I always get super excited about holiday baking. In the fall, before Thanksgiving, I want pumpkin everything, and then as December approaches I almost always go in the direction of salted caramel. This year, though, I've really been feeling the combination of peppermint and chocolate.

Last month, Bob's Red Mill sent me some of their flours and asked me to bake something holiday-inspired, so I dusted off the ol' donut pan and got to work. I love their almond flour and use it all the time in my kitchen--I love that it's naturally gluten-free and low in carbs, which is especially great when you plan to dip your finished product in chocolate and then dust everything with crushed candy canes. Balance, right?

It's kind of great, though--I always associate almond flour with strictly Paleo recipes, but it works just as well when you're using conventional baking ingredients like sugar and white chocolate. So, I suppose now is a good time for this disclaimer: the following donuts are definitely grain-free, but they are in no way Paleo-friendly. Because sugar. Hey, it's the most wonderful time of the year.

Grain-Free Chocolate Peppermint Baked Donuts (adapted from this Bob's Red Mill Almond Cake recipe)

Ingredients: 

For the donuts:

• 1 1/2 cups Bob's Red Mill Almond Flour (grab a coupon here)
• 1/2 cup coconut flour (I used Bob's Red Mill for this, too)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• A pinch of salt
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder (unsweetened)
• 3/4 cup softened butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk (I kept it dairy-free with the coconut creamer I sometimes put in my coffee)
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract

For the white chocolate glaze and toppings:

• 12 ounces white chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 6-8 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1-2 candy canes, crushed
• Red and/or green sprinkles (optional)

Instructions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing each until it's combined.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, and salt together. 
4. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ones. Mix until incorporated. Add the cocoa powder and peppermint extract.
5. Pipe batter into a donut pan and bake for about 20 minutes, or until you can poke one of the donuts with a knife and it comes out clean. (If you don't have a piping bag you can easily use a plastic freezer bag. To keep the batter from getting all over my hands, I like to put the bag in a big glass, then fold the edges over the side of glass before spooning the batter into the bag. Remove the bag, twist the top to secure the batter, and use a pair of scissors to cut the corner off the bag and voila! A homemade piping bag.)
6. When the donuts are done baking, remove from oven and allow to cool. Sometimes they pop right out of the donut pan, other times they need to cool completely, then you can transfer them to a cooling rack.
7. To make the white chocolate glaze, melt the white chocolate chips on low in a small saucepan. Add peppermint extract and continually stir until liquid. While that's going, you can melt semi-sweet chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave. Remove the white chocolate from heat and working quickly, dip one side of each donut in the melted white chocolate. Drizzle semi-sweet chocolate, if desired, and top with crushed candy canes and/or sprinkles.

Happy holidays, and happy baking!

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.