Description
Warm, tender Baked Apple Fritters with Glaze. A simple, comforting treat that brings back sweet memories without the deep-fry mess. Pure apple bliss!
Ingredients
Scale
- Fritter Dough Essentials:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup milk (whole milk recommended)
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- Apple Goodness:
- 1 large apple (Granny Smith or Honeycrisp), peeled, cored, and finely diced
- Flavor Boosters:
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Sweet Glaze Finish:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2–3 tablespoons milk or cream
Instructions
- Get Your Oven Ready:: First things first, preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. This parchment paper is your best friend, honestly, it saves so much cleanup later. I skipped it once, and spent way too long scraping sticky glaze off the pan. Learn from my mistakes, folks!
- Whisk the Dry Bits:: In a big bowl, whisk together your flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Give it a good whisk, making sure everything is combined. This ensures your leavening is evenly distributed, so you don’t end up with a fritter that’s half fluffy, half dense. I remember thinking ‘it’s just flour, what’s the big deal?’ and ended up with lopsided fritters.
- Mix the Wet Bits:: In a separate, smaller bowl, whisk your milk, egg, and melted butter (make sure it’s cooled a bit!). Add the vanilla extract here too. I always take a moment to smell that vanilla, it just smells so comforting. This step is about getting everything liquid ready to greet the dry ingredients.
- Combine and Add Apples:: Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients. Mix until *just* combined. Seriously, don’t overmix! Lumps are okay. Then, gently fold in your diced apples. You want that dough to look shaggy, not smooth. Overmixing develops the gluten, making your Baked Apple Fritters with Glaze tough. I learned that the hard way, resulting in fritters that were more rubbery than tender.
- Scoop and Bake:: Using two spoons, or a small ice cream scoop (my personal favorite for consistency), drop spoonfuls of the batter onto your prepared baking sheet. They don’t need to be perfectly round; these are rustic, remember? Leave a little space between each one. I usually aim for about 8-10 fritters, depending on how generous I’m feeling with my scoops.
- Bake ‘Til Golden:: Pop them into the preheated oven and bake for 18-25 minutes, or until they’re golden brown and cooked through. You’ll know they’re done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The smell at this stage? Oh my goodness. Your kitchen will smell like pure autumn magic! Let them cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes while you whip up the glaze.
- Whip Up the Glaze:: In a small bowl, whisk together your powdered sugar and a tablespoon of milk or cream. Add more liquid, a tiny bit at a time, until you have a smooth, pourable glaze. You want it thick enough to coat a spoon but thin enough to drip. I always go for slightly thicker because, let’s be real, more glaze is always better on Baked Apple Fritters with Glaze!
- Glaze and Devour:: Once the fritters have cooled slightly (they should still be warm), drizzle or dunk them into the glaze. Let the glaze set for a minute or two, then serve immediately. The contrast of the warm fritter and the sweet, slightly firm glaze is just heavenly. Honestly, try to wait a minute, but I usually can’t!