The Best Carrot Cake Protein Donuts - Healthy, Gluten Free & Sugar Free

Truly the best Carrot Cake Protein Donuts that are healthy, gluten-free, low calorie and sugar-free! With almond flour and protein powder, and a protein cream cheese glaze, these carrot cake doughnuts are perfect for a low-carb breakfast or post-workout snack.

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A little backstory here – I had committed to an almond flour carrot cake protein donut recipe, but had never actually baked an almond flour donut before so it was a proper ‘from scratch’ recipe. I was out of my regular unflavored protein powder that I would have used for lower calorie baked donuts, so I made a bit too many substitutions.

Those donuts did not rise at all!

It was quite a sad situation, so I went to the store the next afternoon to buy a new protein powder (they’re available online, but Amazon would take too long), and re-made the recipe. What a beautiful soft and fluffy baked carrot cake donut recipe! You really will love it!

Ingredients for Healthy Carrot Cake Donuts:

You really have a proper healthy carrot cake donut recipe here since it’s made with all clean and whole foods ingredients with no sugar added. Also very simple items you probably have in your pantry.

For the Donuts:

Shredded Carrots – The key ingredient for making baked carrot cake donuts!
Almond Flour – This is what makes the carrot carrot cake donuts gluten free and low carb.
Whey-Casein Vanilla Protein Powder –This is the source of sweetness for this donut recipe, so make sure you use a good brand! I used Quest Nutrition Vanilla Protein Powder.
Plant-Based Unflavored Protein Powder – Provides extra protein and reduces some of the calories as well. I use the one from KOS here.
Ground Cinnamon & Nutmeg – The perfect warm spices you need to bring out the carrot cake flavor.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda – For the donuts to rise and stay fluffy.
Unsweetened Applesauce – This adds moisture to the donuts without adding much butter or oil.
Unsweetened Almond Milk – A dairy free and low calorie option!
Egg – This is absolutely necessary to bind the ingredients, and even moreso with using almond flour!
Melted Butter – Adds richness while keeping the donuts light.

For the Cream Cheese Protein Glaze:

Reduced-Fat Cream Cheese – A classic carrot cake frosting made lighter.
Vanilla Protein Powder – To provide sweetness! Quest Nurition vanilla is what I used.
Unsweetened Almond Milk – Helps thin out the glaze to the perfect consistency.

See recipe card at the bottom of the page for the measurements!

Alternate Ingredients for Customization

Protein Powder Options:

Whey-casein Vanilla Protein: I haven’t tried this, but you can try using plant-based protein powder here. Be sure to taste and add a bit of extra sweetener into the batter.
Unflavored Protein Powder: ¼ cup more Almond Flour instead of the unflavtoed protein power.

Other ingredients:

Almond Milk: Regular milk or other non-dairy milk will work.
Almond Flour: Replace with ⅓ cup (40g) Whole Wheat Pastry Flour, All purpose flour or 1:1 Gluten Free Baking Flour
More Sweetness: Add stevia, monk fruit sweetener, or sugar-free maple syrup if desired.
Extra Flavor: Add chopped nuts, or raisins

Dietary Restrictions:

Dairy-Free Option: Use dairy-free/plant based protein powder (like this one from KOS or Birdman) and dairy-free cream cheese for the glaze.
Nut-Free Option: Swap almond flour for 40g oat flour regular flour

How to make Almond Flour Carrot Cake Donuts with Protein Powder:

This recipe for almond flour carrot cake donuts with protein powder is a lot easier than you think! Here’s what you need to do:

Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl: flour, vanilla and unflavored protein powders, baking powder and baking soda

Whisk the wet ingredients: applesauce, milk, egg and melted butter

Add dry mix to wet and lightly whisk until just combined.
Don’t over-mix the batter! Make sure you whisk lightly. If you over-mix it, the protein powder – will make it tough, dense and gummy.

Taste the batter and see if you need some extra sweetener. I’d recommend using stevia powder to maintain the consistency of the batter and have sugar free vanilla protein donuts.
Add in shredded carrots and fold until just combined.

Divide the batter among 6 donut-pan cavities, filling about ¾ way to the top.

Bake at 350°F for about 20 minutes.

Let donuts cool before adding glaze.

Make glaze: Whisk softened cream cheese, milk and protein powder.
Taste it to see if its sweet enough.
Dunk donuts in glaze and invert onto cooling rack to dry.

Tips for baking Keto Carrot Cake Donuts

Use melted butter so it mixes well with the wet ingredients.
Use room temperature eggs and milk; This is so the wet ingredients and dry ingredients can mix well, and does not cause the melted butter to harden when added into the other wet ingredients.
Taste the batter and see if you need some extra sweetener; This will depend on the brand of protein power you use.
Be sure to grease the donut pan if it your pan is not silicon.

How to store Sugar Free Carrot Cake Donuts for Breakfast?

These sugar free carrot cake protein donut recipe is perfect for a breakfast or post workout meal prep, and here’s how to keep them fresh:

Freezer: To freeze these healthy carrot cake doughnuts, let them first freeze individually on a baking sheet and then transfer them to freezer safe zipper bags or container. They should keep up to 2 months.
Thaw to room temperature before eating.
Countertop: Keep these carrot cake protein doughnuts on the countertop for upto 2 hours.
Refrigerator: Store the donuts in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

FAQs

How many calories are in a carrot cake donut?

These healthy carrot cake donuts contain only 118 calories per serving while being extra high in protein and low in sugar!

Can you use almond flour to make donuts?

Yes! Almond flour works really well for baking donuts as long as you have the right recipe. This recipe was made with almond flour, so you know you will get proper almond flour carrot cake donuts if you follow it exactly.

What is the trick to baking with almond flour?

After having a recipe fail I figured out that the trick for baking with almond flour is:

– Use slightly extra flour than a regular donut recipe (since almond flour absorbs less moisture)
– Use extra binding agents like eggs or egg whites.

If you were interested in this one, here’s some more recipes you might like:

Did you try this recipe? I’d LOVE to know!
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