Gluten-free Baked Cinnamon Doughnuts

It's time to treat yourself to these healthy gluten-free baked doughnuts coated with a warm cinnamon-coconut sugar mix and ready in 35 minutes. 

Each bite is deliciously soft, baked just right to dunk into your favorite hot beverage.

This gluten-free baked doughnut recipe is a no-brainer. Seriously, it's so easy that you'll have them ready in no time.

Enjoy them on a lazy weekend morning or make them for special celebrations—more on that later—it's always a huge hit amongst kids and adults alike!

Jump to:

• Why you'll love this healthy doughnut recipe
• Ingredients & a few notes
• How to make them dairy-free
• Recipe steps
• The best pan to bake doughnuts at home
• Best way to fill up the doughnut pan
• Cinnamon-coconut sugar topping
• Customize it for birthday parties or special occasions
• Storage
• More gluten-free baking inspiration
• 📖 Recipe

Why you'll love this healthy doughnut recipe

• They have a very soft sort of melt-in-your-mouth consistency.

• The batter comes together quickly, and everything pops into the oven—no frying or oil spatting.

• The warm cinnamon-sugar flavor is a winner.

• These baked doughnuts are also gluten-free and sort of buttery, with the right amount of sweetness.

• They're a perfect treat to celebrate a holiday, special event, or even a regular laid-back weekend morning.

Let's get to baking them, shall we?

Ingredients & a few notes

YOGURT: It gives these doughnuts a super soft consistency. You preferably want a greek or Bulgarian yogurt with no added sugars, thickeners, or artificial sweeteners. Stir back any separated clear liquid that sometimes sits on top of your yogurt, or drain it off.

OAT FLOUR: you can use gluten-free steel-cut oats or gluten-free old-fashioned rolled oats and pulse the oats into a fine meal in an upright blender. You can, of course, buy gluten-free oat flour. But if you are like me and already use steel-cut oats for other recipes, there is no need to purchase any extra flour.  

Note: one cup of old-fashioned oats yields about one cup of flour, whereas you only need half a cup of steel-cut oats to produce about one cup of flour.  

BAKING POWDER: Although most baking powder brands in stores are typically gluten-free, not all are. Hain Pure Foods Featherweight carries a sodium-free, gluten-free baking powder, or a widespread one is Rumford Baking Powder.

How to make them dairy-free

You only need to swap two ingredients to make these gluten-free baked cinnamon doughnuts dairy-free.

I've made them plenty of times with coconut butter or coconut oil instead of butter. You will get a bit of a different flavor, but it works.

Instead of a milk-based yogurt, you can try a coconut milk yogurt alternative or, my favorite, plain almond milk yogurt.

Recipe steps

They're ready by the time you head out of the driveway to buy you some doughnuts—all the more reason to make them at home.

Step 1: Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl.

Step 2: Stir until well combined.

Step 3: Add the egg, melted butter or coconut butter, and yogurt

Step 4: Stir until all lumps have disappeared. The dough will be fairly wet.

Step 5: Spoon and divide the batter equally into the pan.

Step 6: Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Note: Allow the doughnuts to cool for 5 minutes before taking them gently out of the pan.

The best pan to bake doughnuts at home

• I recommend a 9-cavity non-stick doughnut pan for making a standard batch.

• For fuller donuts, use a 6-cavity pan. Fill up the cavities with the same amount of batter all the way to the top to the point of almost bulging.

Note: You might have a slightly different baking time when using a 6-cavity pan. It's maybe off with 5 to 10 minutes more or so (see recipe notes).

Best way to fill up the doughnut pan

If you want to make it super easy and more precise, use a 16 in. decorating bag, cut about one inch off the tip of the bag, and then pipe the dough into each of the 9 cavities of the pan.

Ideally, you want the cavities to be about ⅔ to ¾ full for a standard-size doughnut, and then baking will only take 15 minutes.

But, if you are in a hurry, you can pour the batter into the donut pan straight from a mixing bowl with a spout or spoon it in.

And again, if you love those fuller mega cinnamon baked doughnuts, as shown in the pics below, then use a 6-cavity pan and go over the top but bake for 10 minutes longer.

Cinnamon-coconut sugar topping

Here they are, baked without any toppings. They're deliciously indulgent, as a doughnut should be.

But, they become special when adding a cinnamon-coconut sugar coating.

• All you need to do is mix the cinnamon and coconut sugar in a small blender or coffee grinder until you have a fine powder.

• Then coat the doughnuts with extra melted butter or coconut butter once cooled.

• Then dip them a few times into the sugary powder until the top is nicely coated.

Customize it for birthday parties or special occasions

WITH MARSHMALLOWS: There is nothing more fun for kids than a dessert with marshmallow toppings. And when it comes to special occasions, I have no qualms about dressing up these gluten-free baked doughnuts with flavored marshmallows. 

I love the Smashmallow snackable marshmallows because they come in many different flavors. Plus, they are gluten-free.

Place them in bowls at the table so everyone can pick and choose their favorite! Ours is the Mint chocolate chip.

WITH CHOCOLATE SPRINKLES: Another party favorite is to coat them with melted butter (or coconut butter) and add chocolate sprinkles on top!

Storage

Best to enjoy these fresh from the oven.

Store these gluten-free baked doughnuts in an airtight container for a few days at room temperature.

Although optional, you can quickly warm them up for a few seconds in the microwave before eating.

More gluten-free baking inspiration

Enjoy!

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Have questions? Simply comment below or message me. If you make this recipe, please leave a comment and a starred review below. Thank you!

📖 Recipe

This post was originally published in April 2017 and has been updated with an updated recipe, new pictures, and new information.