Apple Cider Cinnamon Knots
Soft sweet Apple Cider Cinnamon Knots are perfect for fall parties!
I’ve been craving them for a several weeks… Apple Cider Cinnamon Knots, that is.
To be a bit more accurate, I physically ache for them morning, noon and night. I lay in bed at night and see floating golden knots of heavenly bliss, covered in sugar crystals… And they’re smiling at me.
This has been going on for days. It’s become a bit of an issue.
I’m seeking therapy.
One thing I’ve learned about food obsessions, is that a sure cure comes from developing a perfect recipe. That way, you know you can get your fix any time you want.
It removes the lure, you see.
I created this Apple Cider Cinnamon Knots recipe several years back after visiting an orchard and tasting apple cider donuts for the first time.
I hate to deep fry at home so true donut making was out of the question.
However, do you think I would I let a little thing like frying stop my desperate need for homemade apple cider donuts?
Of course not. There are always ways to get around frying!
This baked Apple Cider Cinnamon Knots recipe was created to cure my craving for donuts, yet it created a new ravenous craving of its own.
Ever since I first made them, I start obsessing over these little guys at the beginning of apple season and I can’t stop thinking about them until I get my fix.
They are ultra soft, apple-icious, bathed in butter, kissed with shimmering cinnamon sugar, and easy to make!
Apple Cider Cinnamon Knots might be my best invention yet.
Apple Cider Cinnamon Knots
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups apple cider, divided
- 1 package dry active yeast
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil + oil for kneading
- 4 cups bread flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 cup melted butter (1 stick)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
Instructions
- For the dough: Place ½ cup of warm apple cider in your electric mixing bowl. Add the yeast and allow it to swell for 5 minutes. It should look foamy. Then add 1 ¼ cups of room-temperature apple cider, plus the oil and salt.
- Place a bread hook attachment in an electric mixer. Mix on low, adding the flour a little at a time. “Knead” in the mixer for 3-5 minutes until well combined but tacky.
- Oil a large bowl. Place the dough in the bowl and turn it to cover in oil. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise for 2 hours.
- When to dough is more than double the original size, punch it down and place it on a floured work surface.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Divide the dough into two equal pieces, to make it easier to work with. Use your hands to turn the edges of the dough under to create a perfectly round, smooth mound.
- Roll the dough (from the middle out) into a 12-inch circles. Then using a pizza cutter (or sharp floured knife) cut the dough into strips ¾ X 4 inches long.
- Flour you hands and roll each strip into a 6-inch “snake.” Then cross the ends and tie the snake into a loose knot. Place it on a piece of parchment paper and repeat with the rest of the dough. The knots will expand, but not much. You can put them fairly close together.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large bowl. While the knots are still hot, toss them in the butter—coating each completely.
- Place the sugar and cinnamon in a brown paper bag. Using a slotted spoon, scoop the knots out of the butter and place them in the bag. Shake the knots until they covered in cinnamon sugar. Serve warm!
Nutrition
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My kids put together the dough last night and we let it rise for the two hours on the counter and refrigerated over night. This morning I rolled it out and baked the donuts. Delicious! We sugar and cinnamon coated half and glazed the other half. So yummy! Thank you. :-) Happy fall!
These are the best!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I couldn’t believe how many knots I got out of one recipe and thought I’d end up throwing away half the batch (at least). They were gobbled up before I could even get a photo to post. These are amazing and will be made often this fall and winter in my house!
Hi Dani,
You just made my day. Thanks for reporting back. I’m so glad you liked them!! :)
I am dying over here. I can smell them through the computer. This weekend these are happening!!!
Shame on you, Sommer! Shame. on. you. Now you’ve given me your craving. And it’s still in the low 90s here. Newp. Not gonna turn on my oven. Nooooo. Well, maybe just for a little bit….
I have a question: In Europe apple cider is sparkling and has an alcohol content of around 4%, is that what you use? Or are you refering to unfiltered apple juice?
Thanks
I made it this morning with whole wheat flour and it worked out beautifully. My first knots were a little big and the tails broke off when I tossed them in the butter. So I made the second batch with half size knots and I’ll take them for my co-worker to enjoy this afternoon. Thank you.
I’m so glad you liked them! :)
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These look fabulous. Great idea!
Thanks so much for posting this recipe. My husband and I crave apple cider donuts so much (we even served them at our wedding) but like you hate to fry. I'm still hopeful that I'll find a way to do the donuts (maybe baked?) but these knots will go a long way to tide us over 'til then.
Holy goodness these look spectacular!!
Thanks for a great recipe.It looks so good!It is exactly the dish I’d love to eat
I read a lot of blogs…and this is a recipe that I'm jumping up and down about! Wow! What a delicious treat. I have a lunch group that I'm going to on Friday, and I think that these would be perfect to bring along. Thank you so much for sharing!
Oh you are Clever. This is AMAZING! I loove and adore and worship andything doughy, cinammony and sugary. YUM YUM YUM! I am making this today. WIll let you know how it goes. How did you manage to have any left for photos? I would have gobbles them up for sure!!!!
These sound positively evil! :)
Oh Cinna-YES, Sommer, Cinna-yes!!!
My God, I've just realised, you are some kind of evil genius! These are beyond wonderful because they are also absolutely do-able. I love deep fried food but deep frying – meh!! Not so much :P
Ever try to get those cider doughnuts that have the longest lines of all humanity? Next time I'm skipping the line and just making these.
I hardly think I'm now able to focus on the rest of my day after seeing this. Divine. Delish. to Die for.
You should absolutely submit this to my Best Tastes of Fall Challenge. Fantastically amazing.
Oh these do sound great, first time i had a knot was in NY on this recent trip, but it was garlic and delicious. Love the idea of a sweet knot…nice pics too!
PS: I'll take a dozen!
Not to belabor a frying point, but with all that butter, is there much of a difference? :)
Wow, these look and sound delicious. I want to run home and start baking these guys up right away! Yum!!
So many recipes to try when I get home!! All these fall treats are making me want to get in the kitchen immediately!
Looks simply awesome, hey how to follow your blog, at the moment I'm just bookmarking this recipe.
Holy cow! These look good. I love it.
never seen or even thought to make one of these! they look scrumptious!
They look and sound delicious. It's always wonderful to be able to recreate a favorite treat. Taste memory is a wonderful thing. I hope you are having a great day. Blessings…Mary
You simply must get help immediately, those look very addictive indeed. Delishhh
They sound really good. I'm also not a big fan of frying things, so this sounds perfect to me. I'll definitely have to try it out one autumn evening!
I am willing to tackle yeast again for these….thats saying A LOT :) thanks!
They look mouthwatering! I want 1. Or 10.
Good grief Sommer! These look mouthwatering! I can't believe I've lived in NC for 2 years and haven't had an apple cider doughnut yet. I definitely need to whip a batch of these up!
Wow…u baked these and coated these with cinnamon sugar!! If I would not have read the post , I would have thought that they are fried!really clever!!
Love anything apples…gotta try this one for sure!
Sommer,
I just made a batch up for dessert and the fam LOVED them! I am thinking it might be fun to try them using the Brioche recipe from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day- a bit lighter/flakier but not too much.
Loving reading your blog and trying out some of your recipes!
Amy
Sommer…if it's not particularly that girl's time of the month…then, yes, I'd seek therapy.
Before, you do…send some knots my way…those look scrumptious ;o)
Flavourful wishes,
Claudia
Those do look addicting :)
Wow, never heard of apple cider donuts…and after seeing these…I don't even need to have tried them in order to crave them…they look so light and tasty…yummie!
Those sounds wonderful! What a great idea..and so glad you cured your yearning for those cider donuts.
I hate to fry as well – phobia of some sort that I need to get over. These look amazing and look FRIED :)
Cider is so wonderful. Those doughnuts look divine!
Cheers,
Rosa
Wow! You can tell something must be good if it's soaking through the paper bag!! These look amazing. Great invention.
OMG, you genius you, how awesome are these, I love this recipe…..great job recreating your craving….
sweetlife
These look fabulous. I can totally relate to the fear of deep-frying, which is what keeps me from trying all the awesome deep-fried food I keep seeing on other people's blogs. Plus, apple fritters and their ilk are like my kryptonite. I could eat them all day and still beg for more.
So how much do I love that this recipe is actually doable even for us non-frying types? Tons, that's how much. Yay! :)
Mmm Mmm Mmm!! I can almost smell them through the screen of my computer. They look SO good!
I loved your curry apple turnovers, and these are fantastic, too! If only I had one with my coffee right now!
Those look too delicious for words!!
I love the pictures and would give anything to have one of those yummy pastries jump out of the screen onto my plate. I never fry anything either and like your idea of baking them in the oven.
These look so scrumptious! I need to make them asap!
Ahhhh! These are gorgeous, Sommer – I must try them. And when we are in H'ville in a couple weeks, I am now going to have to visit Sky Top Orchard!! ( :
They are indeed heavenly. I wish I had one or two or three right now.
I feel so much better that I'm not the only one who gets obsessed with a certain food LOL These knots are amazing looking and since I've been thinking about apple cider donuts quite often as well I will give your version a try since I really dislike frying at home too :o)
Oh my goodness! I need to make these for my kids! (I hate frying too).
Oh, they look so good. I wish I had time to make some right now!
look heavenly! Thanks for sharing the recipe :)
You had better copyright that asap!
Oh, goodness! I definitely have to make these soon! Here in Normandy, France, we have apple cider everywhere(I'm an American doing study abroad)! Merci!
WOW!! I bet those are addictive!! Great job!!
Yummy !!! When I was a wee little one there used to be donut store right next to my school and my mom as a treat on Friday mornings would buy me an apple fritter – can't begin to tell you how much I loved it. This reminds me of that and the fact that oil is involved is even better !!
OMG..buttery, aromatic..these knots look fantastic!
I passed out. Period.
Sommer! thats AWESOME! got to make it
I now can see why I might be up all night dreaming about these! Bathed in butter and cinnamon. =)
You have officially passed on the craving for apple cider cinnamon knots to me! Those look so delicious–how am I supposed to pay attention to writing a Government paper now?! :D
Yum these look heavenly!
You can't post something so delicious when it's evening! And on a Sunday night! Now I'll be craving and I won't have time to try them tomorrow! Unfair! i want one, pleeease!
These look so great. How creative. Can't wait to make the turnovers now that we're heading into apple season.
Oh Dear! I will be dreaming with those tonight. They look divine. And the pictures are great, I can almost get them, almost Sigh*
Have a great week.