Soft apple-flavored donuts that only require 3 ingredients. These donuts don’t contain any eggs, milk or dairy. They also don’t require any frying. They are an easy one-bowl recipe that can be made ahead of time.
These baked apple donuts are so easy to whip up. They can be made into individual donut holes or baked in a donut pan for a classic donut ring shape.
Ingredients
- Applesauce
- Self-rising flour
- Oil
Applesauce: This recipe uses sweetened cinnamon applesauce. You can also use regular sweetened applesauce without cinnamon but I like how the cinnamon adds a little more flavor to the donuts.
Self-rising flour: Self-rising flour is flour that is already premixed with baking powder and salt. I like using self-rising flour in my recipes whenever possible because it saves a few extra steps. You can also easily make your own self-rising flour by combining all purpose flour, baking powder and salt.
Oil: Oil will help give these donuts a tender soft crumb. I recommend using canola oil because it has a neutral flavor.
How to Make Baked Apple Donuts
- The applesauce and oil are first mixed together. The flour is then mixed in.
- Scoop the dough into a greased mini muffin pan (or into a donut pan).
- Bake for about 20 minutes or until done.
- When donuts are cooled, you can roll them in cinnamon sugar. The donuts are lightly sweet by themselves so you can also leave them plain.
More Apple Donut Recipes
3 Ingredient Apple Donuts
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (192 g) sweetened cinnamon applesauce see note
- 2 tbsp (1 fl oz/30 ml) canola oil
- 1 cup (128 g) self-rising flour see note before starting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease 12 cavities of a mini muffin pan.
- In a large bowl, mix together applesauce and oil. Add in the flour and fold it in with a spatula until no flour lumps remain.
- Use a 1.5 tbsp cookie scoop to scoop the batter and release it into your prepared mini muffin pan.
- Place muffin pan in the oven and bake donuts for about 20 minutes or until done. Let donuts cool fully before eating. If desired, you can coat the donuts in cinnamon sugar before serving. See notes section for the optional cinnamon sugar coating I used. Store uneaten donuts in the fridge or freezer.
Notes
- Applesauce: Sweetened applesauce will vary on its level of sweetness depending on the brand. I do recommend using a brand that uses more sugar because there is no other added sugar in this recipe. If you choose an applesauce brand with low sugar then your donuts may not be sweet enough. I used Mott's cinnamon applesauce. You can also use applesauce without cinnamon.
- Self-rising flour amount. There are 2 main kinds of self-rising flour sold in the US. One that is a lower protein (2 grams per 1/4 cup serving) flour and one that has a regular amount of protein (3 grams per 1/4 cup (30g) serving). The amount of protein affects how much liquid is absorbed. For this recipe, I tested it with Gold Medal self-rising flour (regular amount of protein). Please use a self-rising flour with a regular amount of protein (3 grams per 1/4 cup), or make your own self-rising flour with the recipe below.
- Homemade self-rising flour: Whisk together 1 cup all purpose flour, 1.5 teaspoons baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Make sure your all purpose flour has a regular amount of protein (3 grams per 1/4 cup). Most brands in the US contain this amount but there are some brands with higher protein (4 grams per 1/4 cup) such as King Arthur Flour and Bob's Red Mill.
- I made these with Gold Medal self-rising flour (Amazon | Walmart)* and Mott's Cinnamon Applesauce (Amazon | Walmart | Target)*.
- I used a Wilton mini muffin pan.*
- *These product links are affiliate links. This means I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
- Optional Cinnamon Sugar Coating: For the coating, I mixed 2 (heaping) tbsp sugar + 1/2 tsp cinnamon and put it into a Ziploc bag. You can also use 2 tablespoons of cinnamon sugar mix (like McCormick's cinnamon sugar). Put a few donut holes in the bag, seal the bag, and shake the donuts until they are coated in cinnamon sugar. Repeat the process with the remaining donuts. I find that the donuts coat better if you allow them to fully cool. I baked mine the night before and coated them in the morning before serving.
- Estimated nutrition does not include the cinnamon sugar coating.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
Can this be made with gluten free all purpose flour? If so, are the measurements the same? Thanks!
We haven’t tested the recipe with gluten free flour but if you do try it, please let us know how it turned out!
Excellent
Thank you! We’re glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Hi! Thank you for such an easy, tasty looking recipe. I appreciate all the recipes you share with us in your emails. Do you have any suggestions for modifying this recipe for gluten-free munching? Thank you very much! Take care.
Hello! We are glad you are enjoying the recipes! We haven’t tested this recipe with gluten free flour but if you do try it, please let us know how it turned out!