Apple DREAM doughnuts!

My favorite part about the apple orchard is the Apple donuts they sell!  I always buy some to eat there and some to bring home.  So this year I got a recipe out of a magazine for Caramel Apple donuts.  It was good, but I didn't care for the caramel topping and the donuts were not perfect.  I tried another recipe.  Same thing, good, not perfect!  So I put a few things I like about each of them together, made a few substitutions and additions and VOILA!  I think I have it, the perfect apple donuts!  I would describe them as a cross between the Apple orchard donuts and the State Fair Mini donuts, they just melt in your mouth with ooey, gooey apple cinnamon sugar goodness!
I do have a donut pan that I use to bake them in the oven so they are not fried, and are perfectly shaped.  It was about $12.00 from Target and I have already used it tons!  If you don't have one and don't want to buy one, you could always use this same recipe to make it into muffins, or use a cake decorating bag to squeeze dough onto a baking sheet in a tubular circle.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1-1/2 cups flour
• 1- 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup butter (slightly softened)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup apple juice or apple cider
• 1/2 cup apple sauce
• 1 cup grated apples

FOR CINNAMON SUGAR TOPPING:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tablespoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup butter melted

PREHEAT OVEN TO 350 Degrees.

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, slat, nutmeg and sugar. 
2. Cut in butter using a pastry blender (could also just use 2 knives.)
3. In a separate bowl combine the egg, apple juice, applesauce. and apples. Whisk together.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until they are combined.
5. Fill doughnut pan with dough- I use a cake decorating bag even when using my non-stick donut pan, it just helps create the perfect form.
6. Bake for about 25 minutes
MEANWHILE:
7. Melt 1/2 cup of butter in the microwave in a shallow bowl.
8. Combine remaining sugar and cinnamon on a plate.
9. Once the doughnuts are down baking, remove immediately from pan and dip in the melted butter, roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture and allow to cool on a wire rack.

* If you decide to make this in a muffin form, I would just dip the muffin top in the butter and then the cinnamon sugar mixture.