Gingerbread Cake Donuts with Cranberry Glaze (Gluten-Free, Vegan)

Wonderfully moist Gingerbread Cake Donuts with Cranberry Glaze are gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar-free. A perfect holiday breakfast treat!

Three days until Christmas and counting. While I should be out doing some last minute shopping (eek!), I instead have been saddled with a virus for the last several days that just won’t let go.

Between my husband with the broken foot, and my current state, we have been quite the pair. Productivity has been at zero, and I’ve seen more holiday movies at this point than probably one should–the good and the bad. These gingerbread cake donuts have been on repeat though, and I haven’t minded one bit. 

These donuts are not only gluten-free and refined sugar-free, but vegan as well. They have the delectable gingerbread flavor with the moistness you find in a piece of gingerbread cake.

Now, I will say that these donuts are tasty enough on their own and in no need of glaze. But, the extra steps are worth it, as the cranberry glaze adds a layer of deliciousness that is hard to resist. Inspired by my mom’s Thanksgiving cranberry-orange relish and my love for orange with gingerbread, I added a bit of orange zest to the cranberry glaze that I think is the not-so-secret ingredient.

While the donuts are baking and cooling, the glaze comes together easily. The cranberries and sugar cook down quickly. The unrefined sugar is blitzed in the blender into a fine powder, and then given a final blitz with the cranberry mixture until smooth. Drizzle (or smother) your gingerbread cake donuts with the finished glaze, sprinkle with shredded coconut for a little extra festive flair, and voila! Gingerbread donut heaven.

Wishing you all lots of love and laughter this holiday season. Merry Christmas! xo.

Make a Salted Plains recipe? I’d love to see! Tag your creations on Instagram with #saltedplains!

5 from 1 vote

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Gingerbread Cake Donuts with Cranberry Glaze (Gluten-Free, Vegan)

Wonderfully moist Gingerbread Cake Donuts with Cranberry Glaze are gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar-free. A perfect holiday breakfast treat!

Course Breakfast

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 12

Author Tessa Fisher

Ingredients

For Donuts

• 1 flax egg 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal + 3 tablespoons warm water, allow to sit a few mins
• ½ cup sorghum flour
• 1 cup almond flour/meal
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour
• 1/4 cup sweet white rice flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup organic unrefined cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• pinch of ground cloves
• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil cooled
• 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For Glaze

• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 1/4 teaspoon orange zest
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 cup organic unrefined cane sugar
• pinch of salt
• unsweetened shredded coconut optional

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 6-cavity nonstick donut pan with coconut oil (if you have two pans, even better!).
2. In a small bowl, prepare your flax egg and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine sorghum flour, 1 cup almond flour, tapioca flour, sweet white rice flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and spices. Add coconut oil, almond milk,molasses, and vanilla extract, stirring to combine.
4. Spoon donut batter into cavities of donut tray, filling 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 19-21 minutes or until you start to see edges and tops turn a golden brown. Remove from oven and allow donuts to remain in pan for 3-5 minutes. Using a knife to loosen edges, carefully remove donuts from pan and allow to cool the rest of the way on a wire rack.
5. While donuts are cooling, place the cranberries, orange zest, and water in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat. Stir often, crushing berries as they begin to soften, doing so until the mixture reaches a jammy consistency, about 8-9 minutes. Some of the berries may pop open due to heat, so be careful, and feel free turn heat down a bit to avoid this. Set aside to cool.
6. Place the 1 cup of unrefined cane sugar in a blender. Blend on high to blitz your sugar into a powdery consistency. Once the cranberry mixture has cooled considerably, add it to the blender along with a pinch of salt. Blend until smooth.
7. Place a sheet of parchment paper underneath your donuts on the wire rack. Using a spoon, drizzle the cranberry glaze over your donuts. Sprinkle shredded coconut on top of donuts if desired.

Recipe Notes

Donuts adapted from my Blueberry Cinnamon Cake Donuts. Cranberry glaze adapted from Food & Wine.