Healthy chocolate baked donuts, dairy-free and gluten-free. Soft on the inside, glossy glaze on top! Vegan and high in mood-boosting magnesium and other nutrients. Perfect dessert for breakfast!
Chocolate Baked Donuts
Easy chocolate baked donuts. Breakfast. On the patio. Sun is shining. Glasses are full of orange juice. Plates are full of ...donuts? Well, why not?
Having baked donuts for breakfast is a great idea, especially this healthy version. My chocolate baked donuts are full of plant-based ingredients that are organic and gluten-free. And while they are healthier, they are a traditional baked chocolate donut, so if you want a donut recipe that is even more healthy, try my Chocolate Frosted Donut recipe that uses pumpkin puree or sweet potato instead of eggs and oil, and less sugar.
Either recipe however will boost your mood, help you feel full and energize you through your busy day.
What Do Chocolate Baked Donuts Taste Like?
Baked donuts are cake-like, not airy like fried donuts. And yet they are a lighter than pound cake. Depending on the cocoa powder brand you use, they can taste deeply chocolatey, close to devil's food cake.
And the glossy chocolate top is only 2 ingredients, milk and chocolate chips. Again, choose a quality dark chocolate to ensure the frosting has the benefits of chocolate, including fiber and magnesium , full of mood-boosting nutrients.
How to Make Chocolate Baked Donuts
1. Mix dry ingredients in a small bowl. Mix wet ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Combine dry with wet, mix or blend, but don't over combine or the cakey donut will be chewy because of the release of gluten.
3. Pour the batter into a plastic sandwich bag with tip cut off or fill a piping bag without a frosting tip.
4. Pipe the batter into the donut pans, bake for 10 minutes at 400 F. Cool, glaze, eat.
You need a donut pan, although in a pinch you can just use the batter in mini-cupcake pans with paper liners to make donut holes. Just reduce cooking time.
And then you'll need a good gluten-free flour if you want to keep it gluten-free. Personally I think everyone should eat gluten-free. I guess I'm not alone. The popularity of eating gluten-free has tripled since 2009. There are two sides to that argument. But if you are interested in making these donuts gluten-free or not, read on and we will bake both ways together.
Make Baked Donuts Gluten-free
To make baked donuts gluten-free, just be sure you are using a gluten-free baking flour. I use the one by this brand. If you don't need the donuts to be gluten-free, use your favorite all purpose flour. I have made these donuts both ways!
How Easy Is this Chocolate Baked Donuts Recipe?
It's far easier to bake than to fry. For one, frying involves lots of dangerous hot oil. All that is needed to make these chocolate baked donuts is a bowl, and donut pan.
Baked Donuts Are Healthier Than Fried Donuts
Yes! Baked donuts are healthier than friend simply because they have less processed oils saturating the donut. Oils are increasingly being shunned by those who want to eat healthy because they are becoming increasingly processed and contain harmful additives. So lately, my goal in baking is to try to step away from oils as much as possible.
This baked donut recipe also has less sugar than most donut recipes. And I used an organic and free-trade cane sugar ensuring that the product was harvested in a way that benefits workers and farmers, and does not contain harmful additives.
Finally this baked donut is healthy from the quality chocolate I used. Here I used cacao powder which is full of essential minerals, but you can also use a quality unsweetened cocoa such as Divine or Valhrona.
Questions Answered About Baked Donuts
1. Do they store?
Yes, feel free to store them unfrosted 3-4 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator, or freeze them covered for 3 months.
2. Can you swap flours?
You can certainly use an all purpose flour, but you might have to tweak the moisture depending on the brand. You want to achieve the batter texture you see in my prep shot above.
3. Can I Fry these donuts?
I don't think so. I have never made a fried donut so I am unfamiliar with the steps.
3. Does the donut rise well?
Yes, pretty well. You can see in my bite shot the fluffy cake-like texture. Here I used the gluten-free flour I spoke of, but the version I made with all purpose flour was even fluffier!
More Easy Healthy Donuts
Chocolate Chickpea Protein Donuts
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Chocolate Baked Donuts Recipe
Ingredients
Dry ingredients - medium bowl
- 1 cup flour (I have used both - gluten-free baking and all purpose)
- ⅓ cup organic cane sugar
- 2 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of salt
Wet ingredients - large bowl
- ¾ cup plant milk
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon cold coffee
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
Chocolate Glaze
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
Useful Equipment
Instructions
Prep
- Rub oil faintly on inside of donut wells. Dust with cocoa powder so donuts release easily. Preheat oven to 375 F
Make donuts
- Mix dry ingredients together in the medium bowl.Mix wet ingredients together in a larger bowl.
- Pour the dry mixture into the wet, and either mix by hand or blend a few moments with a hand blender. Don't over mix or your donuts will be chewy.
- Use a piping bag to pipe the batter into each well. I fill the wells two-thirds.
- Bake for 14-15 minutes or until a tester comes clean. Check at 10 minutes. Let them cool 15 minutes before removing them from the pan and setting each on a cooling rack. To remove, run a knife around the edges and tap.
- Let the donuts cool on a rack while you make the glaze.
Make the glaze
- Melt the chips and oil in a shallow bowl in the microwave at 60 seconds. Stir until all chips are melted.Dip one side of each donut into the chocolate glaze and set to dry on the cooling rack. If you intend to add toppings such as sprinkles or crushed nuts, do so now.
Gabi Lipka
Hi ! I stumbled across this recipe and the donuts you can make with either tinned sweet potato or tinned pumpkin. I don’t know which ones to make. How does the texture of the end product between the two differ please ? Thanks so much !
Dee Dine
Hi Gabi,
This Chocolate Baked Donuts Recipe makes a donut with a fluffy chocolate cupcake texture - the other donut recipe I offer (Chocolate Frosted Donuts) that uses pumpkin or sweet potato puree instead of oil and eggs tastes more chocolatey, is only slightly denser, but less sweet as I used less sugar. I personally prefer the ones I call "Chocolate Frosted Donuts" because I love the healthier aspects.
Thanks for trying either! Dee xx
Dawn
Fabulous recipe, Dee! I and my eight year old made these using Bob's Red Mill Paleo flour and flaxmilk. They turned out SO incredibly decadent. Much more like chocolate lava cake - so dessert it is! 🙂 I think we'll play with the ingredients to get a more "cakey" texture. But, seriously, these are so incredible! Thanks for so much excellent GF/DF yumminess.
Dee Dine
Thanks for sharing Dawn! The paleo flour sounds like it created a yummy texture! Glad you baked with your 8 year old. I love cooking with my daughters, too!
Bianca Zapatka
The texture is just perfect Dee! 😍 they look so delicious - just perfect for any chocolate lovers! ❤️
Dee Dine
Thank you so much Bianca! So happy you like the texture! Dee xx
Ela
Wow, how fluffy they are! They look super delicious and I love that they are vegan and gluten-free. 🙂
Dee Dine
Thank you so much Ela! So glad you like these donuts! Dee xx