention that I poured sweet heavenly caramel all over those homemade donuts and topped them with whipped cream?! I know…I know…I’m the worst.

I pretty much just need these apple pie doughnuts and a huge, warm mug of hot cocoa and everything will be right with the world.

I try to branch out sometimes. I really do. But still find myself reaching for the brown sugar no matter what type of apple recipe I’m trying to create.

It’s just how my brain is programmed.

Well, I went with Option #2 when I was working with these RubyFrost apples and the results were fantastic.

I made up a simple apple pie filling, stuffed that into homemade doughnut dough and got to frying.

Ok, ok BigBear got to frying them…because he’s awesome like that. He tells me that his skin is tougher so he’d rather get burned by the oil in case something spatters. *all together now* Awwwwwwwww!!

Isn’t he the sweetest. 🙂

So what are you waiting for? Let’s make some doughnuts!

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Apple Pie Doughnuts
By: Angie Barrett – BigBearsWife.com
2/08/14
Makes about 24 doughnut                                          (Click to Print)

Ingredients 

For apple pie filling:

8 red Apples, I used RubyFrost Apples

6 tablespoons water

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoon cinnamon

⅔ cup light brown sugar

For doughnut dough:

2 tablespoons dry active yeast

½ cup warm water

2 ¼ cup scalded milk, cooled

(to scald milk, heat until right before it boils and remove from heat)

¾ cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup butter (1 stick), softened
8 cups flour

For doughnut glaze:

½ cup butter (1 stick), melted
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla
3-6 tablespoons milk(for thinning icing)

Plus:
Cinnamon and Sugar for dusting
Caramel for Serving (Homemade or Store Bought) 
Whipped Cream for Serving (Homemade or Store Bought) 
Canola Oil or Vegetable Oil for Frying

Directions 

For apple pie filling:

Peel apples and chop into small pieces. Add apple to a sauce pan. 

Add in the water, butter, cinnamon and brown sugar. Stir.

Cook on Medium heat for about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

After 25 minutes, remove from heat and let cool. 

For doughnut dough:

Add the yeast to the warm water and set aside to rest for about 3-4 minutes.

In the bowl of a mixer, mix the yeast/water with the scalded milk, sugar, salt and butter. Mix well. 

Add in 4 cups of flour and mix well. Scrap down the sides of the bowl as needed. 

Add in the last 4 cups of flour and mix until everything is combined. 

Cover the bowl with a tea towel or loosely with plastic wrap. Let sit in a warm place for 1 hour. 

After an hour, remove dough from the bowl and place onto a floured surface. Punch the dough down and roll out until the dough is about ½ an inch thick. 

Cut dough into 4×4 squares. 

Place a tablespoon of apple pie filling in the center of one of the squares. Bring the four corners of the dough to the center. Bring the rest of the edges to the center as well and pinch closed. Carefully roll the ball of dough in your hands to form a ball. 

Place on a baking sheet to rise. Continue with all of the dough and pie filling.

Let doughnuts rest for 30 minutes. 

Heat oil to 350F. 

Place two doughnuts into the hot oil and fry for 1.5 minutes – 2 minutes. Try to get closer to 2 minutes without burning the doughnut. If it starts getting too brown, flip it over. After flipping the doughnut cook for another 1.5 minutes – 2 minutes. Again watch for brownness.

*Because the doughnut is thicker and filled with the apple pie filling it will need to cook a little longer than plain doughnuts so that the dough around the pie filling cooks. Insides of doughnuts may still be softer than normal due to the apple pie filling.*

When the doughnut is done cooking, lay it on a paper towel lined surface to cool for a moment. But before it cools all of the way, dip it into the glaze, place onto a cooling rack. While the icing is wet, sprinkle cinnamon and sugar onto the top of the doughnut. Let cool.

Repeat steps until all of the doughnuts are done. 

To serve: Top with Caramel and Whipped Cream. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

This post/recipe was sponsored by the New York Apple Growers but as always, all of the words and opinions are 100% mine! Sponsored posts help to keep this blog up and running! XOXO