Apple Pie Ricotta Doughnuts with Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce

These Apple Pie Ricotta Doughnuts with Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce are the perfect, light, poppable treat, filled with apple pie spices, ricotta cheese, and freshly grated Granny Smith apples! They’re coated in an apple pie spiced sugar, and then served with a dark chocolate fudge sauce for dipping. The best kind of holiday indulgence!

(This post is sponsored by Chocolove! Thank you so so much for reading and supporting the brands that I love!)

These little bites are the best little treat. They’re SO easy to make and I can’t get enough of them! And the dark chocolate fudge sauce – omg. I have no words. It’s practically drinkable and I want to dip ALL the things in it this holiday season.

If you’ve been following my blog for any length of time, you probably know how much I love Chocolove chocolate. It’s by far the best I’ve ever tasted, and the quality is just amazing. I love snacking on it, and using it in my baked goods of course!

And in this fudge sauce! Omg. I also made this sauce last year to go in these white russians, and it’s pretty much the best thing ever. Insanely easy to make, and you can use the extras for cocktails, ice cream, and really anything you want!

If you have any left, that is!

So I know that deep frying can sometimes be a huge pain, but for these, it’s so worth it, and they just take a few minutes to cook. Deep frying these little doughnuts is WAY less of a pain than frying chicken or anything that requires a lot more time and attention.

And if you make these on a holiday or weekend, you can make it a fun little project to do with family or friends!

The batter comes together in minutes, and it’s not yeasted, so you don’t have to wait for it to rise or anything! Just mix up the ricotta, eggs, flour, spices, baking powder, vanilla, and a grated granny smith apple!

Seriously SO easy.

I put apple pie spices in the batter, and I coated them in an apple pie spice sugar for extra apple pie flavor. I could eat them just like that, but the dark chocolate fudge sauce really takes them over the top.

Obviously!

These are the perfect thing to make for brunch on Thanksgiving Day, or during the weekend when you’re burned out from turkey and pumpkin pie.

They’re SO light, you don’t feel weighed down like you’re eating a sugar bomb because the doughnuts are so airy! Seriously like little clouds.

You don’t need any fancy cookie cutters or anything, you just roll the batter into little balls (they don’t have to be perfect whatsoever), and they puff up to be perfect little spheres when you fry them. It’s so cool!

The non-perfectionist in me when it comes to desserts loves how easy these are.

I made this lavender vanilla bean version last winter, and these are very similar. If you have time to make both, do it!

A little doughnut bar would be so.much.fun.

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Apple Pie Ricotta Doughnuts with Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce

These Apple Pie Ricotta Doughnuts with Dark Chocolate Fudge Sauce are the perfect, light, poppable treat, filled with apple pie spices, ricotta cheese, and freshly grated Granny Smith apples! They're coated in an apple pie spiced sugar, and then served with a dark chocolate fudge sauce for dipping. The best kind of holiday indulgence!

Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert, Snack

Keyword apple pie doughnuts

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 22 -25 doughnuts

Author Molly | Spices in My DNA

Ingredients

For the apple pie ricotta doughnuts

• 1 cup whole milk ricotta*
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 granny smith apple, peeled, cored, and grated
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 1/2 quarts vegetable oil

For the apple pie sugar coating

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

For the dark chocolate fudge sauce

• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 (3.2 ounce) bars dark chocolate (I used Chocolove 70% Extra Dark Chocolate)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

For the apple pie ricotta doughnuts

1. Heat oil in a large pot or dutch oven fitted with a thermometer over medium to medium-high heat until it reaches 350℉. Line a baking sheet or wire rack with paper towels and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, make the dough. In a medium bowl, whisk together the ricotta, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and grated apple until combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cardamom, and allspice. Add dry mixture to the wet and stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until combined.

3. Wet your hands (it will prevent the dough from sticking), and roll the dough into 1-1 1/2 inch balls (smaller than a golf ball - they will puff up quite a bit!). You should get about 22-25 balls. Set them on a piece of wax or parchment paper while you wait for the oil to come to temperature.
   

4. Once oil comes to temperature, gently lower 5 or 6 balls into the hot oil and fry for 4-5 minutes until they are golden and puffy. Be sure not to overcrowd the pot, as the temperature will drop and your doughnuts won't cook all the way through. Drain on prepared baking sheet or rack for a few seconds, then toss the doughnuts in the apple pie sugar until coated. Repeat with the remaining dough. Serve immediately with the dark chocolate fudge sauce!
   

For the apple pie sugar coating

1. Combine the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cardamom, and allspice in a shallow bowl until combined.

For the dark chocolate fudge sauce

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the heavy cream, corn syrup, brown sugar, salt, and half of the chocolate. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat slightly and simmer for 1-2 minutes or until chocolate has melted. Remove from heat and add remaining chocolate, butter, and vanilla. Stir to combine and until all chocolate has melted. Serve with the doughnuts!
   

Recipe Notes

*Be sure to use whole milk ricotta, not part skim. The skim contains too much moisture and won't yield the same result!