If you’re familiar with my love affair with bread and all things carby, it’ll be no surprise to learn that I have a thing for donuts as well. Vegan donuts are hard to come by and not exactlyhealthy, so when I discovered that some people are being all crazy radical and baking their own donuts, I had to give it a try. Baked donuts are easy to make, lower in fat than their fried cousins and you don’t have to put your shoes on to get them. Win-win-win!
This recipe does require a piece of specialty equipment: anonstick donut pan
. It’s the one and only uni-tasker I’m allowing in my kitchen, because I wouldn’t be able to
achieve these delicious results
live without it. Expect more donut recipes down the road because this pan is going to get a workout in my kitchen!
These donuts are light and fluffy with a texture more similar to cake than to regular yeast donuts. Don’t let the difference in texture scare you, though! They are still totally delicious.
Baked Apple Donuts
Yield: 6 regular donuts or 12 mini donuts
1 medium apple (Fuji, Gala, etc), peeled and chopped
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 flax egg or other vegan egg replacer
3/4 cup non-dairy yogurt (plain, vanilla, or flavor of your choice–strawberry might be fun!)
1 Tbsp canola oil
2 tsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp agave nectar or other sweetener (use less if you used a flavored yogurt)
Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly spray your donut pan and set aside.
Toss apples with cinnamon and sugar and set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine flour and other dry ingredients with a whisk. In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients thoroughly, then add the wet to the dry. Fold in gently until no dry spots remain. The resulting batter should be light, airy and pretty darn easy to work with.
Divide your chopped apples among the donut cups, adding as much or as little as you like. I like a lot of fruit, so I filled the cups about 1/3 full. Divide the batter among the cups on top of the apple, pressing down and shaping a bit with your fingers. The donut cups should be full and you should have exactly enough dough to make 6 regular donuts or 12 mini donuts.
Bake 9-10 minutes until the tops are golden brown. Allow to cool 1 minute in the pan before inverting onto a wire rack. If you’re sugar-crazed, you can sprinkle the tops with vegan powdered sugar but these babies are sweet enough due to all that fruit. Perfect with your morning cuppa!
