Apple Cider Donut Cake: Cozy, Sweet, and Perfectly Spiced
Everything you love about apple cider donuts—warm spices, cozy fall flavors, and that irresistible cinnamon sugar finish—comes together in this easy, moist, and completely delicious Apple Cider Donut Cake.
It’s the kind of dessert that fills your kitchen with the smell of autumn and feels right at home on your holiday table, your breakfast table, or your “because life is a lot and I deserve cake” table.
This cake has that signature apple cider tang, the tender crumb of a perfect Bundt, and a sweet, buttery coating that makes every bite taste like a trip to the orchard.
You’ll Need
For the Cake:
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3 cups all-purpose flour
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¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
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½ cup granulated sugar
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1½ tsp baking powder
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½ tsp baking soda
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1 tsp salt
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2 tsp ground cinnamon
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¼ tsp ground nutmeg
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¼ tsp ground ginger
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¼ tsp allspice
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2 cups apple cider (to reduce to 1 cup)
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½ cup unsweetened applesauce
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1 cup avocado oil (or vegetable/non-flavored oil)
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3 large eggs
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2 tsp vanilla extract
For the Cinnamon Sugar Topping:
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4 tbsp (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted
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2 tbsp reduced apple cider
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4–5 tbsp granulated sugar
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1–2 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
1. Preheat oven:
Heat oven to 350°F (175°C).
2. Prep the pan:
Generously grease a 12-cup Bundt pan (or two 6-cup pans) with butter. Sprinkle sugar over the butter and tilt the pan to coat evenly. Tap out any excess. (This creates that sweet, crisp “donut edge.”)
3. Reduce the cider:
In a small saucepan, simmer 2 cups apple cider over medium heat until reduced to 1 cup (about 15–20 minutes). Let it cool slightly.
4. Mix dry ingredients:
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, both sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice.
5. Mix wet ingredients:
In another bowl, combine the reduced cider, applesauce, oil, eggs, and vanilla.
6. Combine:
Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. (Do not overmix—this keeps the cake tender.)
7. Bake:
Pour the batter into your prepared pan(s). Bake 40–50 minutes for a 12-cup Bundt or 25–35 minutes for smaller pans, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Cool:
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack.
9. Finish:
While still warm, stir together melted butter and reduced cider. Brush generously over the cake. Mix sugar and cinnamon, then sprinkle evenly on top.
Serve warm or at room temperature—this cake is just as good with morning coffee as it is with a scoop of vanilla ice cream after dinner.
It’s cozy, nostalgic, and absolutely irresistible.
And as always, we take pride in our process, our facility, our team, our products, and our mission to give back. We bake integrity into everything we do.