These Bakery Style Gluten Free Apple Fritters are just like the ones we used to get at bakeries. Cinnamon apple chunks are intertwined with cobblestones of dough and drenched in a vanilla glaze!
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I know there are a lot of recipes out there for those easy, quick-batter type apple fritters. And I'll be honest--I'm sure I'd love those as well. But when I think of the apple fritters that I miss so much, I always think of those giant fritters from a bakery, the ones made with yeast dough. You can taste and smell the yeast in them. But the texture also gives them away. They have that doughy yeast donut-type texture that's unmistakable. And I've managed to recreate that same taste and texture so we don't have to long for them anymore!
Everything You'll Need to Make These Fritters
Fritters
- Gluten free sweet dough--you'll find everything you need to make this dough in the link in the recipe card below. Many of you have already made it several times and it's the dough that keeps on giving.
- Apples--the variety I used this time was Golden Delicious, but you can use pretty much any apples. I don't particularly care for using Granny Smith for anything baked or fried because they're so crunchy, but that's my own personal preference so use what you like.
- Cinnamon
- Butter
- Brown sugar
- Oil for frying
Glaze
- Powdered sugar
- Milk
- Butter
- Vanilla
How to Make Apple Fritters
Cooking the Apples
Your first step in making these apple fritters is to cook the apples. I like to precook them just a little bit so they're not totally raw when they go into the fryer. The reason for this is because the dough takes very little time to cook through in the fryer and that's not enough time for the apples to cook through. When it comes to anything apple in a pastry, I think the apples should be at a nice, soft texture and not crunchy like you're eating a raw apple. Not that there's anything wrong with raw apples. I love to eat raw apples, but not in my pastries and baked goods!
In a small saucepan, add the chopped apples to the butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Heat over low heat until all the sugar has melted and the apples are slightly soft, 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely before introducing into the dough.
Rolling out the Dough and Adding the Apples
The next step is to roll the dough out to about ¼-inch thick. It doesn't need to be perfect because you'll see why soon. Add the cooled apples on top of one side of the dough and then fold the dough over onto the apples to completely seal them in.
Here's where it gets fun. Take your bench scraper or a knife and cut the dough diagonally into strips. Then turn the bench scraper the other way and cut those strips into pieces that are roughly one inch in diameter. Again, perfection is not necessary.
Now, take all of those little pieces and, using extra flour, push all those pieces back together into a large rectangle. It will be messy. Just accept the messiness and move on (the mess is so worth it!). Take a small apple-sized chunk of dough and tear it off, flattening it slightly, and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and allow to proof for an additional 30 minutes while you heat the oil.
Fry in hot oil, only a few at a time to avoid temperature fluctuation. Drain on a wire rack before dunking warm fritters in glaze.
Apple Fritter FAQs
The best temperature for these fritters is 320-330 degrees F. Any higher than that and the outside will be quite dark before they're completely done on the inside.
I've found the best oil for donut and fritter frying is melted vegetable shortening. Several commercial donut shops use vegetable shortening as it makes donuts and fritters less oily and produces a consistent color and flavor. Any neutral flavored oil can be used.
I like to use a softer apple, such as Rome or Golden Delicious, as the apples aren't cooked long enough to soften during the cooking process.
Glazing
Dunk the still warm fritters completely in the powdered sugar glaze and remove to a wire rack so extra glaze will drip off instead of pooling underneath each fritter.
You'll never have to look longingly at an apple fritter again because you've got a recipe for the best Bakery Style Gluten Free Apple Fritters in your back pocket. And dare I say they're better than the ones we remember?!?!
Bakery Style Gluten Free Apple Fritters
Ingredients
FRITTERS:
- ½ recipe cinnamon roll dough
- 2 medium apples, peeled and chopped
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 tbsp (57 g) butter
- 4 tbsp (50 g) brown sugar
- oil for frying
GLAZE:
- 2 cups (250 g) powdered sugar
- 4 tbsp (60 ml) milk
- 4 tbsp (57 g) butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions
FOR THE FRITTERS:
- Melt butter in large saute pan over medium heat. Add brown sugar, apples, and cinnamon. Lower heat and saute apples until softened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
- Remove dough from refrigerator and divide in half. Put other half back in the refrigerator for another use (or make double the amount of apple fritters).
- Knead dough on heavily floured surface until smooth. Roll out into rectangle that is about ½-inch thick (it doesn't need to be perfect), adding flour on bottom as necessary to prevent sticking. Scatter cooled apples over dough and fold dough over onto itself to enclose apples.
- Cut dough diagonally into "slices" using sharp knife or bench scraper. Go back the other way and cut "slices" again in the opposite direction. You should end up with several odd-shaped pieces with chunks of apples sticking out,
- Piece the dough and apples back together roughly into a loaf shape (it will be sticky, so add more flour as necessary). Apples will fall out or just barely hang on. It's okay. They don't need to be perfect. Using your bench scraper or a knife, cut slices of the dough off the "loaf" and press them together slightly, just so they'll stay together in the oil. This again doesn't need to be perfect. The rougher the look, the better!
- Place slices on parchment-lined baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to sit for 20-30 minutes until slightly puffed and a little larger. Meanwhile, heat oil in deep fryer or Dutch oven to 320-330 degrees F.
- Carefully slide apple fritters into hot oil, a couple at a time, and fry for about 2-3 minutes, flipping halfway through. Drain on cooling rack set over a baking sheet.
FOR THE GLAZE:
- Mix all glaze ingredients together and whisk until well combined. If lumps still remain, microwave for a few seconds and whisk again.
- Dip fritters in glaze and place back on cooling rack to allow excess glaze to drip off. Fritters are best eaten fresh, but can be reheated.
Laura Burke says
We had these before and LOVED them!!! After you shape the fritters and let them do their last proof can they be refrigerated overnight or for a few hours before being fried? My husband is requesting them for his birthday and we are having quite a few people over so I thought it would be convenient to make them ahead of time and then just worry about frying as family and friends arrive.
Kim says
I would shape them and then cover them and put them right in the fridge. They may rise a little bit in the fridge, but that's better than letting them rise and then putting them in the fridge. Take them out maybe an hour before you're ready to fry.
Kim says
I would refrigerate them before the last proof (and they might actually proof enough in the fridge).
Holly Gottlieb says
Hi Kim -
We LOVE all of your recipes! This recipe calls for 1/2 cinnamon roll dough. The first step is taking it out of the fridge. How long does it need to be in there? Six hours?
Thanks!
Kim says
Thank you, Holly!!
Yes, at least six hours or overnight 😋
Jeannine says
Made Apple Fritters in my air fryer. 😋
Robin Mooney says
Your dough is lovely. I have a question (I'm running on little sleep today)...I made half a batch of cinnamon roll dough per the ingredient list. The directions say to divide that half batch of dough in half for the fritters, yes?
Victoria says
Oh man, I used to love these! Can't wait to try them. Your blog and recipes are great!! Most recent one I made was your English Muffins, they came out perfect! I've been wanting to try an apple strudel gluten free, have you tried that yet? I know it's not the same dough but I'm wondering if your rough puff pastry might work for that? Thank you for what you do!
Teresa Adams says
These were absolutely amazing!!! What do you do when your pregnant grand daughter is craving apple
Fritters and is gluten free dairy free! You search for a recipe!! Thank you so much. These are perfect!!! Best birthday present she got!!!!❤️
JoAnn Vavrek says
I made another batch of the dough and turned it into 2 savoury breads. Both had whipped feta/cream cheese filling one with with za’atar spice, parsley and cilantro. The other had the feta filling but with sun dried tomato pesto, parsley and cilantro. Rolled them up and baked them at 375*F for 31 minutes. They turned out perfectly. Your dough recipe is so good. Thanks.
Kim says
Those sound absolutely delicious 😋
JoAnn Vavrek says
OMG what a great recipe. I made this today and they are so good with a 2 hour warm rise and 4 hour cold rise. I used both halves of dough for fritters with doubling the amount of apple. Instead of dunking in the glaze I drizzled it on instead. Thankyou for sharing your recipe. So good.
Carin Arnold says
Super excited to try these! How much vegetable shortening will be needed?
Kim says
I never put an amount because it really depends on the size of your pot or pan and everyone has different sizes. You'll need enough so that when it melts, you'll have two inches of oil in your pot for frying.
Kimberly D says
I am so excited to try this recipe- I love all your recipes! I am going to make this today. Your Bread Flour Blend is genius. I am wondering what oil you prefer to fry with? Can you give me your top 5 choices (or however many you like) in order and why you like them? Thanks so much!
Kim says
I prefer to fry any donuts in melted shortening because that's what most donut shops use (or at least Krispy Kreme and they were my favorite). If you don't want to use shortening, then the next alternative would probably be either canola or vegetable oil.
Dana Delaney says
I have been wanting an Apple fritter recipe! This is now on the Christmas list of sweet treats!
Mary says
These look sooo good! They are one of my favorite sweet things to eat! Thank you thank you thank you!
Kim says
You are so welcome, Mary! They're also one of my favorite things too!!
Laura burke says
We had these before and LOVED them!!! After you shape the fritters and let them do their last proof can they be refrigerated overnight or for a few hours before being fried? My husband is requesting them for his birthday and we are having quite a few people over so I thought it would be convenient to make them ahead of time and then just worry about frying as family and friends arrive.
Christine Spindel says
OMG!! I e had Celiac Disease for 13+ years and have tried making cinnamon rolls before but have always missed apple fritters. They were my favorite! Your dough was the most beautiful dough I have EVER made!! So soft and pillowy!! I took pictures!! Seriously, this dough rose higher than ANY I’ve ever made! I’ve made blends from other blogs and have purchased other blends spending hundreds of dollars. I will DEFINITELY be keeping your bread flour blend ready and waiting!! I can’t wait to try more of your recipes! Thank you!! You gave me renewed hope for my bored gluten free diet!
Kim says
Awe, that's wonderful, Christine! I'm so glad you could find some renewed hope for eating gluten free!! My Instagram account is @letthemeatglutenfreecake. If you're on IG and want to tag me, I'd love to see your pics 😍
Sandra says
Kim, can you air fry this recipe?
Kim says
I think it would work, Sandra!
Monica Haj says
I made this recipe for the first time yesterday and my family was in love!! I feel a new fall tradition coming on 🙂 Can’t thank you enough for putting so much love into your recipes. Thank you!!
Kim says
Oh, you are so very welcome!!! I'm just trying to live my gluten free life the way we all want to--without missing out on those things we used to love eating back when we could. I was just telling my husband that it makes me so happy to hear that someone else can enjoy my recipes as much as we do 🙂
denise m says
I have really missed these... yummy! When I made the cream cheese kolaches I am too impatient to wait for the cream cheese to soften so I went to my quick sub and added a big spoonful of sour cream to the glaze and adjusted down the milk. You got to try it it is so good on these also.
Kim says
Ooooh, I love sour cream so I will definitely try it!! Thanks, Denise 🙂
Brandi says
Thank you! I’ve missed these. I am going to make this and then do a banana one
Kim says
Ooooh, banana sounds wonderful! Let me know how they turn out 😋
Joansy says
Oh my goodness, I am loving your blog! What great recipes you are sharing! I cannot wait to try these! And your Red Velvet Cake yesterday is on my list, too. Thanks so much for sharing these incredibly wonderful recipes, my gf tummy thanks you a thousand times over!
Kim says
Thank you, thank you, thank you!! You just made my day 🙂 I have always been a foodie and a baker, so when I was told I had Celiac I wasn't going to settle for crap food. I wanted the real deal!
I hope you try the recipes and if you have any problems (or success), please be sure to let me know 🙂