Apple Butter Biscuits (Vegan)

It's Saturday morning and I have time to bake again for my family but since it is grocery shopping day, the fridge and pantry are a bit more sparse than usual... so what to use and what to make?  If you happened to make my Apple Cider Muffins last week like I did, then you probably have some organic apple butter left over.  I have been looking at the jar of it in my fridge all week, thinking it would be really good on toast or biscuits.  I wanted to make something quick and simple this morning, and of course healthy and delicious, so I started thinking of a way to make whole grain biscuits using the apple butter as both the sweetener and a source of moisture.  So I played around with a basic biscuit recipe and came up with this delightful surprise.  They are flavorful (house smells awesome), moist and very filling.  Perfect for the morning of a day we plan to spend outside raking leaves!!

Apple Cider Muffins

Apple Cider Muffins

One of my favorite childhood treats were apple cider donuts that a local apple orchard made fresh every fall.  I always looked forward to going apple picking, but I honestly think it was more about the bag of hot mini donuts that my mom bought for my brother and I afterwards that made the day special.  I don't know if it was the cinnamon and sugar topping or the buttery grease smell that permeated the apple shack, but those donuts always called to me.  I suppose they did have apple in them, or at least apple cider, but whatever the magic ingredients, they always hit the spot.  Unfortunately I am sure they were not at all healthy.  This recipe changes all that.

Every fall I see apple cider start to fill up the shelves in the produce section of my local grocery store, but I rarely buy it.  I am picky about buying my apple products organic, and I don't drink a lot of sugary beverages. But a few weeks ago I saw organic apple cider and so on impulse, I bought a jug.  It has sat at the bottom of my fridge waiting to be opened ever since, and because my kids don't seem to like it much, I thought maybe I could bake with it.  That is when I remembered the apple cider donuts of my childhood and realized that there has to be a good way to make muffins using cider.  I searched online for a couple of recipes but as usual didn't find anything that I really liked, so I took a couple of different ones, morphed them together and wrote up this recipe.  I really had no idea how it would all come together, but I can assure you they are incredible.

I wasn't sure I was going to be able to find apple butter in my store, and I really wasn't sure what was in it, but I went searching and found a jar of organic apple butter in the jelly section.  The ingredients are simply organic apples and organic apple juice concentrate, but you would never know that by the taste.  It is incredibly sweet, moist and rich.  If you cannot find apple butter, I am sure apple sauce would work as well.  For the fresh diced apples, I used the organic granny smith variety because they are firm and tart and great when baking.  So next time you get a craving for an apple cider donut made the old fashioned way, try whipping up a batch of these wholesome ones first! You will not be disappointed!