I don’t know about you guys, but I’ve been doing a whole lot of comfort baking lately. There is something so soothing about an afternoon mixing, measuring, sifting, and baking. Thankfully, my husband and my kids are happy to oblige in the eating of all these yummy treats. My recent favorite baking obsession has been these Whole Wheat Apple Cinnamon Donuts.
I love a good cake donut, but as a home cook, I don’t always love messing with vats of hot oil. One of the great things about these Whole Wheat Apple Cinnamon Donuts is that they are baked. No frying means less mess and a little healthier, too! I picked up one of these giant donut baking pans at a local craft store for under $20. You can find one here.
This batter starts with whole wheat flour, though you can absolutely use white flour if you’d prefer. A mix of sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and a bit of salt are tossed in, too. The dry ingredients get quickly whisked together and then combined with some eggs, vanilla, and greek yogurt. Applesauce helps to keep these donuts nice and moist and sweet, too!
I like to place the batter, which is fairly thick, into a pastry bag (find some here) to easily pipe into the donut pan. If you don’t have a pastry bag, a plastic sandwich bag with the corner snipped off works beautifully as well.
These lovely donuts are baked for about 15 minutes, until just golden. You’ll want to remove them from the pan right away to keep a crisp outer edge.
If you want a true apple cinnamon donut experience, pop them into a bag of cinnamon sugar mix while they are still hot and then allow them to cool on a rack. If glaze is more your style, let them cool first and then drizzle with the glaze mixture. Both are best eaten the day they are made, but are absolutely delicious for a day or two after baking.
You can freeze these for up to 2 months, though I would recommend waiting to glaze the donuts if you are planning to freeze them.
Looking for more comfort baking recipes? Check out these recipes:
Pumpkin Pecan Scones
Dark Chocolate Almond Dipped Shortbread Cookies
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Whole Wheat Apple Cinnamon Donuts
Baked apple cinnamon cake donuts
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole wheat flour (294 g)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (213 g)
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar (41 g)
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
- ⅓ cup plain greek yogurt (86 g)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For Glaze
- 1¼ cups confectioners sugar
- 2 Tablespoons milk
Cinnamon Sugar Mixture
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly spray the donut pan(s) with cooking spray.
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In a large bowl, add the flour, sugars, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk briefly to combine.
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In a separate bowl, gently whisk together the eggs, applesauce, and yogurt. Add in the vanilla and stir.
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Fold the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until just combined. Do not over mix.
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Place the batter into a pastry bag (large tip) or ziploc bag with the corner clipped. Pipe into the donut pans, filling each well with approximately 1/4 cup of batter.
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Bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees, or until just golden with slightly crispy exteriors. Remove quickly from the pan to avoid soggy edges.
For Glazed donuts:
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Allow the donuts to cool.
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In a small bowl, combine confectioner's sugar and milk.
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Drizzle over cooled donuts. Enjoy!
For Cinnamon Sugar donuts:
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In a small bowl, mix together the sugar and cinnamon
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Place the mixture in a bag. Add warm donuts and shake to coat! Remove from bag and serve immediately or store in an airtight container.
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