These baked carrot cake donuts are the perfect easy-to-make Easter treat that both kids and grown-ups will love- Totally guilt-free and low fat!

These healthy carrot cake donuts make such a great Easter dessert for both grown-ups and kids!

Conveniently low fat (only 2 tablespoons of light olive oil required!) and dairy-free these easy baked donuts are such a breeze to make.

They require just requiring only 10 min preparation and about 15 minutes in the oven.

All you have to do is mix dry ingredients in one bowl, the wet ones in another bowl, mix everything together, divide the batter among the donuts pan and bake.

If you haven't got a donut baking tin yet, I recommend you get a silicone one, it makes it so much easier to get the donuts out once they're baked. 

They bake in about 15 minutes, then make sure to cool them completely before removing them from the molds.

INGREDIENT TIPS

To make these carrot cake donuts you'll need less than 10 ingredients:

• Flour: Just regular flour, you may add an extra amount of almond flour if you like.
• Baking powder: you can use bakind powder and baking soda or just baking powder.
• Spices: A mix of cinnamon and nutmeg give a nice layer of flavour to these baked donuts.
• Sugar: I like to use demerara sugar, but caster sugar would work just fine.
• Eggs: Go for medium-sized eggs.
• Extra-virgin olive oil: Use a light olive oil with a subtle flavour.
• Orange: The juice and zest of one orange add an amazing citrusy note, don't skip it!
• Carrots: Finely grate your carrots using the attachment on your food processor or a simple grater.
• Walnuts: You can easily substitute them with pecan nuts or toasted almonds if you prefer.

DECORATION

These simple baked donuts don't really need any decorations.

However, if you want to impress your guests, here are a few topping options:

• Simple glaze: Made with confectioner's sugar and orange juice.
• Mascarpone frosting: Made with mascarpone cheese, this is my favorite cake frosting and works really well if you want your donuts super rich and decadent
• Ricotta frosting: Made with ricotta cheese, this lighter frosting is perfect if you want to keep your baked donuts on the healthier side.
• Yogurt: To make dairy-free baked donuts use a dairy-free thick yogurt instead of ricotta cheese for the frosting.

Make sure you leave the frosting until the last minute to preserve the freshness of the cream.

Top your baked donuts with chopped walnuts and they’re pretty much ready to be devoured!

These baked carrot cake donuts would make such a special addition to a weekend breakfast or celebration.

If you're looking for a healthy Easter dessert, these delicious veggie-packed baked donuts definitely need to be on your to-bake list!

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Recipe

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Carrot Cake Donuts

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These baked carrot cake donuts are the perfect easy-to-make Easter treat that both kids and grown-ups will love- Totally guilt-free and low fat!

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time15 minutes mins

Total Time25 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Dairy-free

Serving: 10

Calories: 285kcal

Author: Andrea Soranidis

Ingredients

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For the ricotta or dairy-free yogurt cream frosting:

• 200 g fresh ricotta cheese, or dairy-free Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon runny honey
• 1 teaspoon orange zest
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

For the baked donuts:

• 180 g all-purpose flour, sifted
• 40 g almond flour, optional, substitute with same amount of all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• a pinch grated nutmeg
• a pinch of sea salt
• 100 g demerara sugar
• 4 medium free-range eggs
• 2 tablespoon light extra-virgin olive oil
• juice of 1 orange
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 300 g finely grated carrots + extra for decorating
• 4 tablespoon chopped walnuts + extra for decorating

MetricUS Customary

Instructions

For the frosting:

• Put the ricotta in a cheesecloth inside a sieve over a bowl, and tie up the cloth in a bundle. Store in the fridge for 2 hours to drain.
• In a large bowl, whisk together drained ricotta, honey, orange zest and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the baked donuts:

• Preheat oven to 180°C/360°F and arrange the baking rack in the middle shelf. Spray with oil a donut pan and set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl mix together sifted flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt.
• In another bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until pale and lightly foamy. Pour in fresh orange juice and zest, olive oil and vanilla extract. Mix well until combined.
• Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ones, mixing until you have a smooth batter, but make sure to not overmix it.
• Fold in grated carrots and chopped walnuts and stir all ingredients together.
• Fill each donut cup ½ full with the carrot cake mixture, so the batter doesn't rise too much. The batter should be enough to fill 10 donut molds.
• Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow the donuts to cool completely before removing them from the molds.
• Frost the donuts with the ricotta cream just before serving, to preserve the cream freshness.
• Top with chopped walnuts and grated carrot, and serve.

Notes

Store leftover donuts unfrosted in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. You may also freeze them, thaw overnight in the refrigerator and frost just before serving.

Did you try this recipe? Tag @thepetitecook or use the hashtag #thepetitecook - Looking at your pictures makes my day!

Nutrition

Serving: 1donut | Calories: 285kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 81mg | Sodium: 148mg | Potassium: 189mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 5240IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 112mg | Iron: 2mg

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.