Gluten-Free Baked Donuts with Cinnamon Sugar

Gluten-free baked donuts are made with oat flour and yogurt, then dipped in cinnamon sugar. They're baked instead of fried, with a soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture, and ready in about 35 minutes. Make them dairy-free with coconut oil and a plant-based yogurt.

Like my mini Italian donuts (zeppole), these gluten-free baked donuts are a real treat, but they're even easier to make and perfect when you're on a gluten-free diet. Each bite is deliciously soft, baked just right to dunk into your favorite hot beverage. I love them with a cinnamon-and-coconut-sugar topping instead of a donut glaze. Enjoy them on a lazy weekend morning or make them for special celebrations.

Baking gluten-free for breakfast? You might also like my Easy Gluten-Free Applesauce Cake or Healthy Oat Pumpkin Muffins With Dates.

Ingredients & Notes

• Gluten-free oat flour: Buy it, or pulse gluten-free steel-cut oats or gluten-free old-fashioned rolled oats into a fine meal in an upright blender. Use any extra flour to make these oat flour waffles or healthy oat flour pancakes.
• Fine-shredded coconut: Adds lovely little tidbits of coconut throughout.
• Coconut sugar: Brown sugar is a great alternative.
• Ground cinnamon: Goes in both the batter and the topping.
• Gluten-free baking powder: Although most baking powder brands are typically gluten-free, not all are. Hain Pure Foods Featherweight is sodium-free and gluten-free, or a widespread one is Rumford Baking Powder.
• Egg: One large egg, beaten.
• Butter: Pure butter, melted, plus more for the pan and topping.
• Yogurt: Gives these doughnuts a super soft consistency. Choose Greek or Bulgarian yogurt with no added sugars, thickeners, or artificial sweeteners. Stir back any separated clear liquid on top, or drain it off. Use the leftovers to make my Almond Flour Yogurt Cake!

Note: To make these dairy-free, use coconut butter or coconut oil instead of butter. You'll get a slightly different flavor, but it works. Instead of milk-based yogurt, try a coconut milk yogurt or, my favorite, plain almond milk yogurt.

How To Make Gluten-Free Baked Cinnamon Donuts

These gluten-free baked donuts are ready by the time you head out of the driveway to buy yourself some-all the more reason to make them at home.

Step 1 - Add the Dry Ingredients: Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Add all the dry ingredients to a large bowl.

Step 2 - Combine: Stir until well combined. A whisk helps loosen any sugar lumps.

Step 3 - Add the Wet Ingredients: Add the egg, melted butter or coconut oil, and yogurt to the dry ingredients.

Step 4 - Mix the Batter: Stir until all lumps have disappeared. The batter will be fairly wet.

Step 5 - Fill the Pan: Lightly coat the donut pan with butter or coconut butter. Pour or pipe the batter equally into the cavities.

Step 6 - Bake: Bake until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the donuts cool for 5 minutes before gently removing them from the pan.

Step 7 - Coat the Tops: While they cool, blend the cinnamon and coconut sugar into a fine powder in a small blender or coffee grinder. Lightly coat the tops of the donuts with melted butter or coconut oil and dip them into the cinnamon-sugar powder.

Step 8 - Dip Again: Dip them a few times until the tops are nicely coated.

Make A Donut Bar

For special celebrations or birthdays, make a donut bar and let everyone choose their toppings, like gummy bears or chocolate chips on a drizzle of maple syrup or salted caramel sauce.

• Add marshmallows: Nothing is more fun for kids than a dessert with marshmallow toppings. I love Smashmallow snackable marshmallows because they come in many flavors, and they're gluten-free. Place them in bowls at the table so everyone can pick their favorite. Ours is the mint chocolate chip.
• Chocolate chips or sprinkles: Another party favorite is to coat them with melted butter (or coconut butter) and add chocolate sprinkles on top!

Storage

These are best enjoyed fresh from the oven. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. If you like, warm them up for a few seconds in the microwave before eating.

Recipe FAQs

More Gluten-Free Baked Goods

Made this? Tell me how it went in the comments and leave a star rating below. I love to hear from you. And don't forget to subscribe to my monthly newsletter! - Mariska