Nana’s Apple Fritters
This recipe has been in my family for as long as we can remember. We think it’s my great-grandmother’s recipe. As with many family recipes though, sometimes you never really know where they originated from. No matter where it came from, I love it.
This recipe makes about 14 apple fritters using a number 20 cookie scoop (the biggest size that holds 3 tbsps) or a 1/4 cup measuring cup.
See the *Notes at the bottom for more important clarifications/tips.
Backstory:
Growing up, my mom and grandma always made this recipe in more of a pancake-y form. That may sound a little odd to some of you as the recipe is for “apple fritters”, which tend to be associated with being fried in oil.
There really weren’t any instructions in the recipe my grandma gave me. It was simply a list of ingredients, with a single note: “Drop in fat & brown".
Based on the my mom and grandma’s memory of the recipe, the pancake form they made it in was what they were used to and what they liked. Of course, I always enjoyed the apple fritters they made me - they were slightly denser and a bit heartier than a regular pancake. And I mean, you really can’t go wrong with apples + maple syrup and some melted butter on top.
BUT, I was curious to try this recipe fried in oil as I love apple fritters (Really any dessert with apple is great in my book). I didn’t make too many adjustments to the original recipe; just added some cinnamon and butter to the batter. It’s a homey recipe that my Nana would make with whatever she had on hand. I love revisiting these family recipes and I think this one turned out to be a winner.
Ingredients:
Batter:
1 cup of all purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
dash of salt
1 egg at room temperature (beaten)
1 tbsp melted (and slightly cooled) unsalted butter
1/2 cup milk
2 apples, cored & chopped
Canola or Vegetable oil (for frying)
Maple Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted
2 tbsps maple syrup
1 tsp milk
Process:
Prepare a sheet pan with parchment paper and a wire rack set on top and turn oven on to the lowest temp (mine was at 250 degrees fahrenheit) to keep fritters warm while you fry the batches.
Using a dutch oven, or if you don’t have one use a large skillet with deep sides, and heat about 1-2 inches of oil to 325 - 330 degrees fahrenheit. Definitely would recommend a candy thermometer here (I have this one). But if you don’t own one keeping the heat at medium/medium high and adjusting throughout frying, should work just fine.
Peel (if you want) and chop the apples. I chopped them down to about 1/2 an inch, which I think was a good size for the fritters. I also dried the apples off a bit with paper towels to make sure they didn’t make the batter soggy.
Melt the butter and set aside to cool slightly as you complete the other steps.
Whisk flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
In a separate small bowl, beat the egg with a whisk. Add in the milk and cooled melted butter.
Add the wet mixture to the flour mixture, being careful not to overmix. I left a couple specs of the flour mixture to make sure I didn’t overmix.
Fold in the apples using a rubber spatula. Batter is done!
Using a number 20 cookie scoop, drop rounded scoops of batter into hot oil. I’d start with one and then cut into it just to make sure it’s done inside, and then, continue and do a few at a time to avoid overcrowding. Fry for about 5-6 minutes, turning once halfway through or as necessary to get even browning (I used a fish spatula to turn them). Use fish spatula or spider strainer to drain on wire rack. Keep in oven as you fry the rest of the fritters.
When all fritters are fried and staying warm in the oven, make the glaze. Drizzle over fritters and let cool a bit (if you can stand to wait) and then enjoy!
*Notes:
When frying the apple fritters, I made a rounded scoop with my number 20 cookie scoop, so each fritter ended up being about 1/4 cup in size. You could probably use a 1/4 cup dry measuring cup; I just thought the cookie scoop was easier.
I used 2% milk because that’s what I had at home, but you can use whatever you enjoy drinking! Definitely don’t go out of your way to buy milk.
I used Fuji apples when making this batch. While I’d normally gravitate towards honeycrisp apples, you can use any kind of apple you enjoy eating, or choose an apple based on how sweet or tart you want the fritters to be.
Looking for a substitute to the maple glaze? I’d suggest dipping in maple syrup when you eat them or sprinkling in cinnamon sugar while they’re still warm.
I stored my extra fritters in an airtight container in the refrigerator and warmed them in my toaster oven at like 375/400 degrees Fahrenheit for 5-10 mins.