Somehow, someway, it is already November.
I think we've (I've) done our fair share of celebrating pumpkins throughout October, but what about apples? They shouldn't be forgotten! Apples are just as much of a star to Fall as pumpkins are. My Pumpkin Protein Donuts were just SO good that I couldn't resist making my next batch of donuts.
Apples are made to be baked with.
Sure, they are delicious on their own or served chilled. But warm, soft apples are something special. Recently, I feel like I've seen an overload of Apple Cider Donuts on the Internet. Or maybe I've just been craving apples and donuts so it just seems like it... either way, I had to satisfy my craving.
I think it is safe to say I more than satisfied my craving with this newest batch of pronuts. The baking process alone sends your nose into a state of euphoria. My kitchen was filled with a warm scent of apple cider, cinnamon, allspice and cloves - a wonderful accompaniment to the pronuts which were about to be consumed.
I've made these low fat, gluten-free and guilt-free with 6 grams of protein to boot! Welcome Fall and all its glory with a fresh batch of these donuts straight from the oven.
Apple Cider Protein Donuts
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 12 Donuts
Ingredients:
Donuts:
- 1-1/2 cup apple cider
- 1/2 cup grated apple
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1-1/2 cup cassava flour (I talk about why I use this flour HERE!)
- 1/2 cup vanilla whey protein isolate (I use True Nutrition and love their products)
- 2 tbsp coconut palm sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1-1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup nonfat greek yogurt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg
Topping:
- 1-1/2 tbsp butter, melted
- 1 tbsp coconut palm sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Directions:
- In a small pot over medium high heat, combine apple cider, grated apple and allspice. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes. We want this to reduce to 1 cup of concentrate cider. After the 20 minutes, pour into a small ball to cool slightly.
- While the cider is simmering, preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare 2 donut pans by greasing with a bit of coconut oil. If you only have one pan, no worries! Just bake in batches.
- Whisk together dry ingredients (flour, protein, sugar and spices) in a small mixing bowl and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, vanilla extract and egg. Slowly pour Apple cider and grated apple into bowl, continuing to whisk. Slowly add dry ingredients and mix until a well incorporated batter has formed. This will be a bit of a wetter batter - that's ok!
- Transfer batter to a piping bag or large ziploc bag. Pipe batter into donut pan. Bake for 10 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.
- Melt butter and set aside in a small bowl which is wide enough to fit a donut. Mix sugar and cinnamon together in another small bowl or on a plate. Once donuts have baked, allow to cool slightly on a large cutting board. Dip tops of donuts into melted butter and then lightly into the sugar/cinnamon mix.