Apple Fritters- gluten-free, top 9 allergen free

We are on a donut kick and we know you will love all of these recipes!  Apple fritters have a very special place in my heart.  Growing up, my dad’s favorite donut was an apple fritter.  We would go to a large donut chain that had every flavor of donut you could imagine.  The display case was filled with so many donuts it was hard to decide which one to choose, except for my dad.  My sisters and I would sit there scanning all of our options, but my dad always knew exactly what he wanted: an apple fritter.  There was just something special to him about the perfect apple chunks, the right amount of cinnamon, the soft interior, the crisp outside, the wonky shape, and just the right amount of glaze.  No matter what I chose for myself, my dad always gave me a bite of his apple fritter.

As a way to bring back those childhood memories, I knew I had to make the best gluten-free, top 9 allergen free, refined sugar free apple fritter.  They had to be the closest replica possible so I set out to create the perfect safe apple fritter recipe. I wanted to recreate the recipe for nostalgia and also for my kids to experience the same delicious apple fritters I had growing up.  Many of the recipes we create are to ensure our family doesn’t miss out on any food they want.  Food restrictions shouldn’t get in the way of enjoying your old favorites, just in a new way.  Now you all get to enjoy these amazing apple fritters too.  We always test our recipes repeatedly on our family and friends first before we will post recipes for you.  It’s important to us that our recipes are amazing, foolproof, and easy to make.  These apple fritters are fried, which really is super simple.  Head on over to grab our Rustic Scoop™ Pizza Crust Mix so you can make these apple fritters!

Apple Fritters

Ingredients

1 Rustic Scoop™ Pizza Crust Mix

¼ Cup Granulated sugar of choice

1 Tablespoon Cinnamon 

1 teaspoon Dry active yeast

¾ Cup Apple sauce

¼ Cup Butter of choice

1 ⅔ Cups Warm Milk of choice

¼ Cup Maple syrup

2 teaspoon Vinegar

1 teaspoon Vanilla

2 Cups Chopped and diced apples

Glaze

1 Cup Powdered sugar

1 teaspoon Vanilla

Milk of choice (amounts are in the instructions below)

Directions

Peel and chop apples then put them in a bowl with a bit of lemon juice to keep them from browning and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, place the Rustic Scoop™ Pizza Crust Mix along with the rest of the dry ingredients except yeast.  Mix on medium speed until they are well combined.  Next, warm your milk either in the microwave or on the stove.  Be sure your milk is between 90-100 degrees F.  If it is below 90F it won’t activate the yeast and if it’s too hot it will kill the yeast.  If you don’t have a thermometer, a good rule of thumb is that the milk will be warm to the touch but not hot.  Add the yeast and sugar of choice to the milk and gently stir.  Set the milk mixture aside to let it proof for 5 minutes.  If your yeast is alive and well after the proofing time, it will be foamy.  While your milk is proofing, add the apple sauce and butter to your dry ingredients, mix on medium speed, and mix until barely combined.  Now add the rest of the liquid ingredients and mix again.  Once the milk mixture has proofed and is foamy, add it to the mixing bowl and mix on medium speed until well combined.  The last step is to add the diced apples to the dough.  Be sure to drain the lemon juice and then mix them into your batter until well incorporated.

Place your dough in the mixing bowl in a warm draft free area covered with plastic wrap or a warm damp cloth to keep the dough moist.  If you have a proof setting on your oven, this is a great way to do this.  Let the dough rise for 25 minutes.  The dough will not look like it has risen very much, that’s normal.  It will rise beautifully when you fry the donuts.

While your dough is rising, prepare your oil.  Fill your deep fryer, electric skillet, or frying pan with enough oil to cover the donuts, about 1 ½ inches deep.  Choose the best oil that works for your family, is mild tasting, and has a smoke point above 375F.  Heat your oil to 375F using a thermometer.  Prepare a baking sheet with paper towels to place your finished donuts on to absorb excess oil.  In a small bowl, make your glaze. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and one tablespoon of milk at a time.  You want the glaze to be thin enough to drizzle, but not so thin it is watery.  If your glaze is too thick, add more milk a tiny bit at a time. If it is too thin, add more powdered sugar until your glaze is the consistency you desire.

Once your dough is done rising, use a large cookie scoop or ⅓ cup to scoop dough out.  The dough will be a bit tacky but should not be very sticky. Scoop and shape dough into round ish discs.  Remember, apple fritters have a nice wonky shape, so they don’t have to be uniform or perfect. Fry 3 donut dough discs in oil at 375 for 1-2 minutes per side or until golden brown.  You don’t want to fry too many donuts at a time or the oil won’t remain at a consistent temperature which will take longer to fry and allow the donuts to absorb too much oil. Once your donuts are done frying, place them on your prepared baking sheet using a slotted spoon.

After you have fried all of your donuts and they aren’t hot, drizzle with powdered sugar glaze.  Enjoy!