Feb 27, 2017
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These apple donuts are a great way to eat more fruit and have fun simultaneously! A healthier snack option than traditional donuts made with apples, chocolate, and your favorite toppings that your family will love.
Making these apple donuts is also a terrific kid-friendly kitchen activity that can be fun at snack time! Grab your apples, and let’s get slicing!
Healthy Apple Donuts
There’s no better healthy apple donuts recipe than one that requires no frying or batter! This recipe uses fresh apples sliced into donut rings as the base, topped with irresistible flavors like chocolate or peanut butter.
Having picky eaters at home, I’m always trying to come up with new fun ways of getting them to eat more fruit, and with this recipe, it’s a win-win for everyone!
And did I tell you that these healthy apple donuts have chocolate? It’s as good as it sounds! You can still enjoy all your favorite toppings AND chocolate.
How to Cut Apples into “Donuts”
By using a knife to slice an apple horizontally and then removing the core in the middle, you’ll be able to cut apples into donuts fast!
First, grab a knife and cut the apples into ⅓ inch-thick slices. Then, remove the core using a round, small cookie cutter, an apple corer, or a melon-baller. If you don’t have any of these, use a knife to carve out the middles.
How to Make Donut Apples
Easy, quick, healthy, delicious: this recipe is everything a busy mom needs for a party snack or a fun dessert. Here is how to make epic these apple donuts:
- Prep the Apples
Cut each apple into ⅓ inch-thick slices and remove the middle with a round, small cookie cutter, apple corer, melon baller, or knife. - Get your toppings ready
Grab a microwave-safe bowl and add the chocolate and the peanut butter. Warm for 30 seconds and stir until the texture is nice and runny to drizzle over the apple slices. - Decorate!
Place the apple slices onto parchment paper and alternate drizzling the white and dark chocolate and the peanut butter over the apple slices using a spoon. Cut the end, and pipe the mixture over the apples. You can also transfer the chocolate and peanut butter mixture to a zip bag. - Add the finishing Touches
Sprinkle the sprinkles and your favorite toppings.
Check out this video to see the healthy donuts come together!
Best Apple Donut Toppings
A sweet apple donut drizzled with chocolate is even better when adding the best toppings! Here are a few ideas to give your apple donuts the final touch:
- Sprinkles
- Mini chocolate chips
- Ground cinnamon
- Raisins
- Granola
- Grated coconut
- Strawberries diced
- Blueberries
- Walnuts chopped
- Almonds chopped
Want more healthy treats kids can make and you can feel good about eating? Check out the Clean Treats Cookbooks!
Clean Treats Cookbook
Healthy and wholesome dessert recipes you’ll want to eat made with clean ingredients you already have on hand.
Grab your copy today!
Healthy Apple Donuts
Ingredients
- 4 green apples washed
- ¼ cup white chocolate melted
- ¼ cup milk chocolate melted
- ¼ cup peanut butter or your favorite, melted
- Sprinkles
Instructions
- Cut apple slices into ⅓ inch-thick slices. With a round, small cookie cutter, apple corer, knife, or melon baller, remove the core.
- Melt chocolate and warm peanut butter in a microwave-safe bowls for 30 seconds, stir until the texture is nice and runny to drizzle over.
- Place apple slices onto parchment paper and alternate drizzling the white and dark chocolate over the apple slices as well as peanut butter. Sprinkle the sprinkles over the top.
Laityn
I love it and everybody else in the family does too!
Min K
I enjoy a plate of sliced apples and cheeses.
Cristina
We put leftover apple slices in the dehydrator and eat them that way or I make my own trail mix and add the dehydrated slices to that.
Melissa
We enjoy our sliced apples in a dip of yogurt, almond (or peanut) butter and cacao nibs.
Talia Bartoe
Apple slices are a popular snack around my house just plain as they are. However, the kids love a creamy peanut butter dip every once in a while.
Abigail Roell
We love apple slice with pb or almond butter, and on occasion, caramel!
lisa franklin
sprinkle them with cinnamon (to keep them from browning and also for a flavor treat or use them in apple cake, apple crisp or apple pie granola
Wendy
We dip our apples in coconut peanut butter mix! If no coconut milk is available, I do cream cheese and nut butter dip!
Val
Just used up some of my apples today by tossing then in to my homemade chicken salad! Yummy!
Laura Fuentes
love apples in chicken salad. yum!
Donna B
I like apples just cut in wedges either alone or with cheddar cheese. Yummm!
Lisa
I love apples slices dipped in peanut butter. Or, peanut butter with a sprinkle of fine chopped granola and mini chocolate chips. My favorite apple dessert is apple crisp.
Charlotte Jordan
I love mine with maple sugar. I live in New England so it’s everywhere right now. Love this recipe thank you
Jen Dalleska
My personal favorite for apple slices is with good old peanut butter-just the way my mom made them for me when I was a kid!
Kate Olson
My boys are big fans of peanut butter with granola too, or just plain! I feel like we go through a crazy amount of apples around here! I’d never thought of slicing in a ring though and can’t wait to try!
Laura Fuentes
Congratulations Kate! You are our winner of the Knife Set giveaway!! Check your email for a message from [email protected].
Kate Olson
Ahhh Thank you!! I am SO excited! It’s Fri-YAY for sure! 🙂
Linda
We like sliced apples with almond butter or peanut butter on them. Yum! This looks really delicious. I’ll order the nature seal so we can have them precut and ready to go for the kids after school snack. Thanks for posting this!
Jacquelyn
We like making apple “sandwiches”. Apple slices like these for the donuts, spread peanut butter on one and then top with another!
Anela
Apples with almond butter and sprinkle chocolate chips. We also use apples in our yogurt bowls along with granola, shredded coconut, strawberries, chocolate chips and drizzled with Nutella.
Melissa
My kids love apple so they usually just eat it row. Your recipe looks very interesting so I will try it soon!
kristina
With peanut butter and granola or raisins on top
Jennie
We are big fans of apple slices + nutella!
Lisa
Being from the Midwest it’s a long standing tradition to pick them fresh in the Fall and enjoy them as is. But, any other time we love apple turnovers or dipped in peanut butter. I’m looking forward to trying this Nature Seal product. I’ve used the lemon juice method in my grandsons lunch and he’s not a big fan of it. I’m lovin’ your donut idea! I’m certain he’ll be a fan!
Laura Fuentes
Oh Lisa, how I envy the ability to go apple picking! He’ll love these I’m sure.
Deanna
As exciting as I’ve ever gotten is peanut butter…. coconut, caramel, chocolate, and pecans sound yummy though.
Sara
These look delicious! We can’t wait to try them. My four year old wants to make them right now even though it’s bedtime.
Christina
Our favorite ways to eat apples are sliced with sea salt, sliced with sharp cheddar cheese, sliced with peanut butter, and homemade apple crisp!
Kristine Davies
looks yummy – we like aplie slices with peanut butter, cinnamon sugar or sharp chedar cheese!
Stacey
When I have just a few slices left, I will toss them in my salad or lunch for the work.
Loren C
Caramel! It makes everything better, especially apple slices
Mone
When I have leftover apple slices, I usually just eat them. As a busy mom, I hate wasting and don’t have time to get creative for myself. I will have to try this recipe with my kids so we can all enjoy them together. I bet there won’t be any leftovers.
Teppie
I love adding chunks of apples to my chicken salad! Yum!
Jane
I like to use apple slices with cinnamon and yogurt to make a smoothie,.
Rachael
Our favorite way to eat apples is dipping them in peanut butter, carmel, chocolate.
Holly
Peanut butter and caramel for us!!
Laura Fuentes
such a great combo.
Lori Barrett
I love mine dipped into caramel!
Bonnie N
My kids’ favorite way to eat apples is whole with the core removed.
Valerie Adkins
My favorite way to eat apples is sliced and dipped in peanut butter or caramel. Yum!
Leah
One of my kids’ favorite treats is when I serve them apple slices with peanut butter for dipping and a few mini chocolate chips to sprinkle on top! They would love these apple “donuts”!
Erin K.
I love sliced apples with a little bit of almond butter. However, these pictures are to die for and I may need to try them ASAP.
Taylor
My favorite ways to eat apples are taking fresh apple slices and putting peanut butter and raisins on them!!
Falon
I LOVE this idea! I am trying it this week since I have apples to use up before our vacation.
Our new favorite way to eat sliced apples is by adding homemade whipped cream on top, drizzled with warm Carmel and sprinkled with pecans. We just had it last night for dessert.
Kathleen Kiyak
I love apple slices with almond butter!
Stacey
My favorite way to eat apple slices is either as they are or drizzled in caramel sauce!!
Sara
Those apple donuts look yummy! I love to eat apple slices with a Greek yogurt/peanut butter dip.
Debbie Hausher
We like to cut up apples & include it with our chicken or tuna salad. It gives a satisfying crunch with the salad and my granddaughter doesn’t realize she is getting fruit & protein all at one time. I’ll have to give the anti-browning powder a try. Thanks for the great tips.
Stacy L
We love apple slices dipped in almond butter. Thanks for the great anti-browning solution!!
Kim
What a great new idea for apples! We enjoy apple slices and cheese as a snack but I’m sure the kids would be open to chocolate and sprinkles!
suzanne
My picky eater enjoys apples sliced with an apple corer and tossed with lemon juice. She loves lemons and I think that’s what’s won her over. I can’t wait to try this recipe foe a special treat! I can’t thank you enough for your picky eater series. Since my daughter started school she has become quite the picky eater – she’s really putting her foot down after seeing her classmates bring candy and chips for ‘snack’. I’ve had to amp up my game and your focus on this topic has been so valuable!
Kailyn Shippee
We love apple slices with almond butter!
Sue Peterson
I love eating apple slices with peanut butter! So yummy!
Naomi
To be honest, my four children love them plain. Almond butter is a special treat. I’m sure if I made these donuts, I would be the best chef in the world to my four children 5 and under. Baby doesn’t eat solids but she might like them too! 🙂
Cathy
I like Gala apples sliced thin, nothing else needed. Thanks for the heads up about NatureSeal – I’ll have to try it!
Reshma R. Shah
My favorite way to eat apples is dipped in instantpot made dulce de leche !
Cristina Moidel
I live apples with peanut butter!
Cristina Moidel
LOVE!
Stacie
My favorite way to eat apples is with peanut butter or just plain ol apple slices. I love the apple doughnut ideas. I will have to make these for my kiddos!
Kristy Tillman
We love making donuts like this! I also cut slices like that and just take out a bit of the core and seeds and use like bread. My son loves then with almond butter & honey and even roast beef.
Alex
I love apple slices dipped in almond butter! Get the salted kind, it makes a big difference. Also, if you use a very sharp knife to cut the apple slices, you can get a day before they begin to brown. Any longer than that and you’ll want to use an anti-browning dip when you slice them.
Tandra
One of our favorites is ooey gooey apples, as we call it. We warm up the apples with some almond butter, shredded coconut, granola, and some dried fruit!
Jody
How cute and delicious…thanks for sharing! I love to eat apple slices with nut butter or cut up wth cinnamon and honey!
AnnEllen
Okay, that is totally awesome idea for doughnuts. And a little chocolate is a super idea, moderation is the tone. One of my favorite snack/meal, goes back to my Weight Watcher beginning days. I love my food to have texture, so instead of typical PBJ I eat Granny Smith apple slices, and dip them in a couple of tablespoons of crunchy peanut butter on my plate, no utensils, and great on hot summer days, or quick lunch when I don’t get the full lunch time. Easy to pack also.
SG
We slice and drizzle with chocolate’s, caramel, chopped nuts and call it apple nachos.
Rachel Matthews
Okay, how have I NEVER heard of Nature Seal before? I must have this! My kids are apple obsessed, and they love slicing them with our mandolin and eating them, but they brown so quickly! These apple donuts are too cute! We used to do something similar in girl scouts and I’d completely forgotten about it 🙂 Yes, sprinkles make everything better 🙂 LOL
While my dad was living in Australia, he introduced the kids to fairy toast – cinnamon toast with sprinkles – I think they wanted it every day for a year! LOL
We love apple slices with almond butter, and apple slices with popcorn <3 YUM
megan m
Covered in peanut butter and honey!
Stepphanie
oh. i forgot to add that I bought a pack of the browning packets. I am looking forward to trying them for my meal prep each week!
Stepphanie
I made these today with nut free butter. they were great! Thank you for the idea Laura!
Wendy
These are adorable! Favorite way to eat apples in our house is sliced and dipped in sun butter!
Kim Brancato
melted PB with shredded coconut is my fav! But, my kids love it with butterscotch chips!
Patrice
so if I eat a whole apple with half the jar of PB, is it still healthy?? I’m kidding. These look awesome. thanks for another winning snack Laura.
John
I’m going to have to check out this anti-browning solution powder. I use the guacamole one you shared a while ago all the time so thanks for introducing me to another product that makes my meal prep easier. I”m not a mom, just a body building guy that loves your recipes so thanks for sharing this tip!
Jenna
I just made these, and you are right! they browned for me because i didn’t have the solution! but we ate them immediately so the kids thought it was fine. What a great idea of using natural minerals to keep them from browning.
Ella
These look AMAZING Laura!!! genius
Cheryl
My favorite ways to eat apple slices are fresh and in apple pie.