On the first day of fall in the South, it’s doesn’t feel much different weather-wise. It’s still in the high 80s usually and the leaves haven’t started changing (except for this year, we are in a drought and everything seems to be turning brown not in a good way).

There was one year a few years back I had the privilege of visiting upstate NY in fall. My husband grew up there. We were there the first week in October and I could not believe how magical fall is up there! No, really! The weather is chilly and everything is bright orange, red and yellow. You feel compelled to ride on hay bales behind tractors, pick pumpkins and drink apple cider. It’s picturesque. And amazing.

Fall in the south if fun, too. We still have all the pumpkins and cider…it’s just we put our sweaters and boots on closer to Thanksgiving and enjoy hot Saturdays of football games and tailgating.

On the first day of fall, though, only one recipe comes to mind. It’s one of those seasonal/holiday staples that can really set the mood for the season. APPLE CIDER DONUTS. My husband grew up eating these and my sister got to have them a lot when she was living in Vermont. They aren’t so much a southern thing, but my mission is to change that! (half joking) …Great with a hot cup of coffee, on a deck, in the breeze.

Here’s my take on classic apple cider donuts… I made them gluten and grain-free with no refined sugar. The only sugar in the recipe is naturally occuring from the apple cider. So, I’m calling this ALMOST keto, because each donut only has about 6 grams of sugar!

There is a dairy-free adaptation.

This recipe is adapted from another great recipes found HERE by Life Made Sweeter…an awesome blog and awesome baker!

These were very fun to make and easy to put together. And, they were really delicious. My kids couldn’t believe I was letting them eat an entire donut for dessert after dinner. They loved them!

I hope you enjoy this recipe!

Apple Cider Donuts

admin

A First Day of Fall Classic made grain and gluten free, low carb, with a dairy-free option

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 6

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup fine ground blanched almond flour
• 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
• 2 tbsp granulated sweetener (I use monk fruit)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• dash salt
• 2 eggs room temperature
• 1 cup apple cider
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar

Cinnamon Sugar

• 1/3 cup granulated sweetener (like monk fruit)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

Cream Cheese Glaze

• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 2 tbsp granulated sweetener (like monk fruit)
• 1 tbsp almond milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350°.

  On the stovetop, bring the apple cider to a low boil and let it reduce until you have 1/4 cup of liquid. Check the amount every few minutes. In a separate sauce pan, melt the butter. Set both aside to cool.

  In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients together with a fork or wisk and set aside.

  In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, apple cider reduction, vanilla extract, melted butter, and apple cider vinegar.

  Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredient until combined with no lumps or streaks. Transfer to piping bag and pipe into a greased donut pan.

  Bake at 350° for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Make the cinnamon sugar by combining ingredients in a small bowl. Let donuts cool for 5 minutes then invert onto a cooling rack. While still warm, dip each donut in the cinnamon sugar to coat and set back on wire rack.

  When completely cool, make the icing/glaze. Combine all ingredients in a bowl with an electric hand mixer until you get a smooth icing. Transfer to a piping bag or ziplock and pipe in a zig-zag pattern onto the donuts.

  *to make this dairy-free, you can use melted coconut oil instead of melted butter and omit the glaze or use a non-dairy cream cheese.

Keyword apple cider, apples, dairy free, dessert, donuts, fall, frosting, gluten free, grain free, icing, keto, low carb, non dairy

<3

Shannon