If you love chocolate goodness with lots of fresh orange zest, these gluten free chocolate orange donuts are for you. Light and fluffy on the inside, with a slight crisp on the outside, you will want to eat more than one of these little donuts.
You will love the contrast of flavors in this gluten free chocolate orange donuts recipe. Orange is a tangy and acidic flavor, while chocolate is sweet and rich. The combination of these contrasting flavors creates a satisfying taste!
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Don’t forget to check out my best Gluten Free Donut Recipes for even more donut bliss.
Allergen Information:
These delicious mini donuts are gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, nut-free, and oat-free.
Flour Blends Tested:
- King Arthur Measure for Measure—This blend works really well in my recipes. I don’t have to let the flour blend rest in the batter.
- Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Blend—This blend also works well, but this flour blend does benefit from resting the batter for 15 minutes before baking. The rest allows the rice flour in this blend to soften, so you don’t have gritty baked goods.
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Gluten Free Flour – I tested the two blends above in this chocolate orange donut recipe. If your blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or another filling, add 3/4 teaspoon.
- Cocoa Powder – I used Anthony’s Cocoa Powder in this recipe. I like this brand because they batch-test their cocoa to ensure it is gluten free.
- Baking Powder – Use aluminum-free baking powder.
- Coconut Oil – You can also use unsalted butter if you prefer.
Step-By-Step Photos and Directions:
These donuts are so easy to make in my Babycakes Mini Donut Maker. I get the fried crispy taste, but it is much healthier because it isn’t fried. You can also make these in a donut pan, but you may consider spraying the edges with coconut oil so they crisp up a bit.
The batter is somewhat stiff; you don’t want it runny like cake batter.
Add the donut batter to your donut maker and close the lid. Allow cooking for 5 minutes. (Note this photo is of a different donut recipe. I forgot to snap a photo of these donuts cooking…but I wanted you to see the batter in the donut maker.)
How do you know when the donuts are done cooking?
The donuts cook pretty quickly in this donut maker. After 5 minutes, lift the lid. They are ready if your donuts look crisp on the outside and feel firm to the touch.
Can you use a donut pan?
You can definitely use a donut pan. Bake the donuts for 18-20 minutes at 350º F. (The actual baking time will vary depending on the size of your donut pan.) I recommend spraying the donut pan with coconut oil so the outside crisps slightly. To use a donut pan, I like to pipe the batter into the donut pan. It makes your donuts come out more uniformly sized.
This little cooling rack comes with your donut maker, and it is perfect for cooling donuts.
Feel free to dip these donuts into melted chocolate and sprinkles as I did. Click here to see ALL of the gluten free donut recipes on this blog.
More Gluten Free Donut Recipes:
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. Please include which flour blend you used. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Gluten Free Chocolate Orange Donuts
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- â…“ cup coconut oil melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- dash salt
- 1 cup gluten free flour blend (*Note, my flour blend has xanthan gum included. If yours doesn’t, add 1 teaspoon.)
- *optional Fudge sauce and sprinkles I used Trader Joe’s
Instructions
- Preheat the Babycakes Mini Donut Maker.
- In a mixer, add all wet ingredients, including zest.
- Mix on low until blended.
- Add dry ingredients gradually while mixing on low speed. (Turn off before putting flour in, then turn mixer on and up to low while it mixes.)
- Drop a dollop of dough into each donut section.
- Cook for 5 minutes until donuts are done.
- Remove from donut maker to cooling rack.
- Frost, glaze, or enjoy plain.
SPECIAL NOTE
Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn’t test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
I love your donut maker!! They look so soft and fluffy 🙂 This sounds like such a great flavor combo, would be perfect for a holiday party!
Wow, thank you so much Jenna 🙂
I made these in the oven (20 minutes at 350°F/176°C) and they were amazing. Next time I will add a bit of molten chocolate in the batter to up the chocolate flavour and give it a bit of a gooey texture. For the rest I might shorten the baking time, but as no instructions for oven baking were included it’s a bit of a search.
I am really glad you like this recipe Lizzie. It is hard to set a specific baking time because donut pans come in so many different sizes. If I were to say bake 20 minutes, that would be too much if someone were using a small donut pan.
So how do you cook them using a donut pan? Did not see any instructions for an alternatuve. Thanks
Hi Maggie, I haven’t used a donut pan, so I am unable to give exact directions. My best guess is to fill the donut pan with the dough, bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. You will need to check them because I don’t know the exact time you will need. If you make these with your donut pan, would you please email back and let us know what worked for you? Thank you so much!