Start your morning with these tender almond flour donuts. Deliciously spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and cloves, they are a perfect keto treat for crisp fall days.
The donut pan truly is a wonderful invention, especially for those of us on a keto diet. They allow us to experience the joy of eating these round pastries again, without risking our health.
Now I am well aware that baked keto donuts aren’t quite the same thing as the yeasted or fried variety. But they are delicious in their own right and much easier to make at home.
I have quite a number of recipes for Keto Donuts because I love playing with new flavors and ingredients. And these Chai Spice Donuts are a great addition to that collection. Sweet and tender, with all the warm, comforting spices of a cup of chai.
Why you will love this recipe
Who doesn’t love sipping a cup of coffee or tea and munching on a donut? But it’s not always the healthiest way to start your day.
Unless, of course, you reach for a keto almond flour donut. With no sugar, no gluten, and only 3.7g net carbs per serving, they are a much better choice.
They are also are super easy to make. This donut recipe uses basic keto ingredients you can find at almost any grocery store. Get them in the oven and you will be enjoying tender donut deliciousness in less than 30 minutes!
Ingredients you need
This post may contain Amazon or other affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
- Almond flour: These donuts are made with almond flour and as always, I recommend a good finely ground brand like Bob’s. However, for those of you with nut allergies, I provide an alternative in the Expert Tips and the recipe notes.
- Sour cream: I love adding sour cream in keto baked goods, as it provides both moisture and fat. And it creates an incredibly tender texture. It’s the same trick I use for my Keto Muffins.
- Sweetener: I recommend using Swerve Brown for the donuts and Swerve Granular for the cinnamon “sugar” coating.
- Spices: Chai spice typically includes cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and cloves or allspice. Sometimes it also include a little black pepper but I skipped that for these almond flour donuts.
- Eggs: You need eggs for keto baked donuts, to help them rise properly and hold their shape.
- Butter: Brushing the donuts with melted butter helps the cinnamon/sweetener coating stick properly.
- Pantry staples: Vanilla, baking powder, salt.
Step by step directions
1. Blend the wet ingredients: In a blender, combine the sour cream, eggs, sweetener, and vanilla extract. Pulse to combine.
2. Add the wet ingredients: Add the almond flour, baking powder, spices, and salt and blend until well combined. If your batter is very thick, add water until it thins out. It should be scoopable but not pourable.
3. Bake the donuts: Spoon the batter into the donut cavity to about ¾ full. Bake about 20 minutes, until golden brown and just firm to the touch. Remove and let cool in the pan 10 minutes, then flip out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4. Dust with cinnamon “sugar”: In a small bowl combine the sweetener and cinnamon. Brush the top of each donut with melted butter and then sprinkle with the sweetener mixture.
Expert tips and FAQ
Donut pans do not really come in standard sizes. So you will get anywhere between 9 and 12 donuts out of this recipe. I got 10 donuts out of mine.
Also note that some pans lose their non-stick coating over time, so it can be tricky to the the donuts out properly. I have a really good USA Pan Donut Pan that I love. It’s worth every penny because it will last!
I baked these almond flour donuts in a metal pan. If you use silicone, the baking time will likely change so keep your eye on them.
Nut-Free Option: If you would prefer to use coconut flour, try the donut portion of my Samoa Donuts recipe. Then add the chai spices, the butter, and the cinnamon/sweetener coating.
Traditional chai is a blend of cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, allspice, and black pepper. It is a delicious spice mix that works in beverages, cakes, cookies, muffins, and of course, these almond flour donuts!
Both almond flour and coconut flour work equally well for keto donuts. But they do need to be used in very different ways, and you can’t simply replace one for the other. Look for specific recipes that use the flour you like.
These keto almond flour donuts have 6.7g total carbs and 3g of fiber per donut. That means they have 3.7g net carbs per serving.
More delicious keto donut recipes
Chai Spice Donuts
Equipment
Ingredients
Donuts
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 3 large eggs
- ⅓ cup granulated sweetener
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups almond flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 2-4 tablespoon water
Cinnamon "Sugar" Coating
- 1 tablespoon granulated sweetener
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoon butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F and grease a 12-cavity donut pan. (If you only have a 6 cavity pan, you will need to work in batches)
- In a blender, combine the sour cream, eggs, sweetener, and vanilla extract. Pulse to combine.
- Add the almond flour, baking powder, spices, and salt and blend until well combined. If your batter is very thick, add water until it thins out. It should be scoopable but not pourable.
- Spoon the batter into the donut cavity to about ¾ full. Bake about 20 minutes, until golden brown and just firm to the touch. Remove and let cool in the pan 10 minutes, then flip out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- In a small bowl combine the sweetener and cinnamon. Brush the top of each donut with melted butter and then sprinkle with the sweetener mixture.
Alexis says
YES! I was having a sad-diabetic day because it’s a cold, fall day and I can’t bake my old go-tos. This was such a delight! I don’t have donut pans, so I used mini muffin pans and got about 30 out of them. I’ve never used a blender before for low carb baking and it really made them light and fluffy vs. the dense almond flour products I’m used to. Thank you!!
Carolyn says
I am so glad to hear it!
Nicola Thorburn says
Hi Carolyn, could I use a benchtop donut maker for theses? Or muffin tins?
Carolyn says
You can certainly do it as muffins… I am not sure about electric donut makers, but I know some readers use them.
Jean Wright says
Carolyn, I don’t have a blender. Can I use a hand mixer instead?
Carolyn says
Yep that should work!
Nicole says
Today was the third day in a row I made these donuts! Each day, they came out a little better! I would definitely recommend the batter be on the thinner side. They came out super light and airy that way. I also added a vanilla glaze and increased the sugar (I used 1/2 c of Alluose). Super easy, super fast to make and so delicious! Can this recipe be used for other flavors (I.e. chocolate?).
Nicole says
Forgot to say 5 stars!
Carolyn says
Thank you!
Kathy Cooke says
Great! I subbed cream cheese for the sour cream, since that’s what I had, and used Swerve brown for the sweetener. The batter tasted fantastic, but the final product had a much more subtle flavor. I would try again, maybe doing 1.5x or 2x the sweetener and maybe 1.5x the spices, since I like a stronger flavor. I baked them for 22 minutes in a silicone doughnut pan sitting on a cookie sheet for a yield of 12 doughnuts. Definitely sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture with a heavy hand.
Chas says
Your Chai Spice Donuts were great! The flavor of the spices is delicous. I served warmed with a drizzled glaze and blueberries.
Joan says
What donut pan do you use with 12 donuts? Your link is a pan with 6 donuts. I addition, what brand of sweetener do you recommend for these? Is Skinny Monk OK with allulose and monk fruit combo?
Mel says
hi Carolyn. my daughter has nut allerfy. could i substitutw the almond flour with coconut flour? ive noticed most of your recipes call for almond flour. thank yiu
Carolyn says
No, not in this case. But it’s not true that most of my recipes call for almond flour. Search for my Samoa Donuts and you will see a coconut flour based donut. Use that recipe and add in the spices from this recipe.
Amanda says
These taste awesome. I was having a “I hate gestational diabetes” kind of day and decided to make these. They taste great. Now lets see what they do to my breakfast numbers tomorrow!
Carolyn says
Hope all is well tomorrow. 🙂
Amanda says
2 donuts and 98 at 1 hour post! Whoop whoop! Thanks so much:-)
Carolyn says
Fantastic!!!!
Lynn April says
Glad you found some inspo in my donuts! xoxo
Phalecia Young says
Can you use coconut flour instead of almond flour?
Carolyn says
Not in this particular recipe but you can make the base donut from my Samoa Donuts (https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/2015/03/low-carb-samoa-donuts.html) and then add the spices and the butter and cinnamon “sugar” topping.
Alison Nead says
Hi Carolyn,
I don’t have a donut pan yet. Should I make these into muffins? Thanks for all your amazing recipes!
Carolyn says
You totally could make them into muffins. Not quite sure how long they would bake but a little longer than donuts because the batter is deeper that way. Will probably make 8 to 10 muffins.
Karen says
These look like they’d be great coffee dunkers!