Apple Cider Donut Bundt Cake (One Bowl)
This Apple cider donut cake, is the only cake you’ll need this Fall. It’s moist, soft, dense, rich in autumn spices and apple flavor with a melt in your mouth texture. All you need is one bowl and no hand mixer!
APPLE CIDER DONUT CAKE
It’s that time of year! Fall baking! Get ya spices ready because it’s time to bake all kinds of delicious spiced desserts like doughnuts, doughnut cake, or your favorite cake. Whatever you bake, make sure you make this apple cider donut cake!
When I told my son I was going to make it, he said I sounded old fashioned. Well, I guess he’s old fashioned because he ate the most of it! My sis called me asking for more. So it’s a winning tried and true recipe! I’ve made this cake 6 times (recipe testing)!
I highly recommend you try this! You’ve tried the apple cider donuts from the store right? Although, they’re good, this cake is way BETTER! And since this is called a doughnut cake, you won’t feel bad eating it for breakfast with a hot cup of coffee.
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WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
- It’s a one bowl apple cake.
- It’s an old fashioned apple cake everyone loves.
- It uses fresh raw apples.
- Easy and no fuss.
- Lots of apple flavor and spices, like nutmeg, cinnamon and a bit of ginger.
- Moist, soft and dense with a melt in your mouth texture. Just like an apple cake should be.
- It’s covered in a cinnamon sugar crust.
- There’s a secret ingredient that puts this cake over the top.
SECRET INGREDIENTS
This apple cider donut cake secret ingredient is….wait for it…..APPLE JUICE CONCENTRATE! Yes, it’s the frozen concentrated apple you’d find at the store. Normally you wouldn’t expect apple juice concentrate in an apple cake.
Usually cakes like this are made with apple juice, apple cider, apple sauce or even boiled down apple juice reduction. Bottom line, apple juice concentrate has more flavor.
Next secret ingredient is…WHEAT FLOUR. Wheat flour adds some nuttiness and, more depth of flavor than all – purpose flour. I used both all-purpose and wheat flour. I’ve also made this with cake flour. Both work in this recipe. The cake flour will make a more tender cake.
Apple juice concentrate combined with shredded fresh apples, a generous amount of spices, a combo of wheat and all purpose flour makes the best apple bundt cake!
The aroma of the apple cider cake baking is euphoria! The smell alone is a sign that the cake is gonna be so GOOD! This cake is perfect for fall parties, Thanksgiving, Christmas or any time of the year. The flavors are superb and you won’t be able to eat one slice.
INGREDIENTS
I already mentioned some of the ingredients above, well here’s what else you’ll need to make this apple cider donut cake:
- All-Purpose Flour – Gives baked goods structure
- Wheat flour – For a deeper flavor and a bit of nuttiness
- Baking soda & baking powder – to make the cake rise
- Generous amount of spice – Cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger -for big fall flavor
- Sweetener – White sugar
- Brown sugar -pairs perfectly with the spices and helps with moisture.
- Unsalted butter – for a rich butter flavor
- Vegetable oil -helps keep the cake moist
- Eggs – Acts as a binding agent
- Milk or sour cream. (I’ve tried them both) helps to tenderize and moisten baked goods See recipe notes*
- Vanilla & salt – for flavor
- Apple juice concentrate and fresh shredded apples – for intense apple flavor
- Walnuts – not in the recipe but feel free to use them.
HOW TO MAKE IT
First preheat the oven then add the dry ingredients and spices into a bowl and whisk.
Make a hole in the center of the dry ingredients. Then add the wet ingredients into the hole and whisk just the wet ingredients.
Use a spoon or silicon spatula to combine all the ingredients just until combined.
Peel the skin off the apple.
Shred the apple.
Combine the shredded apple with the batter.
Pour into the bundt pan and bake until done. Cool.
Make the apple cider glaze while the cake bakes. *See recipe
Add sugar, cinnamon and salt to a small bowl mix well.
Using a fork, poke holes into the top of the cake and then pour the apple cider syrup over the top. Brush the cake all over with the melted butter.
Sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar mixture all over the cake. Slice and serve. Easy right?! Check out the recipe for apple cider donut cake below!
Apple cider donut cake
Ingredients
Apple cider glaze
- 1/2 cup thawed apple juice concentrate
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp; nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ginger powder
Wet Ingredients
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 1/4 cup sour cream or equal amounts of milk if you prefer
- 2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup thawed apple juice concentrate
- 2 small granny smith apples
Cinnamon and sugar mixture
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/16 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
Instructions
Apple cider Glaze
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a saucepan boil cider. Once it comes to a rapid boil, set stove to medium low for about 12 minutes. Pour the syrup into a heat safe bowl. Set to the side *see notes.
Make the cake
- Add the dry ingredients and spices into a bowl and whisk. Then
make a hole in the center of the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients into the hole and whisk just the wet ingredients. - Use a spoon or silicon spatula to combine all the ingredients (wet and dry) just until combined.
- Peel the skin off the apple then shred it. Combine the shredded apple with the cake batter. Pour into prepared greased pans and bake for 35-40 minutes or until set. Cool completely.
Cinnamon and sugar mixture and Apple cider syrup
- Add sugar, cinnamon and salt to a small bowl mix well. Mix very well. See notes*
- Using a fork, poke holes into the top of the cake and then pour the apple cider syrup over the top. Brush the cake all over with the melted butter. Sprinkle and pat the cinnamon and sugar mixture all over the cake. Slice and serve
Notes
Make this easy apple cider bundt cake and let me know what you think in the comments below!
If you think this recipe looks good, save it to your Pinterest Board or share it on Facebook. Don’t forget to follow me on Pinterest too!
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Made this cake a few days ago for a party tonight and froze it for a couple of days. The cake was amazing! It was moist and delicious and everyone loved it. I used cider instead of the frozen apple juice and it had a wonderful flavor. I reduced it for the glaze. I will make this cake again and again!
That’s awesome! Thank you so much for the great feedback!!!
I dropped this recipe down a star because it is not written correctly, The butter is not supposed to go in the cake but on it and the ginger is not listed in the recipe list.
I am wondering if it should read like this instead:
Apple cider glaze:
1/2 cup thawed apple juice concentrate
Dry Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp; nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
Wet Ingredients:
2 eggs room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream or equal amounts of milk if you prefer
2 tbsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup thawed apple juice concentrate
2 small granny smith apples
Cinnamon and sugar mixture:
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/16 tsp salt
8 tbsp unsalted butter melted
Hmm I thought I updated this one. So sorry about that! I’ll fix the errors.
Thank you, we want to recommend this recipe to others. =)
So sorry I missed this! Thank you so much Autumn! Love your name!
My cake is in the oven, but now I’m afraid I have made a mistake. The wet ingredients list includes 8 Tablespoons of unsalted butter, melted. The recipe says to combine the wet ingredients into the batter. After the cake is cool we pour on the apple cider concentrate and “Brush the cake all over with the melted butter.” I already put the melted butter from the wet ingredients list in the batter. Do I brush the cake with additional butter? If so, how much? If not, was I supposed to put any melted butter in the batter? Thanks!
Hi there. So sorry about that! Use 1/4 cup of melted butter.
The recipe says 2 tablespoons of vanilla. That seems like a lot. Is that right?
Feel free to adjust the amount of vanilla extract to your preference.
The text content mentions ginger as a spice. Am I missing it in the list of ingredients? This cake looks much better than the one I made with a cake mix & apple cider that’s plastered all over social media.
Sorry I missed this comment. I used about 1/4 tsp of ginger.
Planning to make this for husband’s birthday later this month – need to buy apple juice concentrate. Will be substituting applesauce and yogurt for the oil and some of the butter to lower the fat but keep the flavor. Thank-you for sharing this recipe. Colleen
Hi Colleen so sorry for my late reply. I’ve been so busy lately. I’ve never tried with applesauce and yogurt but let me know how it goes. Thank you for your comment!
I am so making this recipe and I cannot wait! Another true and tried recipe. I’m not a baker but this cake sounds too delicious not to make. Great job with this one.
Thank you so much Mirlene!!!
Oh my goodness, this cake is amazing. My family and I love apple cider and this cake fills the house with the smell of fall.
Yay! Thanks for your review Alexis 🙂
This bundt cake is gorgeous, delicious and so perfect for the upcoming holidays! Love that it has apples and apple juice in it!
Gorgeous photos as always! I am going to make this next week – the kids love something to have when they get in from school hungry, and I like something with my morning tea!
I hope you enjoy it Jacqui! Thank you!
Wow, what a great looking cake. I love you used apple cider it just makes the perfect flavoring plus all the warm winter spices. I need to make this.
This sounds like the ultimate autumnal cake.I bet the whole family would love it! I wish I was better at baking.
WOW, that is such a moist and delicious looking apple bundt cake. I am not a big fan of apples (WHAT??), but I’d love to try this one. It looks just perfect for the season. Frozen apple concentrate is a very interesting ingredient.
Mmm, this looks so moist! I like the idea of using wheat flour, too.
Thank you David!
I do love a good apple cake at this time of year and yours looks really delicious. The crumb looks absolutely perfect. Great idea to use apple cider as a glaze and to use apple juice in the actual cake itself. I’ve made many an apple cake in my time, but I’ve not done either of those things.
Thank you so much Choclette!
I’ve never had an apple cider donut, but now I don’t need to. Because, this cake! It looks and sounds amazing and I can’t wait to make it.