3 Protein Foods For Fall

Cooler weather, orange gourds, kindling fires, chunky knits—fall’s all about embracing the warm and cozy. Don’t let your diet ruin all of the fun! Satisfy your sweet tooth and keep your macros on track with these seasonal favorites.

1. Applesauce Protein Cake

When I got the request to “healthify” Grandma’s applesauce cake, I didn’t take the mission lightly. After several tries, I finally came up with the glorious dessert I was after. It has all the flavor, half the calories, twice the protein, and a fraction of the sugar of Grandma’s original.

This sweet-spiced cake is moist and filled with lots of plump raisins and crunchy pecans. This is one recipe I plan to make again and again!

Ingredients

• Vanilla or unflavored protein powder: 90 g
• Coconut flour: 1/4 cup
• Pyure organic Stevia blend: 6 tbsp
• Baking powder: 1/2 tsp
• Baking soda: 1/4 tsp
• Cinnamon, ground: 1/2 tsp
• Nutmeg, ground: 1/4 tsp
• Allspice, ground: 1/8 tsp
• Unsweetened applesauce: 3/4 cup
• Egg whites: 1/4 cup
• Chopped pecans: 1/4 cup
• Seedless raisins: 1/4 cup
• Salt (optional): 1/4 tsp

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.
3. Add the wet ingredients, and mix until combined.
4. Stir in the chopped pecans and raisins.
5. Pour the batter into a 7×5 or 8×6 baking dish lightly coated with cooking spray.
6. Bake for 30-40 minutes until the center is set but a toothpick or knife inserted comes out slightly dirty. (Overcooking will result in an overly dry cake).
7. Cut into 8 pieces and enjoy!
8. Store any leftovers in the freezer up to one month, and reheat them right before eating.

Nutrition Facts

• Serving size: 1 square
• Recipe yields 8 servings
• Calories: 109
• Fat: 3.9 g
• Carbs: 10 g
• Protein: 9 g

2. Snickerdoodle Protein Cookies

When you accidentally create the perfect soft-baked snickerdoodle protein cookie, you can’t wait until Christmas. These cookies are chewy, with an almost-gooey middle and crisp edges—they’re the perfect consistency, if you ask me. I am in love with that cinnamon-sugar flavor, too.

Did I mention each cookie is only 75 calories with 6 grams of protein?

Ingredients

• Vanilla protein powder: 80 g
• Coconut flour: 6 tbsp
• Pyure organic Stevia blend: 1/4 cup
• Baking soda: 1/4 tsp
• Creamy cashew butter: 1/4 cup
• Egg white: 2 tbsp
• VitaFiber or sugar-free maple syrup: 1 tbsp
• Vanilla extract: 1/4 tsp
• Water: 2 tbsp
• Butter extract (optional): 1/4 tsp
• Salt (optional): 1/4 tsp
• Pyure organic Stevia blend or granulated sugar: 1/4 tsp
• Cinnamon: 1/4 tsp

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients in a small mixing bowl.
3. Mix in the wet ingredients and water until a thick dough is formed. You may need more or less water depending on protein powder used.
4. Lightly coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
5. Roll the dough into balls of a rounded tablespoon each, and place them on a baking sheet 2 inches apart.
6. Use a fork to flatten the cookies in a crisscross pattern, then sprinkle them with sweetener and cinnamon.
7. Bake for 6-8 minutes until the edges are firm but the center is still quite soft. Cookies will set as they cool.
8. Enjoy your cookies immediately, or store them at room temperature in an airtight container for up to one week.

Nutrition Facts

• Serving size: 1 cookie
• Recipe yields: 12 servings
• Calories: 75
• Fat: 3.6 g
• Carbs: 6 g
• Protein: 6 g

3. Maple-Glazed Pumpkin Spice Protein Donuts

When it’s fall, I want all things maple, apple, caramel, pumpkin spice, and everything nice! These incredible protein doughnuts help satisfy a few of those cravings with a maple glaze, moist pumpkin cake, and spices of the season: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves.

This scores as one of my top five favorite protein-doughnut recipes! It’s deceiving how unhealthy these taste! Each doughnut has less than 120 calories, 12 grams of protein, and just over 4 grams of fat.

Ingredients

• Unflavored protein powder: 60 g
• Granular erythritol: 1/2 cup
• Coconut flour: 3 tbsp
• Baking powder: 1/2 tsp
• Baking soda: 1/4 tsp
• Cinnamon, ground: 1/2 tsp
• Ginger, ground: 1/4 tsp
• Nutmeg, ground: 1/4 tsp
• Cloves, ground: 1/8 tsp
• Egg whites: 2 large
• Canned pure pumpkin: 1/4 cup
• Coconut oil (or vegetable oil, butter, ghee, vegan buttery spread): 1 tbsp
• Salt (optional): 1/4 tsp

Glaze Ingredients

• 30g unflavored protein powder: 30 g
• 2-3 tbsp. Confectioner’s erythritol: 2-3 tbsp to taste
• Sugar-free maple syrup: 2 tbsp
• Unsweetened almond milk: 1 tbsp
• Maple extract, optional: 1/2 tsp

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients.
3. In a separate bowl, mix in the wet ingredients. The batter will be thick, almost like a dough.
4. Spoon the batter into a Ziploc bag, seal it, and cut off one corner to make a piping bag.
5. Coat six wells of a doughnut pan with cooking spray.
6. Pipe the batter into the wells using your “piping bag” (or an actual piping bag if you have one).
7. Bake the doughnuts for 8-12 minutes or until firm.
8. Meanwhile, combine the ingredients to make the glaze and put glaze in fridge.
9. Once donuts have cooled, spread with glaze and enjoy!
10. Store in the fridge for up to one week or in the freezer up to one month (without glaze).

Nutrition Facts

• Serving size: 1 doughnut
• Recipe yields 6 servings
• Calories: 117
• Fat: 4.1 g
• Carbs: 10 g
• Protein: 12 g