These easy apple cinnamon baked donuts are so quick to make and are sure to become a new fall favorite baked treat! Bursting with flavor and coated with a sweet and crunchy cinnamon sugar topping, these donuts are gluten-free, grain-free, dairy free, refined-sugar free and are loaded with healthy nutritional value that you and your body are going to love.
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It’s that time of year again! There’s a hint of fall in the air, stores are lined up with every apple imaginable, and warm colors are beginning to make their debut again. It’s just the best, isn’t it?
This recipe was 100% inspired by a trip my partner and I took with our two dogs roughly two years ago. We drove up to North Carolina and for the first time and experienced fall how it’s probably suppose to be experienced – going to a harvest festival and apple picking! It was perfect.
When we first got to the fall festival, we saw this crazy long line and asked someone what it might be for. They mentioned that this festival had the BEST apple cinnamon donuts and that people come from all over this time of year to enjoy them. We were convinced so we got in line because…who doesn’t want FRESH apple cinnamon donuts?
Jump to:
The inspiration behind these Easy Apple Cinnamon Baked Donuts
We waited in line for two hours for these donuts (yes, two whole hours), we got ourselves two dozen freshly made donuts, ate almost a whole dozen right then and there, and then got to apple picking. Come to find out we only had 20 minutes left before they closed, so we got to apple picking and ended up with only 3 cutie little apples before departing.
Turns out you have to get there early and not wait in a line for two hours to get donuts in order to get to the good apples that were left at the back of the field. Who knew.
All that to say, it.was.worth.it. These donuts….they were out of this world. The texture, the flavor, the warmth, the tenderness. They were too good for this world, so we ate them all within 24 hours and I don’t regret a thing.
Why you’ll love these Easy Apple Cinnamon Baked Donuts
I think about those donuts a lot and I believe you would too if you ever tried them. So naturally, I wanted to recreate them! Well, at least a more healthy version of them that I can feel confident indulging in on a daily basis.
I wanted these donuts to be easy to make really quick, be nourishing enough to satisfy not only a sweet craving, but nutritional requirements too so to keep blood sugar levels stable and the metabolism functioning well.
I also wanted these to be gluten free, dairy free, grain free and refined sugar free so that the body has a better time digesting and utilizing the ingredients for positive purposes; all while not sacrificing on flavor.
Enter: the BEST apple cinnamon baked donuts.
Ingredients to make easy apple cinnamon baked donuts
Those donuts are honestly so quick to whip up and don’t require many ingredients at all – most you probably already have on hand!
- almond flour
- tapioca starch
- vanilla protein powder
- cinnamon
- baking soda
- salt
- eggs
- unsweetened applesauce
- monk fruit sweetener
- plant-based butter
- vanilla
Ingredients to make the cinnamon sugar coating
- coconut sugar
- cinnamon
- plant-based butter
Equipment you’ll need to make these Easy Apple Cinnamon Baked Donuts
When I say easy, I mean easy. The most complicated part of this recipe is probably just the fact that you’ll need a donut pan, so if you don’t have one you’re going to definitely want to scoop one up. Thankfully, they’re wicked cheap and you can get two of them for less than $15 on Amazon!
The next most complicated ingredient is going to be a gallon sized zip lock bag. You’ll want one of these to use for piping the batter into the donut pan. I’ll walk you through more detailed instructions below but I promise, super simple!
Other than those two materials, you’ll also need
- two bowls
- a mixing utensil
- measuring cups and spoons
How to make these Easy Apple Cinnamon Bake Donuts
This recipe is as low maintenance as it gets. There are roughly 5 steps to making these donuts and all in all it should take less than an hour from start to finish to make these! Let’s get to it.
First, you’ll want to gather all of the dry ingredients (almond flour, tapioca flour, protein powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt) and combine them together in a large mixing bowl.
In the second mixing bowl, you’ll combine the wet ingredients (eggs, applesauce, monk fruit sweetener, butter, vanilla) and whisk together until everything is well incorporated. Totally okay if it looks a bit chunky!
Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredient bowl and combine until everything is just mixed. The batter will be pretty thick here.
Scoop the batter into the gallon zip lock bag, cut one corner off, and pipe the batter into the greased donut pans. Bake!
While the donuts are baking, you can prepare the topping. First you’ll need to melt a bit of butter to coat the donuts when they are cooled. Then, combine the coconut sugar and cinnamon on a plate so that you can roll/cover/decorate the donut with the cinnamon sugar coating for maximum deliciousness.
Okay the very last step will be to coat the donuts once they are cooled with a thin layer of butter, then roll those donuts around in the cinnamon sugar mixture and voila! Homemade apple cinnamon donut goodness.
How to store these donuts
These donuts are absolutely best enjoyed warm out of the oven, fresh the day you make them. I totally get though if you need to save them and enjoy them over a couple days! We meal prepped these for the week and found that they’re best stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Can I make these donuts into muffins?
You bet! Instead of donuts, you can easily bake these into a lightly greased muffin tin at 350 for 12-15 minutes. I would advise to keep an eye on them to ensure that the tops are slightly domed and a toothpick comes out clean to make sure they are done. A mini muffin tin would also work great! You will just have to adjust the time and cook them for a little less than a regular muffin tin.
If you liked this recipe, you’ll want to try these!
- High Protein Coffee Cake Donuts
- Dark Chocolate Strawberry Protein Donuts
- Apple Pie Oatmeal Cookie Cups
- Peach Cobbler Oatmeal Breakfast Bake
- Bananas Foster Banana Bread
If you make this recipe, be sure to comment below and let me know how it was! Also tag @livinginflux on Instagram and use the hashtag #livinginflux so I can see it and feature you!
Easy Apple Cinnamon Baked Donuts (high-protein!)
Equipment
- 1 Donut Pan
- 2 Mixing Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup almond flour
- ½ cup tapioca flour
- ½ cup protein powder plant-based, vanilla
- 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup applesauce unsweetened
- ¼ cup monk fruit sweetener
- 3 tablespoon plant-based butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- ¾ cup coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoon plant-based butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease donut pan with olive oil
- In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients of almond flour, tapioca flour, protein powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
- In a slightly smaller bowl, combine the wet ingredients of eggs, applesauce, monk fruit sweetener, butter, and vanilla until well incorporated.
- Slowly add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and using a whisk, mix together until just combined.
- Using a gallon sized ziplock bag (or piping bag if you have one!), spoon the mixed ingredients into the bag, close, and cut a corner of the bag off to then pipe into the greased donut pan. Distribute evenly.
- Bake for 10 minutes, allow to cool before applying the sugar coating.
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- While the donuts are baking, prepare the cinnamon sugar coating by melting 3 tablespoons of plant-based butter.
- A small bowl or plate, mix together the coconut sugar and cinnamon
- Once the donuts have cooled, one at a time you'll lightly brush the donuts with the butter and then place the donut in the cinnamon sugar topping, coating completely and setting aside to continue coating the remaining donuts. Enjoy fresh!
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