Baked Apple Cider Donuts

The perfect fall treat, these healthier baked apple cider donuts are made with whole wheat pastry flour, coconut sugar, Greek yogurt, and coconut oil.

I don’t know about you, but when I think of fall I immediately think of apple picking. It’s something Isaac and I enjoy doing every year around September. There are a couple of orchards relatively close to Richmond, but the one we usually go to is called Carter Mountain. It’s just outside of Charlottesville and they have the best apple cider donuts. They’re particularly delicious when you get them fresh when they’re still warm!

This year, I’m not sure if we’ll make it to Carter Mountain for apple picking so I decided to try my hand at making homemade baked donuts. And of course, in true EBF fashion, I worked to make them a bit healthier using real food ingredients like whole wheat pastry flour, apple sauce, coconut sugar, coconut oil, and Greek yogurt. A major upgrade from the traditional recipe that uses melted butter and brown sugar.

Ingredients in Healthy Apple Cider Donuts

• unfiltered apple cider – no, I don’t mean ACV, I mean apple cider! I prefer getting mine from a local orchard but a lot of local grocery stores carry it as well! 
• unsweetened apple sauce – any kind works great and you can use cinnamon unsweetened apple sauce for more cinnamon flavor
• whole-wheat pastry flour – more fiber, protein, and other nutrients than traditional white flour
• coconut sugar – the less-processed upgrade for granulated sugar or brown sugar
• Greek yogurt – adds protein and moisture to these donuts!
• coconut oil – the perfect sub for butter

How to Make Baked Apple Cider Donuts

First things first, to make baked donuts you’re going to need a donut pan. Luckily, they’re really inexpensive! You can get a set of 2 non-stick, six cavity Wilton donut pans on Amazon for less than $15. Here’s the set I have.

It can also be handy to have a large icing piping tip for adding the donut batter into the pan, but it’s not 100% necessary. You can always spoon the batter into the pan and then shake it to make sure the batter is even.

Once you have your materials, you’re ready to get started and to be honest, making baked donuts is really similar to making muffins.

Mix your dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt) together in a medium bowl. In another medium bowl, whisk the wet ingredients (the apple cider, apple sauce, sugar, yogurt, oil, and egg) until combined. Add the wet mixture to the flour mixture and stir until everything is mixed together.

Prep your donut pans by spraying each cavity with cooking spray. Spoon the batter or use a piping bag to squeeze the batter evenly into the 12 cavities. Bake in a preheated oven for 6-8 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into to the center comes out clean. Invert the donuts on a wire rack to cool.

To finish, brush each donut with coconut oil on both sides and dip into a cinnamon sugar topping to coat. They’re best served fresh, but you can store leftovers in an air-tight container for 2-3 days. I like to reheat them in the toaster oven so they get nice and crispy!

Love these baked apple cider donuts? You might like these recipes too!

• Baked Almond Flour Donuts
• Healthy Apple Crisp
• No-Bake Blueberry Muffin Donut Holes
• Healthy Pumpkin Spice Donut Holes
• Healthy Apple Pancakes
• Healthy Apple Muffins

If you try this recipe for baked apple cider donuts, please be sure to leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how they turned out! Your feedback is super helpful for the EBF team and other EBF readers.

Baked Apple Cider Donuts

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★★★★★

4.8 from 19 reviews

• Author: Brittany Mullins
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 8 minutes
• Total Time: 18 minutes
• Yield: 12

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Description

The perfect fall treat, these baked apple cider donuts are made a healthier with whole wheat pastry flour, coconut sugar, Greek yogurt and coconut oil.

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Ingredients

• ½  cup apple cider (not vinegar)
• ⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce 
• 1 ¾ cups whole-wheat pastry flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup coconut sugar
• 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 3 Tablespoons melted coconut oil
• 1 egg

Cinnamon Sugar Topping

• 1 Tablespoon melted coconut oil
• 1/2 cup organic cane sugar
• ½ Tablespoon cinnamon

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a medium bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir until combined. 
3. In another medium bowl, whisk together apple cider, apple sauce, sugar, yogurt, oil and egg until combined. 
4. Add wet mixture to flour mixture, and stir until just combined.
5. Spray two (6-cavity) donut pans with cooking spray. Spoon or pipe batter evenly into the 12 cavities. 
6. Bake for 6-8 minutes, or until donuts spring back when lightly pressed. Cool in pan for 2 minutes. Invert donuts onto a wire rack. 
7. While donuts are baking, mix together sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl. 
8. Brush each donut with coconut oil on both sides and dip into the cinnamon sugar mixture to coat. Repeat until all donuts are coated. Best enjoyed immediately but can be stored in an air-tight container for 2-3 days and reheated in the microwave or toaster oven.

Notes

• I haven’t tested it yet, but I would assume you can use non-dairy yogurt and a flaxseed egg to make vegan apple cider donuts. Let me know if you decide to try it!
• Recipe inspired and adapted from Cooking Light.

• Category: Breakfast
• Method: Bake
• Cuisine: American

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 donut
• Calories: 186
• Sugar: 19g
• Sodium: 177mg
• Fat: 5g
• Carbohydrates: 33g
• Fiber: 3g
• Protein: 3g

Keywords: baked apple cider donuts