A few years ago, I attended a blogging conference in Northern California with some of my local friends. We carpooled down from Sacramento for the two-hour drive, and we all reserved rooms at the same hotels that were connected to the convention center.
After the first full day of sitting in on speaker sessions and wandering around the Expo Hall, we walked a few blocks away to a reputable restaurant for dinner. Although the entrées tasted fantastic, full of flavor and herbs and spices, almost none of us polished off our entire plate…
Because we passed by a fancy gourmet donut shop on our way over, and we all wanted to save room for dessert!
As soon as we pulled open the front door, this donut store immediately stood out compared the traditional mom-and-pop or Krispy Kreme shops located near our houses back home. Their glass display shelves were full of indulgent, over-the-top flavors with clever names!
♡ Kookie Monsters… Cake-style donuts topped with vanilla glaze, huge Oreo chunks, blue icing drizzle, and showered with powdered sugar.
♡ Cereal Killers… Cake-style donuts topped with vanilla glaze, Cap’n Crunch Berries cereal, and red icing drizzle.
♡ Mellow Submarines… Old-fashioned donuts topped with vanilla glaze, Rice Krispie cereal, and chocolate drizzle.
Plus plenty of other delicious options that almost seemed tame in comparison… Like S’mores, Elvis, German Chocolate Cake, and Rocky Road.
Just about everyone in our group of bloggers ended up choosing a different flavor, and we gladly cut them up to share around the table so we could each sample all of the sweet treats. But… They definitely counted as dessert—not breakfast food!
I haven’t yet been back to that incredible donut store, but once I bought my donut pans for baking, I haven’t felt the urge to… Because I can make completely guilt-free donuts at home, like these Healthy Banana Donuts with Chocolate Glaze!
Although not nearly as creative as the donut store’s flavor names, these healthier homemade donuts are just as flavorful and baked (not fried!). Plus they contain no eggs, refined flour or sugar, which means no post-breakfast sugar crashes! And with just 41 calories each… I never feel bad reaching for a second or third! ?
So let’s talk about how to make these healthy baked donuts!
You’ll start with white whole wheat flour (like this… or gluten-free if you prefer!) and a tiny bit of cinnamon and nutmeg. When I first started baking donuts at home, I came across a recipe that included nutmeg because it made the baked versions taste closer to the traditional cake-style fried donuts. I don’t know how that spice magic works, but it’s totally true!
Then you’ll need very ripe bananas! See the ones in my photo above? That’s the minimum amount of brown spots I recommend! I actually prefer mine riper than that, where they look more brown than yellow. Those extra ripe bananas contain more natural sweetness, which makes your baked banana goodies taste better!
The bananas actually play four roles in these donuts! (1) Flavor {pretty obvious!}… (2) Egg replacer {aka the batter is perfectly safe to taste test!}… (3) Provide lots of moisture {which means you only need ½ tablespoon of butter or coconut oil!}… (4) Natural sweetness {which is why the riper ones are better—they’re sweeter than their pure yellow friends!}.
To help boost the sweetness in your donuts, you’ll also use one of my favorite ingredients, vanilla stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that contains nothing artificial or refined (aka it’s clean-eating friendly!). This is the kind I use because I love its warm flavor. You can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, but I buy mine online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
Of course, you can’t make donuts without donut pans! These are the donut pans that I own. Because I love them so much, I actually bought four of them! Since they’re silicone, they’re a bit flimsy, so I just set them on a cookie sheet before sliding them into the oven. Super simple—and the donuts easily pop out of the pan and always look so cute!
Now for the glaze! It’s even easier to make than the donuts. Just mix together cocoa powder (like this!), milk, vanilla extract, and a little more vanilla stevia (like this!). That’s it!
When dipping donuts in the glaze, I actually invert them! So the side that was touching the donut pan is the side I dip into the glaze. It usually looks a smoother and nicer than the side that was facing up in the oven!
You can leave them plain, like I did… Or add sprinkles… Or chocolate chips… Or shredded coconut… Or crushed peanuts… The sky’s the limit! ?? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your donuts and feature them in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Healthy Banana Donuts with Chocolate Glaze | | Print |
- for the donuts
- 2 cups (240g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp (7g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla stevia
- 1 cup (260g) mashed banana
- ¾ cup (180mL) unsweetened cashew milk
- for the glaze
- ¼ cup (20g) unsweetened cocoa powder (measured like this)
- 3 ½ tbsp (52mL) unsweetened cashew milk
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- scant ¼ tsp vanilla stevia, or adjusted to taste
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat 28 mini donut cups with nonstick cooking spray.
- To prepare the donuts, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, vanilla extract, and vanilla stevia. Stir in the mashed banana. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 4 equal parts.)
- Transfer the batter to a large zip-topped plastic bag, and cut off one corner, Pipe the batter into the prepared donut cups. Bake at 350°F for 12-15 minutes or until the tops are firm to the touch. Cool in the muffin cups for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Just before serving, prepare the glaze by stirring together the cocoa powder, milk, vanilla extract, and vanilla stevia. Dip each donut into the glaze, and place back onto the wire racks or a plate to let the glaze set.
Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
I highly recommend using the vanilla stevia! It’s my favorite sweetener, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too. (I buy it online here because that's the cheapest price I've found!) If you prefer not to use the vanilla stevia in the donut batter, 8-12 tablespoons of pure maple syrup, honey, or agave may be substituted. If using this substitution, reduce the cashew milk to ¼ cup (60mL) in the batter. The baking time may change. If you prefer not to use the vanilla stevia in the glaze, 2 tablespoons of pure maple syrup, honey, or agave may be substituted. If using this substitution, reduce the cashew milk to 1 ½ tablespoons (22mL) in the glaze.
You’ll need about 2 large bananas to equal 1 cup of mashed banana. However, measure by cups or weight—NOT by bananas! Not all “large” bananas are the exact same size, so measuring by cups or weight will guarantee the correct result.
Any milk may be substituted in place of the unsweetened cashew milk.
These are the donut pans that I use! They’re made of silicone and a little flimsy, so I just set them on top of a large cookie sheet to bake.
When dipping in the glaze, I put the glaze on the side of the donut that was touching the donut pan (so the bottoms!). It’s typically smoother than the top side, so the glaze looks a little prettier!
If you prefer, this recipe will yield 12 standard sized donuts. The baking temperature remains the same. Begin checking on them after about 18 minutes. The donuts will be done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the tops feel firm to the touch.
Don’t own a mini or standard-sized donut pan? Not to worry! You can use mini muffin pans (you’ll get 28 mini muffins) or a standard-sized muffin pan (you’ll get 12 muffins).
{gluten-free, vegan, clean eating, low fat, low sugar}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Donuts with Chocolate Glaze
♡ Healthy Dark Chocolate Donuts with Peanut Butter Glaze
♡ Healthy Gingerbread Donuts with Maple Glaze
♡ Healthier Eggnog Donuts Holes
♡ Healthier Snickerdoodle Donuts Holes
♡ Healthier Blueberry Almond Donut Holes
The donuts look so delicious! Thank you for the recipe! I will try it asap!
I can’t wait to hear what you think of these donuts Valeria! 🙂
Hi!!
What is Xanthan gum? Would you please show the picture of it in your next mail, if you don’t mind? What could be the other alternatives if Xanthan gum is not available?
Thank you
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Indira! I’ve actually included a link to xanthan gum already in the Notes section. (My links are pink in color, so just click on the pink “xanthan gum” text to see what it is!) You can omit the xanthan gum, if you can’t find it near you or order it online at the link I’ve provided, but your donuts may collapse some while cooling. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these donuts!
Hi Amy! I see someone asking about xanthan gum but I do not see it in the recipe?
I’m honored that you’d like to try making this recipe, Sarah! If you look in the Notes section (located directly underneath the Instructions!), xanthan gum is included in my recommended gluten-free flour blend. I know it can be easy to miss that section! 😉 If you’re using white whole wheat flour, rather than the gluten-free option, then you’re correct — you don’t need xanthan gum to make this recipe. 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think of these donuts if you try making them!
Excited to try yet not sure which donut mold pan to buy. Ive found an 8 slot pan and an 18 slot pan. Which size is right for this recipe?? Also can i use my frozen bananas for the recipe?? Thanks Liz
I link to the exact donut pans that I use in the recipe Liz! Those are the ones I recommend. 🙂 I haven’t tried using frozen bananas in this recipe, but if you’ve been able to use frozen bananas to make banana bread, then I’m guessing they should work in this recipe too. I can’t wait to hear what you think of these donuts!
Hi, Ami!
Thank you for the perfect recipe! My daughter is very fond of donuts. She really liked your recipe.
Milen
Weedit.photos
I’m so glad you and your daughter enjoyed these donuts Milen! 🙂
Merry Christmas Amy to you and your whole family …
We are so excited to finally get to baked the donuts which I did the standard because last night my huge family ( all nine siblings plus spouses plus children ) which ended up about 30 at my brother’s house , my secret Santa got me what I’ve been dreaming about : bakeware and two of them are my silicone donut pans and metal donut twists..
I made the standard size which ending up making 7 which is no big deal but would you know the nutritional value please ..
I’ll send you pictures right now and god bless
Lydia from Kingwood, Texas
Thank you SO much for sending me your donut pictures, Lydia! That really made my day! 🙂 What a sweet secret Santa you had this year! This is the free nutrition calculator that I use, if you’d like to figure out the info for your seven larger donuts. Merry Christmas to you and your family! ??
Hi are these mini donuts or standard size? In the nutrition page, it says serving size is 1 mini donut. Im confused because it seemed that what you made from the photos are regular sized.
Thanks for your help. I cant wait to try it.
Cris
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Cris! I share a link to the exact donut baking pan that I use in the recipe, which is classified as a mini muffin pan. The donuts are just under 2.5″ in diameter. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these donuts if you try them!
Hi!the doughnuts were delicios,but i would like to ask if honey is going to rise calories…and if so…how much?thank you:))
I’m so glad you loved these donuts, Emiliana! If you substitute honey for the vanilla stevia, then the calories will definitely increase. This is the free nutrition calculator that I use, if you’d like to know by how much! 🙂
Hi! I was wondering if the coconut oil actually does something to the batter? It’s only half a tablespoon… would you say oil (or any other fat) really contributes to the overall taste when it’s that small of an amount?
The coconut oil doesn’t really contribute to the flavor because it’s such a small amount, but it actually makes a big difference in the texture! Without it, the donuts will be tough and gummy. 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try them Chloe!
Hi, I was just wondering- if one has a banana allergy, would we be able to substitute the bananas with applesauce?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Yashvi! I haven’t personally tried that substitution, so I’m not sure how it’ll turn out and don’t want to lead you astray. However, I do have a pumpkin version here that doesn’t include bananas, if that’s of interest! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you decide to try that version or applesauce in this one!
Hi Amy! My awesome girlfriend really wants to make these but she only has regular stevia, not vanilla stevia. Will it matter for the recipe? She really needs to know as soon as possible, so we’d love to hear from you. Thanks so much, Amy!
I’m honored that you and your girlfriend would like to try making these donuts, Rohan! If it’s the same brand as the one that I used, just the original flavor (rather than vanilla), then that’s fine to use as a 1-for-1 substitute. No modifications necessary! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these!