Apple Cider Donut Cake with Apple Butter

Place apple cider in a medium-sized saucepan and heat it up over high flames until boiling point is reached. Allow the mixture to simmer, unattended, for 12-15 minutes until it has reduced in volume to approximately half its original size.

Remove the saucepan from heat and put it aside for now.

Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius). Take a 12-cup Bundt pan and generously grease its interior with shortening. Then, sprinkle some flour over the greased area to ensure it's fully covered in a layer of white powder. Gently tap around the pan to remove any excess flour and set it aside for now.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients - 2 teaspoons of cinnamon, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cloves.

Combine the wet ingredients - eggs, brown sugar, oil, buttermilk, apple butter, vanilla, 2/3 cup granulated sugar, and the reduced apple cider - in a large bowl. Add half of the dry ingredients mixture to the wet ingredients and stir until combined. Add the remaining half of the dry ingredients mixture and grated apple, stirring gently to avoid lumps and ensuring even distribution of apples throughout the mixture.

Pour the cake batter into the prepared Bundt pan.

Bake the cake in a preheated oven for 50-55 minutes, or until it's golden brown and a toothpick inserted into its center comes out clean.

Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes before removing it from the pan and transferring it to the same wire rack to cool completely, approximately 1 hour.

In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/3 cup granulated sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon.

Brush melted butter evenly over the outside and center ring of the cake, then sprinkle the top and sides with cinnamon-sugar.