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The Melting Pot
Apple Cider Doughnuts hero image coming soon
1900s-present - New England orchard and cider-mill cooks
Cake doughnuts flavored with reduced apple cider and rolled in cinnamon sugar.
Difficulty
Moderate
Prep time
30 minutes plus chilling
Cook time
20 minutes
Total time
About 2 hours
Servings
12 doughnuts plus holes
Region
New England and Mid-Atlantic orchards
Era introduced
1900s-present
Introduced by
New England orchard and cider-mill cooks
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Apple cider doughnuts feel old-fashioned because they belong so completely to fall orchards, cider mills, and farm stands. The modern cake doughnut uses reduced cider for concentrated apple flavor, warm spice in the dough, and a cinnamon-sugar coating that clings while the rings are still warm. They are less colonial relic than modern orchard ritual, and that is part of their American story.
Drafted with New England cider doughnut context from Yankee Magazine (https://newengland.com/food/breakfast-brunch/homemade-apple-cider-donuts/), Mental Floss history reporting (https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/630485/apple-cider-doughnuts-history), and New England orchard context from Food & Wine (https://www.foodandwine.com/cider-doughnuts-new-england-8716201).
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