Christmas Cake Protein Donuts

Is there a debate over traditional versus cake donuts or can we all agree that all donuts are created equal? Well, maybe not all donuts are created equal. Don’t get me wrong, all donuts taste amazing, but donuts notoriously pack a serious calorie punch. No matter how hard you train, it’s difficult to routinely eat donuts without growing the waistline. That’s why I’ve set out to make high protein, lower calorie donuts. And in this case, I set out to make a high protein cake donuts recipe that didn’t taste like cardboard and didn’t have a ton of luck if we’re being honest.

With a recipe like the double chocolate protein donuts, I was able to provide moisture through adding in things like pumpkin. A cake donut, on the other hand, doesn’t work the same way. Alas, persistence is key. While it took a ton of trial and error, we officially have high protein cake donuts that taste great and have a ridiculous amount of protein per donut.

Let’s get into it.

High Protein Cake Donuts Ingredients

Aside from protein powder, our protein cake donuts call for coconut flour. If you would like to substitute all purpose flour for coconut flour, you can use a 3:1 conversion. In this recipe, instead of 3 Tbsp or 21g of coconut flour, you’ll need 1/2 C or 60g of all purpose flour. This swap would add 130 calories and 32g of carbs, so if you’d like to order coconut flour for future recipes, this is the flour I use.

If you’re okay with a bit more fat and calories, you could add 2 Tbsp (28g) coconut oil instead of apple sauce. This should give a moister donut but will add about 40 calories per donut.

For the cake donut glaze or icing, you can probably guess what I used if you’re familiar with my recipes. That’s right, the ultimate protein frosting. I can’t help it — it’s just the best. A common question I receive is about the fat-free evaporated milk and whether or not you could substitute other liquids. The answer is yes, you could swap any low-cal liquid but add slowly as it may not be as thick with other liquids. But after trying tons of icing combos, the evaporated milk reigns supreme.

Just be sure to avoid buying fat-free versions that have a ton of added sugar. Look for 25 calories per 2 Tbsp.

You can be as festive as you like with the sprinkles, just be sure to account for them in your macro calculations. I used a Christmas-themed combo pack from Amazon.

You’ll find the full Christmas cake donut recipe below, but I’d like to leave you with a 4-ingredient quick-and-easy recipe for chocolate cake donuts as well. These are so simple, and the macros are perfect for a pre or post-workout snack.

BEST PROTEIN POWDER FOR RECIPES

You can use any protein you’d like, but I recommend Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey and/or Dymatize’s Whey or Elite XT blended protein. They’re reputable brands that have been around forever.

The macros are with Gold Standard Whey. 

And one last thing, any donut pan will do, but you can get the one I use on Amazon here. The recipe makes 6 donuts, but you could easily double the recipe if you have two donut pans.

And as always, if you make this or any other recipes on my site, tag me in your creation on Instagram. I’ll be sure to share it with everyone.