Apple fritters
Apple fritters are a doughnut-shop favorite across America: cinnamon-scented pieces of apple folded into a light batter and fried into craggy, knobbly clusters full of nooks and edges. The edges are crisp, the inside is moist and tender with bursts of sweet-tart apple, and the whole thing is finished with a thin, crackly sugar glaze.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Rising or chilling
- 10 min
- Total time
- 1 hr
- Method
- Fried
Ingredients
Cinnamon apples
Batter
Vanilla glaze
Oil for frying
Instructions
Step 1
Peel and core 300 g apples, cut them into cubes of about 1 cm and toss right away with 10 g lemon juice and 3 g ground cinnamon. The lemon keeps the apples from browning, and small, even pieces cook through at the same time as the batter. The apples are ready when the cubes are roughly the same size and evenly coated in a light brown layer of cinnamon.
Step 2
Whisk 250 g all-purpose flour, 50 g granulated sugar, 10 g baking powder and 3 g salt in a large bowl; in another bowl, stir together 160 g whole milk, 100 g eggs, 30 g melted unsalted butter and 5 g vanilla extract, then pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Mix only until the dry flour just disappears so the fritters do not turn tough. The batter is ready when it is very thick, still has a few small lumps and drops from the spoon in clumps.
Step 3
Add the apples and their cinnamon juices to the batter, fold a few times with a flat spatula, then let it rest for about ten minutes while you heat the oil. The rest lets the baking powder start bubbling and helps the batter cling more tightly to each piece of apple. The mixture is ready when the apples are evenly distributed and a few small air holes appear on the surface.
Step 4
Heat to taste oil for deep-frying to about 175°C, then use two large spoons to drop mounds of apple batter gently into the oil, press them a little flatter and fry for about two and a half minutes per side. Flattening helps the fritters cook through to the center and creates lots of crisp, craggy edges. They are done when both sides are deep golden brown, they float high in the oil and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out free of wet batter.
Step 5
Stir 200 g powdered sugar with 45 g whole milk and 3 g vanilla extract into a runny glaze, then dip both sides of each fritter as soon as it has drained and set it on a wire rack. Warm fritters let the glaze run into every crevice and dry into a crisp shell. They are finished when the glaze is opaque white, dry to the touch and crackles slightly when you break a fritter open.
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Deep skillet
- Thermometer
- Wire cooling rack
- Kitchen scale
Tips
- Slightly tart, crisp apples such as green apples give the best balance, since very sweet, soft apples turn mushy when fried.
- You can add a few chopped toasted walnuts to the apples for extra nuttiness.
- For big bakery-style fritters, scoop twice as much batter and fry at a slightly lower heat so the centers have time to cook.
Storage
The fritters stay crisp for a few hours at room temperature. You can keep them in an airtight container for up to two days; before eating, warm them in a 170°C oven for about five minutes to crisp the edges again.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The centers are still wet with raw batter around the apples.
- The mounds were too thick or the oil was too hot. Press the mounds flatter as you drop them into the oil and keep the temperature at about 175°C.
- The apples fall out of the fritters while frying.
- The apples were cut too large or the batter was too thin to hold them. Cut the apples smaller and add milk only until the batter is very thick.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
