Vegan Apple Mini Donuts for Japanese Health and Sports Day

vegan glutenfree japanese culture holidays donuts

Japanese Health and Sports Day commemorates the opening of the Olympics in 1964.  Healthy living and sports events are celebrated every year in Japan on the 2nd Monday in October.

These vegan and gluten-free mini donuts sparkle with autumn spices. The donuts are low in sugar and high in scrumptious spiced apple flavors.

This recipe is adapted from A Dash Of Megnut.

Ingredients: 

For the donuts:

  • 1½ cups apple cider reduced to 3/4 cup
  • 1½ cups gluten-free flour Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 baking flour
  • 2/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 3 pinches Kosher salt
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp cloves
  • ¼ cup vegan butter, melted
  • ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 tsp  vanilla extract

For the topping:

  • ½ cup Demerara sugar
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
Directions: 
  1. Pour the apple cider into a small saucepan. Reduce the apple cider over a medium flame heat for about 15 minutes. Or until it reaches 3/4 cup.
  2. Set aside to cool.
  3. Preheat the oven to 350F. Coat a mini donut pan with coconut cooking spray.
  4. Whisk together the gluten-free flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves in a large bowl.
  5. In another bowl, combine the reduced apple cider, melted vegan butter, applesauce, and vanilla.
  6. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients bowl. 
  7. Divide the batter into the donut pan wells. A chopstick does wonders to even out the batter in the wells.
  8. Bake at 350F for 12 minutes, turning the pan halfway through the bake.
  9. A toothpick inserted into a donut that comes out clean meansit’s done and time to enjoy!
  10. For even more yumminess, sprinkle the warm donuts with Demerara sugar and cinnamon.