Healthy Baked Donuts for Easter

Light and fluffy cake-like donuts with a fresh strawberry flavor, topped with crunchy All-Bran cereal and sweet chocolate eggs to look like a bird nest. These healthy baked donuts are as fun to make as they are to eat! Sure, traditional Easter recipes like hot crossed buns and roast lamb are fine, but you can't beat a little cuteness at this time of year, right?

Healthy Baked Donuts for Easter. Cute Easter idea for strawberry donuts topped with All Bran and chocolate eggs to look like a bird nest.

Recently, I've been craving donuts more than I ever have in my entire life. Donuts aren't usually my sweet treat of choice. Although I do have a super weak spot for these Skinny Red Velvet Baked Donuts. But over the past week, I just haven't been able to get enough of them. I want donuts for breakfast. I want donuts for a snack. I even want donuts while I'm eating donuts. That's how bad this craving has got!

If I was eating ordinary fried donuts, satisfying my craving would definitely not be possible. Not in a world where I can still fit into my skinny jeans, anyway. But thanks to the invention of healthy baked donuts, I can happily nibble away without notching up excessive calories. Plus, with the addition of some heart-healthy fibre-packed All-Bran cereal sprinkled on the top to create the bird nest, these donuts are practically health food...Right?...Right!

Healthy Baked Donuts for Easter. Cute Easter idea for strawberry donuts topped with All Bran and chocolate eggs to look like a bird nest.

Not only are baked donuts much better for you than the fried ones, but they're so much easier to make, too. No piping batter into crazy hot bubbling oil. All you need to do is pipe (or scoop, if you're lazy, cheap and don't want to use piping bags unnecessarily like me) your batter into a donut pan and pop it into the oven.

I use this Wilton non-stick 6-cavity donut pan. It genuinely is non-stick and the donuts always pop out like a dream! I've also got the mini version: the Wilton non-stick 12-cavity donut pan. Again, it's genuinely non stick and is perfect for making bite-size donuts for snacking on.

Healthy Baked Donuts for Easter. Cute Easter idea for strawberry donuts topped with All Bran and chocolate eggs to look like a bird nest.

These healthy baked donuts aren't my first attempt at turning an ordinary recipe into a cute house for a bird. I did pretty much the same with these Chocolate Love Bird Cupcakes For Two. The result was so ridiculously cute that I couldn't help giving it another shot and that's how we've ended up with these donuts!

One of my favourite things about these healthy baked donuts is how much they grew and fluffed up in the oven. This is the first time I've ever made such huge donuts and definitely think it was down to the baking powder, so don't skimp on it!

Healthy Baked Donuts for Easter. Cute Easter idea for strawberry donuts topped with All Bran and chocolate eggs to look like a bird nest.

What are your favourite things to bake or cook around Easter?

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📖 Recipe

Healthy Baked Donuts for Easter. Cute Easter idea for strawberry donuts topped with All Bran and chocolate eggs to look like a bird nest.

Skinny Baked Strawberry Bird Nest Donuts

5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 6 large donuts

Ingredients

for the donuts

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • â…“ cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • â…“ cup skimmed milk
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable/sunflower oil
  • 6 large fresh strawberries chopped into small pieces

for the topping

  • 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • crushed up All-Bran cereal
  • 18 Cadbury chocolate mini eggs

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 430F/220C and grease six moulds of a donut pan lightly with butter.
  • In one bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Crack in the egg and pour in the milk, oil and chopped up strawberries.
  • Beat the mixture for a couple of minutes until all the ingredients are combined. Don't over-mix or you'll end up with tough donuts.
  • Scoop or pipe the mixture evenly into the six moulds and bake in the pre-heated oven for 10 minutes, until the donuts are puffed up and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center. Pop the donuts out of the pan and leave to cool on a wire rack for at least one hour.
  • When cooled, mix the powdered sugar and water together in a wide, shallow bowl. In turn, dip one side of each donut into the powdered sugar-water mix then dip into the crushed up All-Bran cereal. Place three chocolate mini eggs into the centre of each donut and enjoy.

Notes

These donuts store well at room temperature or in the fridge inside a sealed container for up to five days.

Pin these healthy baked donuts for Easter on Pinterest:

Healthy Baked Donuts for Easter. Cute Easter idea for strawberry donuts topped with All Bran and chocolate eggs to look like a bird nest.

About Nicola

I’m Nicola, the face behind Happy Healthy Motivated – your go-to guide to becoming your best you!
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  1. Erin @ Miss Scrambled Egg

    Nicola - I do love holidays especially for the food. You've also convinced me that I need to get a donut pan for the oven. These are adorable. 🙂

    • Nicola Quinn

      Holiday baking is one of my favourite types of baking. And I can't believe you haven't got a donut pan! I've got an ordinary sized donut pan and a mini one - definitely recommend both. Mini donuts are so cute!

  2. Sharon - Her Organized Chaos

    Oh my goodness... I am making these today! I have always wanted to make donuts and this will make me try it because I know my kiddies will love it. Pinning and sharing. This would be perfect to share at Totally Terrific Tuesday. It goes live tonight at 9pm CST! I hope to see you there!

    Sharon
    herorganizedchaos.com

    • Nicola Quinn

      Thank you so much for the pin, Sharon! I hope you and your little ones love them as much as I did 🙂

  3. Thao @ In Good Flavor

    This is so cute!! I like how creative you were by incorporating the All-Bran cereal.

    • Nicola Quinn

      Thank you so much, Thao 🙂

  4. Krissy @ Pretty Wee Things

    YUM!! I love how sweet these look!

    • Nicola Quinn

      Thanks, Kirssy! I love cute food that's super-easy to make 🙂

  5. All that's Jas

    Oh, those are so cute! And yes, two please, one for each hip, LOL. Thank you for linking up at Thursday Favorite Things!

  6. Miz Helen

    What a great presentation for these fabulous donuts! Your post is awesome and thank you so much for sharing it with Full Plate Thursday.
    Happy Spring!
    Miz Helen

    • Nicola Quinn

      Thank you so much, Helen. Happy spring to you, too!

  7. Emily @ mommysnotperfect.com

    These look so good and love that they're on the healthier side! I'm gonna have to get a donut pan and try these out.

    • Nicola

      Thanks, Emily! Donut pans are so awesome - you really must get yourself one!

  8. Miz Helen

    Your Bird Nest Donuts look adorable and delicious! Hope you have a very special week and thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
    Miz Helen

    • Nicola

      Thanks so much, Helen! I hope you have a fabulous Easter weekend, too 🙂

  9. nikki@soulfullymade

    These are so cute and festive! I love strawberries and these looks so amazing! Easter is one of my favorite times to create special treats for my family! These will be perfect!

    • Nicola

      Thanks so much, Nikki! I love experimenting with festive themed treats, too.

  10. Shashi at Savory Spin

    Personally, I prefer baked donuts over fried ones - not just cos they are healthier and easier to make but they taste more cakey and I adore cake! Speaking of adore - these little birds nests with bran are adorable! Such a festive, treat - and so brilliant!

    • Nicola

      I know exactly what you mean, Shashi! Sometimes when donuts are fried, they just taste greasy and ick. Glad you like mine! 🙂

  11. Katie | Healthy Seasonal Recipes

    I was just looking at donut pans the other day, and the ones I saw were so giant, that I didn't get them. Thank you for sharing which one you used. I would much prefer that size.

    • Nicola

      I'm so happy you found my links useful, Katie! But now all I can think about is how amazing a giant donut pan would be!!

  12. Pretty

    Love that these are baked and the topping is so cute! A guilt-free treat!

    • Nicola

      Thanks so much! 🙂

  13. Alyssa

    These are absolutely adorable and now you have me yearning for a donut pan!

    • Nicola

      You really should get one, Alyssa. They'll change your baking habits forever!

  14. Michelle @ Vitamin Sunshine

    I have been meaning to buy a standard size donut pan! I have the mini one you mentioned, and it just isn't the same as making a full sized donut 🙂

    • Nicola

      With a larger donut pan, you do get much fluffier donuts. But then you can't eat 3 in one sitting, like you can with the mini ones!

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