Apple Cider Donut Bundt Cake
This Apple Cider Donut Bundt Cake brings all the flavors of a favorite fall cider doughnut into a beautifully simple cake. It's tender and moist with reduced apple cider, brown sugar, warm spices, and bits of fresh apple tucked into every slice.
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While the cake is still warm, it's brushed with melted butter and generously coated in cinnamon sugar, giving it that irresistible cider-donut finish-no glaze or frosting needed.
It's rustic, cozy, and completely delicious. Serve it with coffee for a fall weekend treat, add it to an afternoon tea table, or bring it out for any of the season's gatherings and holidays.
If you love baking with apples this time of year, you may also want to try my Apple Spice Bundt Cake, Apple Cinnamon Scones, and Old-Fashioned Apple Cider Donuts.
Recipe Overview
This apple cider Bundt cake begins with apple cider simmered until reduced by half, concentrating all of that sweet, tangy apple flavor before it goes into the batter.
Brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom give the cake its warm fall flavor, while sour cream and fresh diced apples create a soft, rich crumb. Once baked, the warm cake is brushed with butter and covered in cinnamon sugar for a sparkling, slightly crisp coating reminiscent of an apple cider donut.
Why You'll Love This Apple Cider Cake
- Full of fall flavor: Reduced apple cider, fresh apples, brown sugar, and warm spices make every bite taste like autumn.
- Tender and moist: Sour cream and diced apples give the cake a soft, rich crumb that stays delicious even the next day.
- No frosting needed: A buttery cinnamon-sugar coating is simple, beautiful, and just right for this cake.
- Made for fall gatherings: It feels equally at home with afternoon tea, weekend coffee, a harvest gathering, or a Thanksgiving dessert table.
- Easy to make ahead: Bake it a day before serving and keep it well covered once completely cooled.
Ingredient Notes
The ingredients are simple fall baking staples, with reduced cider and fresh apples providing most of the cake's signature flavor.
Apple Cider
Reducing the apple cider is an important step. Simmer 1 cup of cider until it measures ½ cup, then let it cool before adding it to the batter. This concentrates the apple flavor without adding too much liquid to the cake.
Fresh Apples
You'll need about 1½ cups of peeled, ½-inch diced apples, or approximately two apples. Keeping the pieces fairly small helps distribute them throughout the Bundt cake without weighing down the batter.
Sour Cream
Sour cream adds richness and moisture while helping create the cake's tender crumb. Along with the apples, it's one of the reasons this cake stays so wonderfully soft.
Fall Spices
Cinnamon leads the way, with smaller amounts of nutmeg and cardamom adding warmth and depth. The cinnamon-sugar coating reinforces those flavors once the cake comes out of the oven.
How to Make Apple Cider Donut Bundt Cake
Prep: Reduce the cider and preheat the oven. Simmer the cider in a medium saucepan to ½ cup; cool. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F and generously grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan.
- Step 1: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom together in a medium bowl.
- Step 2: Cream the softened butter and brown sugar together until combined and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing between each addition. Mix in the sour cream, vanilla, and cooled reduced cider.
Add the flour mixture and stir just until combined, then gently fold in the diced apples. Be careful not to overmix. The batter will be thick.
- Step 3: Spread the batter evenly into the prepared Bundt pan. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a skewer inserted near the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully inverting it onto a cooling rack.
- Step 4: While the Bundt cake is still warm, brush the outside with melted butter and generously sprinkle it with cinnamon sugar, turning or gently lifting the cake as needed to coat the sides.
Tips for the Best Apple Cider Bundt Cake
Let the cider cool. After reducing the cider, give it time to cool before mixing it with the butter and eggs.
Prepare the Bundt pan thoroughly. Be sure to grease and flour all the ridges and center tube so the cake releases cleanly after baking.
Don't worry about the thick batter. This is a substantial cake batter. Spread it evenly into the pan rather than expecting it to pour.
Mix only until combined. Once the flour is added, avoid overmixing so the finished cake stays tender.
Add the cinnamon sugar while the cake is warm. The melted butter and warmth of the cake help the cinnamon sugar adhere and create that classic apple-cider-donut finish.
Serving the Cake
One of my favorite things about this cake is that it doesn't need anything else to feel special. The cinnamon-sugar crust gives it plenty of flavor and a beautiful, sparkling finish.
Serve thick slices with coffee or tea for a cozy fall afternoon, add it to an autumn afternoon tea menu, or serve it as an easy dessert for Halloween, Thanksgiving, or a weekend gathering.
Its simplicity also makes it especially nice for brunch or holiday mornings when you want something festive without another complicated dessert to finish.
Make Ahead and Storage
This Bundt cake can easily be baked a day ahead. Let it cool completely before covering it well and keeping it at room temperature.
For the best texture, enjoy it within the first day or two, keeping it well covered at room temperature. For longer storage, individual slices or the whole cake can be wrapped well and frozen.
Do I Really Need to Reduce the Apple Cider?
Yes. Reducing the cider from 1 cup to ½ cup concentrates its flavor while removing some of the excess water. That gives the cake more pronounced apple-cider flavor without changing the consistency of the batter.
Why Is My Bundt Cake Batter So Thick?
That's exactly how it should look. Between the sour cream, reduced cider, and diced apples, this is a rich, sturdy batter. Spread it evenly into the prepared pan with a spatula before baking.
Apple Cider Donut Bundt Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup apple cider reduced to ½ cup & cooled
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¾ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ¼ cups brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 apples peeled, ½-inch diced (1½ cups)
Coating
- 6 tablespoons melted butter
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Reduce Cider and Preheat Oven: Simmer the cider in a medium saucepan to ½ cup; cool. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F and generously grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices together in a medium bowl.
- Cream the butter and brown sugar together until combined, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, and then mix in the sour cream, vanilla, and reduced cider. Stir in the flour mixture until just combined, then fold in the diced apples. Be careful not to overmix. The batter will be thick.
- Spread the batter evenly into the prepared Bundt pan. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a skewer inserted near the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully inverting it onto a cooling rack.
- While the Bundt cake is still warm, brush the outside with melted butter and generously sprinkle it with cinnamon sugar, turning or gently lifting the cake as needed to coat the sides.
Notes
- Apple cider: Reduce 1 cup of apple cider to ½ cup, then cool before adding it to the batter. This concentrates the apple flavor without adding excess liquid.
- Storing: Keep the cooled cake well covered at room temperature for up to 2 days for the best texture, or refrigerate for up to 4 days. Warm slices for 8 min at 325°F. Freeze the cake uncoated for 1 month. Once thawed, brush the cake with melted butter and sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the top.
- Apple Note: Gala is floral-sweet and has a soft bite; it's ideal for dicing in cakes and breads. Peel and dice the apples into roughly ½-inch pieces so they distribute evenly throughout the cake.
- Bundt pan: Grease and flour the pan thoroughly, including all the ridges and center tube, to help the cake release cleanly.
- Batter: The batter will be quite thick; this is normal. Spread it evenly in the pan with a spatula.
- Cinnamon-sugar coating: Brush the cake with melted butter and add the cinnamon sugar while the cake is still warm so the coating adheres well.
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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The recipe so I delicious. I would also like to add some nuts. My rating is only on the recipe and my likelihood of making it.
Thank you so much, Judy! I’m so glad you're thinking about making the cake. I think chopped pecans or walnuts would be a delicious addition with the apples and warm spices. Thank you for taking the time to share!
I love serving this cake in the fall season. It fills the house with that autumnal fragrance that feels warm and cozy. The cake itself is moist, tender, and wonderfully spiced.