Healthier Apple Cider Donuts

It's fall.  There are apples.  There are pumpkins. There are colorful leaves.  So therefore, there are apple cider donuts.

But instead of having one of those unhealthy fat and sugar filled Apple Cider Donuts (which will most likely leave you with a bit of guilt afterwards), you should make your own.  Thay way, you can eat three and still feel pretty good about it.

Let me explain.

These Mini Apple Cider Donuts are much healthier than the kind you find while apple picking (or anywhere else for that matter), and yet, they taste just as good.  You really won't be able to tell that what you're eating is a heathful snack.  Not even when you go back for seconds... or thirds.

Plus, as an added bonus, baking these makes your whole house smell like the most awesome bakery ever, which is totally something everyone should want.  You may even draw the neighbors whole neighborhood to your door.

Mini Apple Cider Donuts
(the amount of donuts with vary depending on pan size, but with my mini donut pan, I got about 30 donuts)

• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 tsp vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups spelt flour (or white, all purpose)
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• pinch salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 egg whites (1/3 cup is using the kind from a carton)
• 1/3 cup apple cider
• 1-4 tbsp oil or apple cider (if you use less than 4 tbsp, make up for the missing liquid by adding more apple cider)*
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1/2 cup applesauce

Preheat oven to 350F.  In a cereal bowl, mix together milk and vinegar and set aside (if you have buttermilk, you can skip this step and just use 1/3 cup of that).  Then, mix together all dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  In a large bowl, combine wet ingredients and mix well.  Slowly mix dry into wet until just combined.  Don't overmix or your donuts will be very dense.  Scoop batter into a donut pan (or muffin tin if you don't have one) and bake until donuts are firm and spring back a bit when touched.  I baked mine for 6 minutes, but times will vary depending on the pan used and how big your donuts are.  Let cool a bit before popping out of the pan and shoveling into your mouth.  Optional:  For a more classic presentation, feel free you roll your donuts in some cinnamon and sugar.

* The texture of your donuts depends largely on the amount of oil you decide to use.  I used only 1 tbsp and thought the donuts were just fine, but many people don't like the dense texture that can sometimes be found in low-fat baked goods.  If this is something that bothers you, just use 3-4 tbsp oil and you should be fine.

I got a donut pan a little while ago and haven't used it nearly enough.  I just never realized how incredibly cute and fun mini donuts can be.  Oh well, now I have to make up for lost time.  I predict a whole lot of donut baking in my house.

If, like me, you have a donut pan that you don't take advantage of enough, you should really make Apple Cider Donuts.  It is the season after all.  And, besides, it's not like these will hurt your waistline or anything.

Also, just for the kicks of it, I calculated the nutrition stats for these donuts.  Using 2 tbsp of oil, each 50 gram serving (that's about 15 servings in the whole recipe) will have roughly 100 calories and 2.2 grams fat.  I'm not sure how that compares to other donuts, but to me, it sound pretty darn good!

Revisited Recipe of the Day:

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Muffin