Apple cake donuts

Baked donuts are an easy prep-ahead breakfast option, I love how easy it is to play around with the recipes for flavor variations and the end result is a portable and customizable breakfast treat. When I got this link to an apple loaf cake recipe I knew I had to make it into a donut, that makes dessert appropriate for breakfast, right? 

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My usual weekday routine used to involve rolling out of bed last minute, hopping on a long bus ride then waking up as we arrived at the office an hour later and only then getting my morning dose of caffeine and whatever breakfast was available at the cafe. As working from home became the new normal, I found a few things that work well for a balanced but quick at home breakfast - quiche, baked donuts and sourdough toast. All the baking can take place ahead of time and in the morning it's as easy as warming up the goodies, putting some yogurt and fruit alongside on the plate and enjoying a filling and satisfying meal.

I adapted the original recipe for a lighter, more balanced version that would not spike my blood sugar early in the morning and give me a steadier energy input to start the day. I reduced the sugar and replaced it with maple syrup - the maple gives a flavor boost as well, which compliments the apples beautifully. I also replaced the oil with applesauce, it works to maintain good moisture in the crumb while keeping it light. Finally, more fruit and more spices, because that's really the best part after all.

The process is your very basic mix wet ingredients and dry ingredients separately, fold together until just incorporated. The wet ingredients are an opportunity to incorporate a bit of extra air into the batter, use a whisk or hand mixer to whip an egg with 1/4 cup of maple syrup until lightened up a bit, and thoroughly mix in 1/4 cup of applesauce and 1 tsp of vanilla. You can add finely diced apples and pears in the wet ingredients at this point, but I find that can cause uneven texture and sticking to the donut form, so I like holding them off and pressing them into the top instead. I've tried doing apples with nectarines, but stone fruit may be too wet for this recipe, so unless you have a firm peach on hand you're better sticking to all apples, all pears or a combination of the two.

Whisk together 1 cup of all purpose flour, 3/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp baking powder and warm spices (I used 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp cardamom and 1/4 tsp cloves) in a separate bowl. Make sure the baking powder, salt and spices are well mixed in with the flour so they get evenly distributed with the wet ingredients. Fold into the dry ingredients until just incorporated, don't overmix so you don't get a tough crumb. Distribute batter evenly among 6 greased donut forms (you can use a greased muffin tin instead if you prefer).

Toss the diced fruit with a bit of extra spices (I used cinnamon and cloves) just to coat them with some additional flavor, then press into the top of each donut. Bake in the preheated 350F oven for 30-35 until springy and cooked through. Let the donuts cool for 5-10 minutes in the pan before taking them out and letting them cool completely on a wire rack. Glaze right before serving to prevent sogginess.

One glaze I tried was as tasty as it was simple - sour cream mixed with a dash of maple syrup. While the maple ties in with the flavor of the cake, the sour cream coats the donut nicely while offering a tart counter note. More recently, tempted to try it out by the very very ripe mango on my counter, was an even simpler one - I blended the mango until smooth and light, then passed it through a sieve to remove some of the more stubborn fiber. This was, on its own, the perfect texture and flavor for a glaze. Spoon or drizzle over the apples, or dip the rounded bottom of the donut directly in it for even coverage. Delicious!

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Apple cake donuts

 Ingredients

• 1 eggs  
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cups apple, peeled and diced  
• 1 cup pear, peeled and diced
• 1 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cardamom
• 1/4 tsp cloves

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 6 donut pan (or muffin tin if you only have that on hand).
2. Beat egg, maple syrup, applesauce, and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl until smooth. Here, you can add some of the apples in, but I like to save them for the top.
3. Mix flour, salt, baking powder, and spices in a separate bowl; add to wet mixture and stir just until evenly combined into a thick batter. 
4. Divide batter evenly in prepared pan (I got ~52g in each form).
5. Toss apples and pears with a touch more cinnamon and cloves, then divide among the 6 donuts and press in to embed in the batter.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes until cooked through and golden on top
7. Cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then remove and cool completely on a wire rack.
8. Drizzle or dip in glaze just before serving.
   
   

Notes

• I've tried two kinds of glaze and I really enjoyed them both: sour cream with a dash of maple syrup is fantastic and offers a great tart contrast to the soft sweet apple. Also, even more simply, blending a mango until smooth makes a great fresh glaze to apply at serving time - kid approved too!
• I truly love the apple+pear combination (shoutout to my friend who suggested using pears!). I've tried apple and nectarine, but the nectarine was too wet and it prevented the donuts from springing properly. You can do all apple or all pear for the diced components.
• While folding fruit in the actual batter creates a creamier texture and can work, I found that it can also stick to the bottom as the fruit caramelizes and can affect the portability of the donut, so I prefer to press them on top.
• For an extra dose of caramelization, you can sprinkle some sugar on top just before baking (demerara would be great for the golden color and larger crystal structure).