These Sugar Free Chocolate Frosted Donuts are just like the real thing but so much healthier!   They’re fluffy and tender, and they’re filling since they’re made with tons of healthy ingredients like almond flour, eggs, and vegan shortening. 

Whenever you feel that nostalgia for donuts, pull out this recipe for Sugar Free Chocolate Frosted Donuts, and satisfy your cravings with a really fun treat.  My daughter is very susceptible to anything she sees – if she sees someone eating a donut in a cartoon, she says, “I want a donut!”  And then that is all she thinks about.

Her cravings are the inspiration for a lot of my baking, because it is really hard to be a kid in a world that associates childhood with consuming tons of sugar, and I don’t want her to feel like she’s missing out on anything. 

I love the challenge, too, of making all the treats that people get so much enjoyment from in healthier forms that my family can enjoy, too.  Because once the basic needs of hunger have been met, food is about enjoyment, and cooking is a huge outlet for creativity.

These donuts are really simple to pull together, and they’re actually best once they have had time to chill so that the chocolate frosting hardens and cracks when you bit into it.  So if you want donuts for breakfast, I recommend making these the day before. 

Generally, I haven’t bought a lot of silicone baking molds, but for donuts, this kind of silicone donut mold works wonders.  The donuts should pop out of the mold without any problem if you have greased the molds well and the donuts are thoroughly baked, but even the best-greased molds stick sometimes.  And then it’s really useful to be able to press through the other side of the mold to pop out the donuts. 

*Pro tip:  Put the silicone donut mold on a regular baking sheet so that it’s easier to handle.  Just bake the donuts with the silicone tray on the baking sheet.  It makes it a lot easier to move the donut tray in and out of the oven.

Why You’ll LOVE this Recipe:

• Paleo and Gluten Free
• Completely Sugar Free!!!
• Low in Cholesterol
• High in Fiber and Healthy Fats
• Easy and quick to make
• Did I mention… Sugar Free Donuts?!?!!

Ingredients for Sugar Free Chocolate Frosted Donuts:

• almond flour
• baking powder           
• kosher salt
• cinnamon
• ground nutmeg
• eggs
• Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks
• vanilla extract
• liquid stevia
• chocolate chips
• coconut oil

Notes on Ingredients:

Almond flour – Use unblanched almond flour, not almond meal.  There are many brands available. 

Baking powder  - Baking powder is the main leavening agent here, and it gives the donuts a good rise and a delicious tenderness.

Salt – Essential.  I always use kosher salt and do so in this recipe.

Cinnamon and Nutmeg – This combination of spices is my secret “bakery taste” ingredient.  When these are added to the donut batter, the flavors don’t stand out strong, but they give this aroma of “I-just-came-fresh-out-of-the-oven-at-a-bakery.”  Delish.

Eggs – There are a lot of eggs in this recipe, but the cake doesn’t taste “eggy.”  The eggs provide leavening and structure to the cake as well as a certain springiness.  With the large amount of eggs plus the almond flour, these donuts are a protein powerhouse.

Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks – Using this shortening makes the donuts fluffy and not greasy.  Plus, it’s low in cholesterol, so that’s a big plus in our home.

Vanilla extract – I’m generally pretty generous with vanilla extract when baking without sugar.  Vanilla complements the almond flour very well and provides a depth of flavor that is hard to replicate otherwise.

Liquid stevia – This is the only sweetener in the recipe.  I always bake with liquid stevia, because it’s much less bitter than the powdered kind.

Chocolate chips – I love Lily’s Dark Chocolate Chips, because they’re only sweetened with stevia and some erythritol.  I don’t like using erythritol much, but this is a fairly thin coating on the top of a very filling donut. 

Coconut oil - Used in the frosting, coconut oil helps the chocolate to both melt smoothly and to harden into a crisp chocolate covering.

How to Make Sugar Free Chocolate Frosted Donuts From Scratch

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Grease a silicone donut tray with Spectrum Organic All-Vegetable Shortening.  I really recommend greasing the donut tray with a shortening that you rub on instead of a spray, because sprays are harder to control, and they can make the donuts too greasy.

In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.

Melt the Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks.  Add the melted Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks, eggs, vanilla extract, and liquid stevia to the dry ingredients.  Stir until there are no more lumps.

Spoon the batter into the prepared donut tray.

Bake for 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool completely.

In a small bowl, melt the chocolate chips and the coconut oil in the microwave for 45-60 seconds.  Stir until smooth.

Spread the melted chocolate over the tops of the donuts. 

Chill the donuts in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or until the chocolate frosting hardens.  Eat and enjoy!

More Sugar Free Breakfast Recipes:

• Paleo Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
• Paleo Strawberry Lemonade Muffins
• Paleo Blueberry Pancakes
• Paleo Chocolate Cherry Pancakes
• Gluten Free Belgian Waffles with Yeast