Enjoy these Applesauce Donuts anytime of the day! They are made with nutrient dense, paleo ingredients and baked in the oven.
Jump to RecipeThis recipe is a great option for the extra applesauce taking space in your fridge or the back of your pantry. The applesauce provides a little bit of flavor and a little bit of sweetener to these paleo donuts. They are made with nutrient dense ingredients that can satisfy a sweet tooth without spiking your blood sugar to only cause a crash later in the day.
Paleo Ingredients
These ingredients are very typical for paleo baking. Over the years, I’ve incorporated almond flour, coconut oil, and so on into my recipes in order to create more well-rounded treats that make me feel better.
- Almond Flour – used in most paleo baked goods as the base, providing protein, fat, and fiber which is helpful for maintaining steady blood sugar levels
- Tapioca Starch – acts as a thickening agent, similar to white flour or cornstarch, and is made from the cassava (or yuca) plant
- Applesauce – the highlight of this recipe, a non-as-common paleo baking ingredient, be cautios of added sugar in store bought versions
- Eggs – a staple in all baking to use as a binder, great source of protein and nutrients
- Maple Syrup – my favorite sweetener to use, along with honey and coconut sugar
- Coconut Butter – often used for “icing” in paleo baking, similar to coconut oil but is made with the meat of the coconut as well as the oil making it thicker
- Coconut Sugar – another popular paleo swap used in place of cane sugar and has a lower glycemic index
Making Paleo Applesauce Donuts
Baking donuts at home is easy with the help of silicon donut molds. Using silicon molds makes removing the donuts fairly simple since they are flexible and you can “push” the donuts out. From my experience, silicon also is much less likely to stick than many other forms of baking dishes. The only downside is that the trays can be difficult to handle when full of batter because they are so flexible and can lean to one side or the other.
The icing + cinnamon sugar in this recipe is optional, although I do recommend it because it adds a little extra sweetness and texture. If you opt not to do the icing, I would increase the maple syrup in the batter to 1/4 cup and throw in an extra tablespoon of tapioca starch if the batter become to runny. Another option with the icing is to substitute coconut oil for coconut butter. In this case, the coconut oil would just act as a glue for the cinnamon sugar to stick to the donut so you’ll need a little less (start with 1/4 cup) and omit the maple syrup. Coat the top of the donut and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Then, store in the fridge to ensure the coconut oil doesn’t melt.
Looking for more paleo baking recipes? Try this Almond Flour Zucchini Bread or these AIP Chocolate Chip Cookies!
Paleo Applesauce Donuts
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond flour
- 3 tbsp tapioca starch or arrowroot
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking soda
- pinch salt
- ½ cup applesauce unsweetened
- 2 eggs
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
Cinnamon Sugar Icing
- ½ cup coconut butter
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp coconut sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 °F and prepare donut tray with oil.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine almond flour, tapioca starch, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
- To the bowl, add applesauce, eggs, maple syrup, and vanilla. Mix together to form the batter.
- Scoop out the dough using a spoon or small measuring cup and fill donut molds. Depending on the size, there should be enough for 8-12 donuts. Tap the donut tray on the counter to create level filling.
- Place the tray in the oven for 15-18 minutes, until the tops begin to brown. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes.
Cinnamon Sugar Icing
- On low heat in a small sauce pan, melt the coconut butter and combine with maple syrup. Turn off heat.
- Use a small bowl to combine coconut sugar and cinnamon.
- Once the donuts are cooked and cooled, dip the top of donut in the coconut butter icing and move around until coated. Place on a plate, then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
- Repeat the process for all donuts, reheating the coconut butter if needed. Enjoy!
