Baked Donuts

I’m hanging on to the last of the seasonal strawberries and thought I would use them for these tasty, cake-like donuts. Sounds like a healthy way to use strawberries! I’m not really a huge donut fan – as in, I wouldn’t go out of my way to grab one but… if you happen to put some in front of me, I wouldn’t say no!

I find these donuts really flavourful. Maybe it’s because of the bits of chopped strawberries in the dough, the macerated strawberry juice incorporated in the icing and the crushed dehydrated strawberry pieces on top. I’d say so. I love that these donuts are so cake-like and not dense at all. Many baked recipes call for sour cream but I prefer to substitute that for apple sauce instead. It adds to the fruity taste and the light texture.

So, are these really donuts, if they aren’t deep fried? They look like donuts. They taste like donuts. They must be DONUTS. You decide. Either way, every time I serve these they are gone is seconds.

Baked Strawberry Donuts with Strawberry Glazed Icing

Yields: 9 donuts

Ingredients:

Donuts

1 cup flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup granulated sugar (you can substitute for coconut sugar instead)

2 tbsp butter, non-salted and melted

1/4 cup buttermilk (you can substitute for non-dairy milk instead)

1/4 cup apple sauce, unsweetened

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and cut into tiny pieces

Strawberry Glaze

3/4 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered

1 tablespoon sugar

2 cups confectionner sugar

Dehydrated strawberries, crushed

Directions:

Donuts:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, add all the ingredients, except the fresh strawberries. Mix on low-medium speed until well combined.
3. Add the strawberries and stir until combined, either on low speed or by hand.
4. Spoon into a donut pan, 3/4 of the way full.
5. Bake for 10 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
6. Let the donuts cool completely.

Strawberry Glaze:

1. In a small bowl, add the strawberries and sugar and set aside until macerated, about 5-10 minutes. Then using a fork, mash the strawberries to release as much juice as possible.
2. Strain the strawberries and juice through a sieve. Reserving the juice.
3. In a small bowl, add the icing sugar and 2 tablespoons of the strawberry juice. Mix until well combined.
4. The icing should be thick enough so that it doesn’t get absorbed by the donut.
5. Crush the dehydrated strawberries, using a pestle and mortar until medium ground.

Assembly:

1. Once the donuts have completely cooled, dip the donut into the icing and then place on a rack to set.
2. Sprinkle on the crushed dehydrated strawberries.
3. Place donuts in the fridge to get cold and firmly set and remove 15 minutes before serving or until they reach room temperature.