Soft and fluffy vegan donuts rolled in cinnamon sugar and dipped in your sauce of choice. The perfect bite-sized treat!
How are these donuts vegan?
When you eat these you'll never know they're vegan. These taste exactly the same as my regular donut recipe, but there are absolutely no animal products used at all.
Who says you have to miss out when cooking vegan recipes?! This recipe replaces regular milk and butter with plant-based milk and butter alternatives. Because this recipe is so versatile you can pretty much use any plant-based substitute and you'll have some delicious donut balls!
Ingredients
Dough
- All-purpose flour: Flour is used to make up the structure of these donuts! No need to use bread flour here as the donut holes are quite small, and regular flour will make them lighter.
- Plant-based milk: Any kind of plant-based milk will work here. I recommend using soy milk, almond milk, or oat milk!
- Granulated sugar: Sugar gives the dough a little bit of sweetness, you don't need a lot as these will be rolled in sugar and dipped in a sweet sauce.
- Instant yeast: Yeast is what helps the dough to rise to that light and airy texture
- Pinch of salt: Salt balances out the flavor of the dough
- Plant-based butter: Adding butter helps to enrich the dough, giving it a tender texture and moister crumb. Any kind of vegan butter or margarine will work here.
Cinnamon Sugar
- Caster sugar: I like to use caster sugar so the sugar crystals are a little smaller and they cling onto the donut better, but regular granulated sugar works well here too.
- Ground cinnamon: Cinnamon just gives these that warm and comforting flavor. If you aren't a fan of cinnamon feel free to leave this out.
To Serve
- Biscoff: I absolutely love biscoff, and it makes the perfect sweet dipping sauce for your donuts! And it's even better because it's vegan!
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do these last?
These are best when they are freshly fried as they will be warm, crispy, and at their softest texture. I recommend eating them as soon as possible, and within the first day, of making them. As donut holes are a lot smaller than regular donuts they get stale faster.
If you have any leftovers store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. When you're ready to eat them pop them in the air fryer or oven for a couple of minutes until they are warmed through. This will bring back some of that fluffy texture.
Can I make these with regular milk and butter?
Yes! If you aren't vegan or don't have plant-based ingredients at home you can definitely use regular milk and butter. The results will be almost exactly the same!
Why are my vegan donuts so dense?
There are a couple of possible reasons for dense donuts:
- The yeast was dead/too old
- The plant-based milk was too hot and killed the yeast
- The donuts weren't proofed for long enough
Why are my vegan donuts so oily?
There are a couple of main reasons for oily donuts:
- The oil wasn't hot enough when frying, which means the donuts sit in the dough for longer and become oilier
- The donuts were over proofed causing them to absorb more oil when being fried
Can I glaze these instead?
You definitely can make these glazed donuts! Just combine powdered sugar and a splash of lemon juice or water, keeping adding liquid until the glaze becomes a pourable consistency.
To glaze the donuts put them on a wire rack and pour over the glaze! Give them some time to set before you enjoy them!
Can I make these in the air fryer?
While you can air fry these keep in mind that this will make the donut holes much drier. Frying the donuts allows them to keep in a lot of moisture, while baking does the opposite and draws it out.
If you do bake them I recommend coating them in a glaze instead of cinnamon sugar to bring back some of that moisture.
Let's Get Cooking
If you liked this recipe make sure to leave me a comment and rating down below, I would love to know how you went. Also don't forget to tag me on Instagram @catherine.desserts so I can see and share your desserts.
Follow me on facebook, pinterest, youtube and tiktok for more of my baking creations and updates! Until next time... happy caking!
Print📖 Recipe
Vegan Donut Holes
Soft and fluffy vegan donuts rolled in cinnamon sugar and dipped in your sauce of choice. The perfect bite-sized treat!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 20-30 donut holes 1x
- Category: Donut
- Method: Easy
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Dough
- 200g All purpose flour (1 ⅔ cup)
- 125ml Plant-based milk (½ cup)
- 13g Granulated sugar (1 tbsp)
- 4 g Instant yeast (2 tsp)
- Pinch of salt
- 22g Plant-based butter (1 ½ tbsp)
Cinnamon Sugar
- 100g Granulated sugar (½ cup)
- 1 tsp Ground cinnamon
To Serve
- Biscoff, melted (optional)
- Vegan chocolate melted (optional)
Instructions
- Combine the flour, sugar, instant yeast, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook
- Add the lukewarm milk to the dry ingredients and mix until smooth
- Add the butter and mix on medium speed until smooth and elastic, it will take up to 15 mins
- Place the dough in a large oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap
- Place in a warm place for 60 mins, or until doubled in size
- Remove from the bowl and roll the dough into a 1 inch/2.5 cm thick round
- Using a small round cookie cutter cut out the donut holes
- Place the cutout circles on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and cover it with a piece of plastic wrap
- Allow the donut holes to proof for 30 minutes, or until almost doubled in size
- Bring a deep-fryer or heavy-bottomed pot of neutral frying oil to 300F/150C
- Carefully transfer 6-8 donut holes to the oil and fry for 1-2 mins per side, or until golden brown
- Remove from the oil and drain on a cooling rack or paper towel
- Repeat with the remaining donuts
- Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish
- Add the drained donuts to the sugar and roll to coat
- Melt your desired serving sauce of choice; either biscoff or chocolate and enjoy!
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Maiya
The recipe says add water and milk to thr dry ingredients but how much water?
Catherine Zhang
No water just milk! Fixed it up now