Air-Fryer Apple & Cinnamon Fritters

Apple fritters are an Australian and British pub-counter classic — a deep-fried ball of sweet dough with grated apple folded through, rolled in cinnamon sugar. They're served with custard at every kid's birthday, country fair, and CWA fundraiser. The air fryer gets you nearly the same result without the bowl of bubbling oil — softer shell, lighter inside, but with the same caramelised cinnamon-sugar crackle on the outside.

The trick is keeping the dough thick enough to scoop but loose enough to spread slightly as it cooks. Grated Granny Smith apple gives you sharpness against the sweet batter. The cinnamon-sugar coat happens while the fritters are still warm — sugar sticks to the hot surface in a thin crust that crackles when you bite through.

The photo shows the finished tableau: six golden-brown fritters dusted in cinnamon sugar, one broken open to show the soft apple-flecked interior, custard pooling out, with a small bowl of more custard for dipping. The kind of dessert that makes everyone at the table reach in with their fingers.