Wonderfully spiced, moist and fluffy, these Vegan Apple Cider Donuts are baked instead of fried and infused with warm fall flavors. A perfect Fall treat and easy enough to make any day of the week. Friends and family will love them!
These sweet fall-flavored Vegan Apple Cider Donuts are SO scrumptious! Baked to perfection, they’re soft and fluffy with warm apple flavors throughout. It’s like eating an apple pie or apple crisp in donut-form!
The ingredients in this donut recipe are very straight forward. The only special item you need is a donut pan! This tool will form and shape perfect donuts every time.
Enjoy these vegan apple donuts all year long or try my cinnamon sugar donuts instead.
Ingredients needed (with substitutions)
- Whole wheat pastry flour – All purpose flour or a gluten free mix also work well!
- Granulated sugar – Or try coconut sugar.
- Baking powder – To fluff up the donuts!
- Salt
- Ground cinnamon – For delicious fall flavors. Feel free to add in nutmeg, ginger, or cardamom as well.
- Apple cider – Try to use quality organic apple cider if possible for the best flavor.
- Soy milk – Or use almond, hemp, or coconut milk.
- Applesauce – Unsweetened is best, or you can use apple butter instead. It can also be substituted for an extra 3 tablespoons of melted vegan butter.
- Vegan butter – If you don’t have any butter at home, make your own or use coconut oil instead.
How to make vegan apple cider donuts
- Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon together in a large bowl.
- Next, pour in the apple cider, soy milk, applesauce, and melted vegan butter/coconut oil.
- Mix well with a large spoon making sure not to over mix.
- Spoon the batter into the donut pan, filling each circle 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake the donuts for 8 to 10 minutes or until the edges are a light golden brown. While they bake, make the cinnamon sugar topping: Stir together the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl, then melt the coconut oil or butter in a separate bowl.
- Leave the donuts to cool in the pan for 2 minutes when they’re done, then let them cool completely on a cooling rack. Brush each donut with some coconut oil or butter on all sides, then dip them in the cinnamon sugar to coat.
Turn them into muffins
If you don’t have a donut pan, you can make these in a regular muffin pan. Make the apple cider muffins the same way, except spoon the dough ¾ of the way into a greased muffin tin instead. Bake them for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Can they be made gluten free?
Yes! Just swap the whole wheat pastry flour for a gluten free mix instead. Oat flour might work as well, but I haven’t tested it.
Can they be made without oil?
The vegan donuts can be made without oil by swapping the coconut oil/vegan butter for applesauce. When the donuts are done baking, don’t brush them with melted butter or oil and dip them in the sugar coating while they’re still warm. It will still stick to the donut very well.
Helpful recipe tips
- If your soy milk is cold, warm it in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute. You don’t want it to be cold or else it will harden the coconut oil in the batter.
- A piping bag with a large tip will come in handy to pipe the dough evenly into each donut cavity. Or just spoon it in.
- If a cinnamon sugar topping isn’t your thing, make a simple vanilla sugar glaze like in my Glazed Chocolate Donut recipe.
How to store leftover donuts
The donuts are best served right away, or at least the same day, because the butter or coconut oil will soak into the pastry and soften the outside. If you have leftovers, keep them in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
You can also freeze the plain baked donuts for up to 1 month by placing them in a plastic bag or sealed container. Leave them to defrost in the fridge or room temperature for a few hours.
More sweet recipes for Fall
Try any of these warm and tasty recipes when the chilly weather hits.
Vegan Apple Cider Donuts
Ingredients
Donuts
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or white flour)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup apple cider
- 1/4 cup soy milk (or other non-dairy milk)
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tablespoons melted vegan butter or coconut oil
Topping
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons melted vegan butter or coconut oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and spray a donut pan (or two if you have it) with non stick spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
- Pour in the apple cider, soy milk, applesauce and melted vegan butter or coconut oil. Mix well with a large spoon to combine, but do not over mix.
- Spoon the batter into the donut pan, or use a piping bag with large tip to pipe it evenly into each donut cavity, filling about 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden brown and they spring back when lightly pressed.
- Cool in the pan for about 2 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack. Continue with all of the remaining batter.
- While they are baking, make the topping: Stir together the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl, then melt the vegan butter or coconut oil in a separate bowl.
- Brush each donut with a little vegan butter or coconut oil on all sides, then dip into the sugar-cinnamon mixture to coat well. You could also just brush the top and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar instead of coating the entire donut.
- Enjoy! They are best served right away but can be kept in an airtight container for 2 days.
Notes
- Gluten free: I haven't tested it, but a gluten free flour mix should work quite well here. Oat flour may work, or spelt flour.
- Oil free: In the batter, sub more applesauce for oil, and skip the butter/oil on the coating. Instead just coat in cinnamon sugar.
- May sub coconut sugar for regular sugar if needed.
- If you don't have applesauce, you may sub apple butter, non-dairy yogurt or even just more vegan butter/coconut oil.
Nutrition
I subbed whole wheat pastry flour for white pastry flour and they turned out so fluffy. I used coconut sugar and they were not so sweet but my son still loved them. Thanks for your recipe. I think I will make them as muffins next time
I was wondering do you think instead of baking I could deep fry them? I remember making donuts as a kid and we would usually deep fry but wasn’t sure if the dough would fall apart.
I’m not sure if that would work well here, but maybe? I know, there is nothing quite like a deep fried donut.
Do you think pumpkin puree would be a good substitute for apple sauce? Seems like a similar texture/moisture content.
Also I can only find whole wheat flour, not whole wheat pastry flour. I wonder if they will still be as dense as AP flour or if they will be fluffier.
Sure, that will work. Whole wheat flour will make them quite dense and wheaty. All purpose flour would be better.
These were INCREDIBLE! Never made donuts before but wow…. they are my new obsession! Perfectly moist and just sweet enough! Using salted butter to stick the cinnamon sugar at the end gave it a perfect slightly salty finish!
Hi Sophie. I am so glad you decided to make some donuts, and that you loved them! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review! I appreciate you using my recipes! Happy cooking!
I love these. Have you ever tried making a loaf cake with the mix?
I haven’t tried it, no, but it might work well. Thanks!
I followed this recipe exactly the way it is written. They took 12 minutes to cook and the texture was off. They looked cooked and soft, but my son said they turn to a gluey texture when he was eating them. I will not make them again.
I’m sorry to hear that Elizabeth! I’m guessing they were not baked for long enough if they tasted uncooked. Donut pan sizes vary (as do oven temperatures) so they probably just needed a bit longer in the oven, and then a little time to cool.
I just made these again tonight. I used 3 different types of donut pans: dark metal, silver nonstick and silicone. Dark metal took 12 minutes. Silver nonstick took 15 and silicone took between 18-20 minutes. The key is leaving them in until they begin to tan on top.
Every oven is different. Things like how long you leave the door open when placing the trays inside, the room temperature, how cool your pans are when placed into the oven will all alter the time needed to bake completely.
I made the gluten free version of these donuts and they were delicious. I used the following flour blend: ½ cup almond flour, ½ cup sorghum flour, ¼ cup potato starch and ¼ cup arrow root powder. I used ½ teaspoon of xanthan gum as a binding agent because it helps keep gf baked goods from crumbling. GF flour absorbs more liquid that wheat based flour. So I used ¼ cup of agave and ¼ cup of granulated sugar as my sweeteners. I also added 1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg and cloves (like Kendra suggested in her comment from 9/28/22). After I mixed all of the ingredients, I let the batter rest for 30 minutes allowing it to hydrate and soften. I baked the donuts in a gas oven at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. They were firm and delicious. I didn’t add the toppings because the donuts were sweet enough for me without it.
Hi Lynnie. I’m thrilled that the donuts turned wonderful for you! Thanks for sharing your baking experience and tips, and your great review! Wishing you happy cooking!
I love this recipe! I also tried oat flour, I did a 1.25:1 ratio and they didn’t turn out great. They were kind of falling apart, they need more of a binder. So just be aware that if you wanna make them gf, it will take some finessing.
Wow – just made these for the family home for the xmas holidays and everyone loved them. Light, tasty and quick to make. A keeper recipe!!
These are very tasty but for me this recipe only made 9 small-medium donuts. Again delicious and easy enough but idk how you got 12 out of this batter.
The taste of these donuts was amazing, and they were super easy to make, but I wish they were a little bit lighter and fluffier. I felt like I cooked them long enough, but they were very dense and overly moist. Any advice?
Be careful when mixing the dough! Overmixing will cause them to be dense or heavy. Alternatively, try making them with all purpose flour instead of whole wheat. Hope this helps!
I used APF, and thought I was really careful not to over mix. I’ll have to give it another try and see how it goes. 🤷🏻♀️
Do I need to spray with cooking oil if I have a nonstick pan?
I have a nonstick pan as well but I still always spray it with oil. Stuck donuts in the pan are the worst. 🙂
My only note is I use apple cider I reduced by a little more than half to intensify the flavor a little. I def reccomend the whole wheat pastry flour. Makes them come out so fluffy. Def were denser when I tried with AP. One of my fav donut recipies!
Going to an Orchard now for apple cider. My go to milk is Oatly. I should think that would work fine. Has any one tried the recipe with oat milk? I will post my review when they come out of the oven!
Sounds so fun, Robin! Oat milk will work fine. Look forward to your feedback! Happy baking!
I Love this recipe and make them especially in the fall. I originally made them for an October baby shower in 2021. Easy to make and sooo delicious! Many thanks, Nora!!
You are welcome, Kaye! I love these as well! Perfect for fall! Thanks for your wonderful review and feedback!
just got a donut mold as a gift and these were the perfect first use for it, very nice texture and flavor, not to mention easy to make!
How terrific! I’m thrilled the donuts turned out great for you! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review! Lots of happy baking with your new donut mold!
I made these once per recipe, and I wanted again but lacked apple cider….It’s hard to find organic here and it’s pretty expensive so we consumed it all over the holidays. So, I had apple juice i squeezed myself after pureeing in Vitamix…with a nut bag. If you do this add some lemon! Any way, it was great for cooking oatmeal but I wanted these donuts again! Still delicious…i added some clove, nutmeg and allspice to the cinnamon. Delish!!
Thank you
What kind of apple cider did you use? I’m based in New Zealand and am wanting to make sure you don’t mean apple cider vinegar?
Jasper. NOT vinegar, just apple cider.
Can you share where you got your donut pan? I’ve only been able to find mini ones.
I picked it up at Target actually. You can also get them on Amazon and I’m sure other places. It makes pretty average sized donuts, not huge but definitely not mini.
Amazing! Everyone in my family loved them 🙂
Are these freezer friendly??? Can they be thawed then coated with the cinnamon sugar??
Hi AnneMarie. You got it! Yes, they can be frozen though they are better fresh. As you indicate, if you freeze them, leave off the coating until ready to eat.
I don’t have a donut pan can I make muffins instead? What temp and how long?
Hi Carole. You can make as muffins! You’ll find details about that in the recipe post. 🙂
My daughter just suggested we make these again. We use Bob’s 1 to 1 GF flour and creamy oat milk and they are amazing. I’ve made them many times now and they are a favorite with everyone!
Hi Korie. I’m thrilled everyone is loving the donuts! Thanks for your awesome review and feedback! They are fabulous fall treat!
These donuts are the epitome of fall and family gatherings. I’ve made them a couple of times and they are fantastic. This last time I dipped them in more cider instead of butter before coating them in cinnamon sugar; it took them to the next level and really brought out the cider flavor.
Hi! I only have a mini donut pan. Do you think this recipe would work? Thanks!
I have not tried this, however this recipe could work for mini donuts. Keep an eye one them so they don’t burn!
Awesome … fingers crossed lol Ty!
Can confirm that they work great as mini donuts! I baked them for roughly the same amount of time as listed in the recipe 🙂
Hi! I’m wondering if AP flour would work as well? Thank you!
Yes, AP flour will work just as well. Happy baking!
These are exquisite, yet so simple to make! Very impressive! I added 1/8 teaspoon of both nutmeg and cloves to round out the fall spices, and they smelled so good baking! Thank you for another wonderful recipe!
Hi Kendra. What a lovely way to describe the donuts! I’m glad you loved them! Your spice additions sound delicious! Thanks for sharing your fantastic review!