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This easy air fryer apple fries recipe with cinnamon sugar coating is delicious year-round, but will become a fall favorite. Ready in about 30 minutes.

Apple fries became popular at Legoland with Granny’s Apple Fries. They are lightly fried apples coated with a cinnamon sugar topping and served with a simple vanilla cream dipping sauce.

I love created new fall recipes, so this was our choice to tackle this year. Our version starts with coating the apple fries with batter, then air frying them to make them lightly crisp…without the use of all that oil.

a wire cone of Air Fryer Apple Fries with vanilla glaze on the side

About this Air Fryer Apple Fries Recipe:

Flavor: You’ll of course have the apple flavor since you’re using spears of fresh apples, but there will also be hints of cinnamon in the sugar coating. And the vanilla glaze makes them extra special.
Texture: Crispy outside, tender inside—that’s the goal with these apple fries. All made possible without any oil thanks to the air fryer.
Method: This recipe is ready in just under 30 minutes and made in the air fryer. It’s a lighter apple treat you can have as a snack or dessert. No deep frying needed.

What are apple fries made of?

Apple fries are made of…well, apples! Some apple fries (such as those at Burger King), are simply apples that are sliced to look like fries. They are meant to be appealing to kids and an alternative to fries.

Other apple fries, such as this recipe, are more like fried apple sticks with a flour or cornstarch and egg/milk batter on it. Either way you’re looking at an easy recipe for fall.

Are apple fries healthy? Obviously the most healthy apple fries would be the fries that are simply slices of apples. While this is not considered diet food, the fact that we air fry the apple fries does cut down on calories.

What type of apple is best?

You can use a variety of apples for different tastes. I prefer either Granny Smith apples or Honeycrisp apples. Gala, Braeburn, Pink Lady and Fuji are good as well. Honeycrisp, Gala and Fuji are sweet apples, Granny Smith are more tart apples.

How to Cut Apples to Look Like Fries

There are only 3 steps:

Peel an apple.
Slice the apple off the core, being careful not to get any of the core. (Or if you do, you can trim to get off any unwanted parts.)
Then cut those slices into small strips, to look like fries, as large as you would like them to be.

How to Make Air Fryer Apple Fries

Peel the apples. Using a sharp knife or a fry cutter, slice apples into thin strips. Set aside.

overhead view of dredging station for battered apple fries

In a small bowl, combine the flour with the apple pie spice. Whisk well.
Whisk the eggs in a separate dish.
Working in small batches, toss the apple fries into the flour, scoop them up using a slotted spoon, and shake off the excess flour.
Then dip each apple fry into the whisked eggs, shake off excess egg and then place them back into the flour and spice mixture. Turn to coat.

coating apple spears with egg and flour breading

Make sure all of the apple fries are coated, but that the extra flour has been shaken off. Place them on a wire rack with parchment paper or a paper towel underneath. The parchment will catch any excess flour that falls off, making it easy to clean up.
Preheat the air fryer to 325ºF. Spray the bottom of the air fryer basket generously with cooking spray (or use canola oil or vegetable oil in a spray bottle). Place the apple fries in the basket so they are not overlapping. Generously spray the tops of the fries with additional cooking spray.

Cook for 5 minutes, turn the apple fries, spray them again and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Remove the fries and place onto another cooling rack or basket and immediately sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture. You want the fries to be hot when sprinkling with sugar so that the sugar sticks.

a cup with cinnamon and sugar to sprinkle over apple fries

Then make your dipping sauces and serve immediately.

a hand holding an apply fry with vanilla icing

Dipping Sauces for Apple Fries

a plate of breaded apple fries with vanilla glaze

Air Fryer Apple Fries

4.80 from 10 votes

This easy air fryer apple fries recipe with cinnamon sugar coating is delicious year-round, but will become a fall favorite. Ready in about 30 minutes.

Servings 4

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 10

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Ingredients

Ingredients:

2 large Granny Smith apples
1 cup all purpose flour* 130 grams
1 tablespoon apple pie spice
3 large eggs
1/4 cup cinnamon sugar
cooking spray

Dip:

1 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 tablespoons whole milk

Instructions

Peel the apples. Using a sharp knife or a fry cutter, slice the apples into thin strips. Set aside.
In a small bowl, combine the flour with the apple pie spice. Whisk well.
Whisk the eggs in a separate dish.
Working in small batches, toss the apple fries into the flour, scoop them up using a slotted spoon, and shake off the excess flour.
Then dip each apple fry into the whisked eggs, shake off excess egg and then place them back into the flour and spice mixture. Turn to coat.
Make sure all of the apple fries are coated, but that the extra flour has been shaken off. This is important so that they crisp up. Place them on a wire rack with parchment paper underneath. The parchment will catch any excess flour that falls off, making it easy to clean up.
Preheat the air fryer to 325ºF.
Spray the bottom of your basket generously with cooking spray (or I like to use oil in a spray bottle). Place the apple fries in the basket so they are not overlapping. Generously spray the tops of the fries with additional cooking oil.
Cook for 5 minutes, turn the apple fries, spray them again and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
Remove the fries and place onto another cooling rack or basket and immediately sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. You want the fries to be hot when sprinkling with sugar so that the sugar sticks. (There is no sugar in the flour mixture so the apple fries won't be very sweet without this!)
Cook additional batches of apple fries and toss with cinnamon sugar while still warm.
Make the icing by whisking the confectioners sugar, vanilla and milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, in a small bowl.
The fries are best served immediately. Serve the icing as a dip with your fries or drizzle it over them.

Notes

*For extra crispiness, use half corn starch and half flour.

Refer to the article above for more tips and tricks.

The calories shown are based on the recipe serving 4, with 1 serving being ¼ of the apple fries and glaze. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box are calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.**