Vegan Apple Cider Donut Cake

Welcome fall with this healthy vegan apple cider donut cake recipe! Apple donut cake is a healthy version of a day at the cider mill. This dense bundt cake is oil-free and nut-free, with a gluten-free option topped with fresh, hot cinnamon apples.

Since moving to Arizona from Michigan, I have missed the fall colors and visiting the cider mills. But there's something special about the cider mill donuts and fresh apple cider. So, I veganize my girlfriend's apple cider donut bundt cake recipe. As many of you know, I don't have much of a sweet tooth. But my husband loves sweets, and cider mill donuts top his list of favorites. So, not only does my vegan apple cider donut cake taste just like cider mill donuts, but it doesn't have any oil.  

Jump to:

• Vegan Cake Mixes
• Recipe Ingredients
• Recipe Ingredient Substitutions
• How to Make the Cake
• Making the Topping
• Recipe FAQs
• Tips
• Other Vegan Desserts to Try!
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews

I almost panicked when asked to bring a dessert to a friend's party. Despite my husband's love for anything sweet, I don't like dessert. But, even though I'm not an avid dessert lover, I know how to veganize recipes to make them taste just as good as the real deal. 

For instance, the original recipe includes a variety of non-vegan ingredients and some unnecessary butter and sugars.

I altered the recipe to keep it as whole foods and healthy as possible, and the results were fabulous. I added apple topping instead of buttery icing to my friend's cake recipe. 

Vegan Cake Mixes

Because the first ingredient in my friend's recipe is yellow cake mix, I focused on finding a healthy vegan yellow cake mix. I didn't realize, however, that many cake mixes are accidentally vegan. But, I wanted a whole foods mix to keep my recipe healthy. 

• Annie's Organic Yellow Cake Mix: organic cane sugar, organic wheat flour, organic wheat starch, baking powder (cream of tartar, baking soda), natural flavor, and sea salt. 
• Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Vanilla Yellow Cake Mix: Sugar, potato starch, tapioca flour, whole grain sorghum flour, baking powder (monocalcium phosphate, baking soda cornstarch), sea salt, xanthan gum, natural vanilla, flavor powder (sugar, corn starch, vanilla oleoresin).

Although vegan, Duncan Hine's Classic Yellow Cake Mix contains oils and other unhealthy ingredients. See the ingredients as a comparison below. 

• Duncan Hines Classic Yellow Cake Mix: Sugar, enriched bleached wheat flour (flour, niacin, iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), vegetable oil shortening (partially hydrogenated soybean oil, propylene glycol, mono- and diesters of fats, mono- and diglycerides), leavening (sodium bicarbonate, dicalcium phosphate, sodium aluminum phosphate, monocalcium phosphate), contains 2% or less of wheat starch, salt, dextrose, polyglycerol esters of fatty acids, partially hydrogen oil.

Recipe Ingredients

Cake

• Vegan Yellow Cake Mix: As I mentioned earlier, I use two different vegan, oil-free yellow cake mixes listed above.
• Apple Cider: I bought fresh apple cider in season. Although I can't get apple cider at the cider mill in Arizona, I'm grateful they sell jugs at the grocery store. I like the sugar-free kind from Whole Foods.
• Cinnamon: Cinnamon and apples go together like peanut butter and jelly.
• Unsweetened Apple Sauce: I prefer unsweetened apple sauce without any flavors. If you use the cinnamon-flavored apple sauce, skip the cinnamon in the recipe.
• Flax Eggs: The combination of flax seeds mill and water makes a vegan egg for this cake recipe.
• Brown Sugar: Although I don't generally cook with sugar, I used brown sugar this time. But, if you want to use maple syrup, see the substitutions below.
• Vanilla: I used vanilla extract for a little hint of vanilla.

Apple Topping

• Honeycrisp Apples: The snappy texture, coupled with its complex, sweet-tart, and mildly aromatic flavors, make Honeycrisp apple an excellent choice to enjoy eaten out-of-hand or in salads
• Lemon Juice: I prefer fresh lemon juice when available.
• Cinnamon: A sweet and woody flavor, cinnamon has a slight citrusy note, and its spicy taste is often likened to the powerful punch of cloves.
• Maple Syrup: The maple syrup helps to soften, sweeten and cook the apples in a light sauce.

Recipe Ingredient Substitutions

Cake

• Apple juice is often used as a substitute for apple cider in recipes.
• Choose an egg replacer such as Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacement works well for this recipe.
• Another option is substituting maple syrup in your recipe, which calls for brown sugar. It is best to use darker maple syrup, like a Grade B, but any maple syrup will work. The ratio here is ¾ C of maple syrup for every 1 C of brown sugar.

Apple Topping

• Any sweet apple works for this recipe.
• Use bottled lemon juice instead of fresh lemon juice.
• I like nutmeg, allspice, or pumpkin pie spice if I don't have cinnamon.
• Try date syrup or agave nectar to substitute for male syrup.

How to Make the Cake

1. All you need is the ingredients, a bowl, and a spoon for this vegan apple cider donut cake. An electric mixer is not required.
2. So, put all the ingredients in a bowl and stir. That's how easy it is. However, do not overmix. Instead, stir to ensure all the ingredients are combined.
3. Then, pour the ingredients into a non-stick bundt pan.
4. If you don't have a non-stick pan, another way to cook the cake without cooking spray or oil is to line the pan with parchment paper before pouring the batter into the pan.

Making the Topping

While the cake bakes in the oven, prepare the apple topping for the vegan apple cider donut cake.

1. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan.
2. Turn the stove on medium-low and stir the ingredients gently to keep the apple pieces intact.
3. Stir for about 5-7 minutes until the apples soften and break down,
4. Remove from heat and spoon onto pieces of cake.
5. Sprinkle with extra cinnamon.

Recipe FAQs

Tips

• Make the flax seed egg first since it requires 15 minutes to set up in the refrigerator.
• I left the apples skinned, but remove the skins if you prefer.
• I sometimes add roasted pecans or walnuts on top of the apple topping.
• Try adding a pinch of salt to the topping for a tasty addition.
• Do not add the apple topping until ready to serve. Instead, keep it separate in the refrigerator if storing, and reheat the cake and apple topping separately when serving.

Try this quick and easy vegan apple cider donut cake recipe this fall. You will love the flavors of fall wrapped up in this vegan apple cider donut cake recipe!

Other Vegan Desserts to Try!

If you love this vegan apple cider donut cake, give us a 5-star review and comment below! We would love to hear from you!

📖 Recipe