Vegan gluten-free apple cider donuts are moist and fluffy, filled with apple flavor, and ready in 30 minutes. These baked donuts are dunked in apple cider then rolled in cinnamon sugar to infuse each bite with the taste of fall.
The hardest part about making donuts is waiting around for them to rise. But, that is not the case with these baked apple cider donuts! You can make them quicker than the time it would take to go to a bakery.
What's more to love is that this recipe is vegan and gluten-free. Oat flour does an incredible job of thickening the batter to create soft, cake-like donuts.
And to top it all off, each donut is rolled in cinnamon sugar for a true explosion of fall flavor. There's nothing left to do but fill up a cup with warm apple cider and enjoy these donuts!
Ingredient Notes
You will need these simple ingredients to make gluten-free apple cider donuts:
Oat flour gives the donuts a fluffy texture. For this recipe, I would recommend either using store-bought or sifting homemade oat flour to get it extra fine.
Apple cider gives these donuts all the flavor. Make sure to use fresh apple cider (which is essentially unfiltered apple juice). I tested using spiced apple cider from Trader Joe's and I really liked the addition of cinnamon, clove, allspice, and orange peel.
You'll need apple cider for the sugar coating process as well. Or, if you want to take this recipe a step further, reduce the apple cider into a thick glaze for a super concentrated flavor.
For the cinnamon sugar coating you'll need granulated sugar and cinnamon. I used white granulated sugar but coconut sugar would also work.
Instead of canola oil you can use applesauce to make this recipe oil-free. Though, keep in mind, the donuts will be a bit denser.
The recipe card below includes the full list of ingredients + instructions.
How to Make Vegan Gluten-Free Apple Cider Donuts
- Whisk dry ingredients.
- Add wet ingredients and let rest.
- Spoon batter into donut pan.
- Bake and cool.
- Dip in apple cider.
- Roll in cinnamon sugar.
- Enjoy!
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Vegan Gluten-Free Apple Cider Donuts
Equipment
- 2.75" donut pan 12-cavity
Ingredients
Apple Cider Donuts
- 2 ¾ cups oat flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅔ cup apple cider
- ½ cup soy milk
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- ¼ cup granulated white sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup apple cider
Directions
Apple Cider Donuts
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly oil a donut pan and set it aside.
- Add 2 ¾ cups oat flour, 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon, and ¼ teaspoon sea salt to a large bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Add ⅔ cup apple cider , ½ cup soy milk, ⅓ cup maple syrup, and 2 tablespoons canola oil to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Whisk to combine until no floury bits remain.
- The donut batter will be really thin at this point. Set it aside to rest for 5 minutes to allow the batter to thicken. The oats need time time absorb the liquid.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared donut pan. You can fill them all the way to the top of the cavity. Just don't cover the center post. Wipe away any excess batter to ensure each donut comes out with a hole in the center.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the donut springs back when pressed lightly with your finger. If an indent remains bake another 1 to 2 minutes.
- Turn the donut pan upside down on a wire rack to dump out the donuts. They should fall out pretty easily if you've sprayed the pan. You can try running a knife around the edge of each donut to help them release from the pan.
- Let the donuts cool for about 5 minutes.
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- Mix together ¼ cup granulated white sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon in a small bowl to make cinnamon sugar.
- Add 1 tablespoon cinnamon to a separate small bowl.
- Quickly dunk the donut into the bowl of apple cider and flip to coat the other side. You don't want to leave it in there longer than half a second. You could also brush the donut with apple cider but I found dunking to be more effective in coating the entire donut.
- Place the donut in the bowl of cinnamon sugar. Flip to coat the other side.
- Repeat with remaining donuts. Enjoy!
Notes
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* The provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Accuracy will vary on specific ingredients and brands used.
This recipe has been updated with additional pictures and tips. It was adapted from Maggie's recipe that was posted on August 27, 2020.
Jo says
These look so amazing! If I don't have a donut pan - do you think the mixture could work as mini muffins?
Maggie says
Hi Jo, Apologies for the late reply. Yes,these would definitely work as mini-muffins. I hope you enjoy them!
Luciana says
I loved the recipe.
Maggie says
I am so glad you enjoyed these! Thank you for the comment.
Kimberly says
Which measurement is used for the oat flour? 2.75 cups of rolled oats when blended DOES NOT equal 2.75 cups of oat flour.
Marjory Pilley says
Hi! Thanks for your comment! 1 cup of oat flour should yield about 3/4 cups of oat flour. So start with about 3 1/2 cups.