Healthy Chocolate Protein Donuts {Low, Carb, GF, Low Calorie}

Healthy Chocolate Protein Donuts made low calorie and gluten free with a lighter cream cheese protein frosting. A delicious, healthy protein donut recipe that's versatile and easy to make. Gluten Free + Low Calorie + Low Carb

If you have a serious sweet tooth, but want to eat healthy, these Healthy Chocolate Protein Donuts are a delicious treat for you! They're made with gluten free ingredients and balanced with protein for a healthier option.

As you know, fried donuts are loaded with refined carbohydrates, sugar and fat. These are baked in the oven and made healthier with a few simpler swaps and nutrient dense ingredients.

These protein donuts are one of my favorites along with my healthy protein cookies and homemade chocolate protein bars.

What Makes These Protein Donuts Better For You?

This healthy donut recipe is low carb, low calorie and gluten free. They're not only delicious, but also easy to make. Here's more details on why this recipe is better for you.

• Low Calorie - Each donut is 103 calories. Calories are for weight loss, but they are not as important as the nutrients that makes up those calories. I work really hard to balance the nutrients in my recipes so they not only taste great, but to make sure the calories are made up of a better balance of nutrition.
• Low Carb - There's 13 grams of total carbs in this recipe, 3 of which come from fiber. Net carbs are only 10 grams. Being carb conscious especially for women over 35 is very important, which I talk about in this free weight loss class.
• High Protein - This recipe has 10 grams of protein per donut - that's a great amount for a treat food! Protein is important for balancing blood sugar. In a recipe that's traditionally higher in sugar we want more protein added to it to keep blood sugar balanced.
• Gluten Free - The recipe is made with gluten free ingredients.
• Low Fat - Total fat is only 3 grams which is very low for a donut recipe.

Ingredients For Chocolate Protein Donuts

Here's what you need to make chocolate protein donuts gluten free and healthy. You will also need a donut pan and mixing bowl!

• Egg Whites
• Pumpkin puree
• Applesauce, unsweetened
• Baking Powder
• Cocoa Powder, unsweetened
• Chocolate Protein Powder
• Monkfruit
• Gluten Free Oat Flour
• Cream Cheese, low fat
• Maple Syrup

How To Make Chocolate Protein Donuts Gluten Free

Making gluten free donuts is simple and easy! Donuts are always a fun treat and these are better for you donuts you can make at home.

Step one is preheating the oven and spraying a donut pan with cooking spray. You will want to liberally spray the donut pan so they don't stick.

Step two is to mixing the ingredients for the donuts together in a large mixing bowl. Then transfer the batter to the donut pan by filling cavities evenly.

Step three bake the donuts in the oven then remove and cool to room temperature. This should take about 15 minutes. While the donuts are cooling, prepare the frosting by using a hand mixer.

Last spread the frosting over each donut then sprinkle with colorful sprinkles on top. Store leftover protein donuts in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

What's The BEST Protein Powder To Use?

You may be wondering what the best protein powder is to make protein donuts. I recommend a plant-based protein powder. This is the protein powder I used in this recipe and it works great in a lot of recipes. Not to mention it's great on its own.

I also recommend this plant-based protein powder or this beef protein powder is a favorite of mine too.

A whey based protein powder will make the donuts really dense and thick. It could be used, but just note that the consistency may not be as light as if you used a plant-based one.

Substitutions For Healthy Chocolate Protein Donuts

Here's the substitutions you can make for these chocolate protein donuts. Remember when you change something in a recipe that it does alter the nutrition data that you see in the recipe card below.

• Egg Whites - You can replace the egg whites with one whole egg. Please note that two egg whites are lower in calorie and higher in protein than one whole egg. These donuts are protein donuts so by only using one egg the protein will be reduced. If you are egg free, you could try using an egg replacer like this one, but I'm not sure what the results would be like. If you try it, please let me know in the comments. This helps other readers!
• Pumpkin - Canned butternut squash puree or sweet potato puree could be used instead.
• Applesauce - Mashed banana in the same quantity could be used to replace applesauce.
• Protein Powder - There's many protein powder options. This is the one I used for this recipe. Different protein powders may have a slightly different consistency. There's is not something to replace the protein powder in this recipe.
• Gluten Free Oat Flour - You can use regular oat flour if you're not avoiding gluten. You can also blend your own oats to make your own oat flour for this recipe. Gluten Free baking flour can be substitute in this recipe. I have not tested almond flour yet. If you do, please let me know in the comments. This helps other readers! Coconut flour will not work in this recipe.
• Cream Cheese - Dairy free cream cheese can be substituted. I like Kite Hill.
• Monkfruit - I like using monkfruit to slightly reduce the calories in recipes. You can substitute coconut sugar or brown sugar instead.

About Megan

Megan is a certified nutrition practitioner, author, freelance food photographer and fitness instructor living in Phoenix, Arizona. On her blog, Skinny Fitalicious she shares EASY, gluten free recipes for weight loss. Follow Megan on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram for the latest updates.