Doughnut and healthy. Did you ever think you’d see that in the same sentence? Probably not! If you’ve joined the Pinterest craze, you may have seen the ‘original’ versions to this recipe floating around. I used the King Arthur Flour recipe and modified it as I wanted it to be gluten-free, lower fat and lower sugar 😉
They are really, really good. The secret is definitely the nutmeg. It makes it taste like a doughnut! Hubby loves them, and I won’t disclose how many he’s eaten already, but I will tell you the dozen muffins will be gone in the next day! What better way to sneak in whole grain oats? The kids will LOVE these too.
I did two versions, as you can see. Glazed and cinnamon sugar coated. Which is your favorite?
I didn’t add whey protein in this to boost the protein as I usually do, although I plan on trying it soon. Feel free to experiment and report back if you try any modifications. Since I wanted them to be moist and as doughnut-like as possible, I omitted it. But, if you want to add whey protein, my suggested ratio would be to use 2 1/2 cups oat flour and 2 scoops (1/2 cup) of vanilla whey protein. But like I said, I haven’t tested it yet, so I can’t guarantee you’ll get as delicious of a result.
The toppings I’ve left as “optional” and thus, aren’t included in the nutrition. But I’ll list how I did the options. Obviously, the stevia/cinnamon combo will be the lowest calorie add-on.
Cinnamon/Sugar
I ran out of Truvia, which would work well as a topping mixed with cinnamon as Truvia (stevia blend) is very granular like regular sugar. Other stevia tends to be powdery. I had some erythritol on hand (very granular, but not very sweet. Its actually the other ingredient besides stevia in Truvia), so I mixed about 3 tablespoons of erythritol with a couple packets of stevia and a dash of cinnamon. I brushed the tops of the warm muffins with melted Earth Balance (or butter) and sprinkled the ‘sugar’/cinnamon mixture on top. This would be a virtually calorie-free add-on.
Glazed
If you’re a ‘glazed’ doughnut fan, you can mix a tablespoon of melted butter, coconut oil or Earth Balance, 3/4 cup powdered sugar, 1 tsp vanilla and 1 tablespoon of water. Mix into a glaze and dunk the warm muffin tops in it. For a sugar-free glaze, blend your favorite sugar substitute with cornstarch, and use that as your ‘powdered sugar’.
I did 6 with the Cinnamon Sugar and 6 with Glazed and there will still some leftover topping for each.
- ¼ cup butter (or vegan margarine for dairy-free)
- ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ½ cup Krisda stevia baking formula (or any stevia/sugar substitute meant for baking, or 13-14 packets stevia)
- ⅓ cup sucanat or coconut palm sugar (unprocessed brown sugar)
- 1 egg
- 2 egg whites (or ¼ cup carton egg whites)
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- ¾ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups oat flour (grind up quick oats or old fashioned oats into a fine flour with your food processor or blender)
- 1 cup milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Spray a muffin tin with oil, or use paper cups, or silicone muffin cups
- In a medium sized bowl, mix together butter (or vegan margarine), applesauce, stevia, sucanat (I used an electric mixer/egg beater) and beat together until smooth.
- Add the egg and egg whites and beat some more until combined.
- Stir in the baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, salt and vanilla with a spoon into the butter/sugar mixture.
- Stir in the oat flour, alternating with the milk, stirring well after each addition.
- Spoon the batter into the muffin tins and bake for 14-15 minutes, until they are a pale golden color and a toothpick comes out clean.
- Serve warm, or cool on a rack.
- Eat them plain, or add the Cinnamon/Sugar or Glaze them 🙂
- Store in an airtight container. They'll last a few days at room temp, longer in the fridge. They freeze well too.