Print
clockclock iconcutlerycutlery iconflagflag iconfolderfolder iconinstagraminstagram iconpinterestpinterest iconfacebookfacebook iconprintprint iconsquaressquares iconheartheart iconheart solidheart solid icon
crispy applesauce fritters are spread out on a wooden board covered with a crinkled sheet of parchment paper

applesauce fritters

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

No reviews

These applesauce fritters start with a heavily spiced homemade applesauce that gets folded into a molasses laden batter, then fried into crunchy golden-fritters. A toss in ginger-spiced cinnamon sugar offers the perfect festive finish.

  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: about 16 fritters 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale

For the Applesauce:

  • 2 fresh apples - enough to yield about 2 cups diced
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (yield from about 1/2 lemon)
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

For the Spiced Cinnamon Sugar Coating:

  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger

For the Fritters:

  • 1/4 cup molasses
  • 1 egg
  • 6 tablespoons oat milk
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Neutral oil, as needed for frying (I used around 1 cup)

Instructions

  1. Peel, core, and dice the apples into roughly ½ inch-sized chunks. Don’t worry about being perfect here, a few bits of skin remaining on the apples is fine and any unevenly cut chunks will cook down. Combine the diced apples in a pot with the remaining applesauce ingredients: lemon juice, water, granulated sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. diced apples, lemon juice, sugar, and spices are combined in a medium saucepan.
  2. Place the pot over medium heat and allow the mixture to simmer, stirring often until softened, about 15 minutes.the cooked apple mixture has taken on a dark brown coloring and glossy appearance.
  3. Remove from the heat and spread the apple mixture thinly on a plate or baking sheet. Transfer to the fridge and let it cool for about 10 minutes. If you happen to give it a taste (as you should) keep in mind it will be more strongly flavored and heavily spiced than applesauce you’d want to eat on its own, as it will be the main source of flavor for our fritter batter.the applesauce is spread onto a wide plate to cool.
  4. While you wait for the applesauce to cool, make the spiced cinnamon sugar coating by whisking the granulated sugar, ground cinnamon, and ground ginger in a large mixing bowl. Set aside. a large metal bowl containing a blended mixture of cinnamon and spices.
  5. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients for the fritters: molasses, egg, oat milk, and cooled melted butter. the whisked wet ingredient mixture has a deep brown coloring.
  6. Stir the cooked and cooled applesauce into the wet mixture.the homemade applesauce is added to the bowl with the wet ingredient mixture.
  7. Now add the dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. dry ingredients are added to the bowl on top of the wet mixture.
  8. Stir until the batter comes together. It will be thick!the applesauce fritter batter is stirred together, showing it's thick texture and chunks of apples throughout.
  9. Heat the neutral oil in a skillet to about 350℉. Use two large soup spoons or tablespoons to scoop and drop mounds of fritter batter into the hot oil. Use the spoons to spread each mound out a bit, focusing more on creating an even thickness as opposed to perfect shape. If the batter stretches and creates holes in the middle of each fritter, no worries! They will still fry up perfectly and add to the rustic feel of these applesauce fritters.a cast iron skillet of bubbling oil has three dollops of applesauce fritter batter placed into it.
  10. Cook the fritters for 1-2 minutes per side, then flip and continue cooking until golden. I find that cooking these is a little bit like cooking pancakes, the first couple are always a little wonky. the applesauce fritters are flipped over in the skillet, showing their rustic shapes and golden brown coloring.
  11. Remove the cooked fritters to a wire rack, let them drain briefly, then toss them in the spiced cinnamon sugar coating you prepared earlier. Place them on a wire rack to finish cooling or a parchment paper lined baking sheet. several of the cooked applesauce fritters are tossed in the bowl of spiced cinnamon sugar mix while two other fritters are resting on a wire rack nearby.
  12. Keep frying and coating fritters until you have used up all the batter. Enjoy ASAP! all of the cooked and coated applesauce fritters are arranged on a wire rack set over a baking sheet.

Notes

  • When measuring molasses, I like to lightly coat the measuring cup with oil first. This helps the molasses to slide out easily when you go to add it to your batter mixture. 
  • Keeping a consistent oil temperature is key when frying! My free-spirited soul always wants to just trust my gut, toss a fritter into the pool, and see how it goes. But my analytical brain knows that it really makes a difference to monitor the temperature of the oil using an instant read or infrared thermometer (got one as a gift years ago–love it!) before and during cooking. 
  • Along those lines, keep in mind that the oil temperature will drop dramatically whenever you add a new batch of applesauce fritter batter. In a #6 cast iron skillet, I found that 3 fritters at a time is the right number, but this could be more or less depending on the size of your pan and how large your fritters are. You may need to increase the heat briefly when adding new batter, then drop it again after a few seconds to keep that 350℉ temp consistent. 
  • Author: kelly@crescentmoonkitchen
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Category: desserts
  • Method: fried
  • Cuisine: american

Find it online: https://crescentmoonkitchen.com/applesauce-fritters/