The healthiest mini gluten-free vegan baked donuts made with oat flour, sweetened with dates, and coated with any one of 10+ refined-sugar alternatives!
A powdered sugar donut without any sugar? Blasphemy!
I apologize to all traditional donuts and donut eaters I may have offended, but these very unorthodox Mini Powdered Vegan Baked Donuts happened, and…well…I can’t keep this powdery sweet secret to myself!
I probably already offended some just by spelling DOughNUT as donut. But who says ugh in the middle of a donut? Certainly not me.
Vegan Baked Donuts
Glazed donuts are great, but those tubes of white cakey sweet snow-covered mini donuts were always my favorite. I could never eat them without my entire face getting involved–sugar everywhere!
The last donut recipe on FF was over a year ago–this little cinnamon coconut sugar number. But those weren’t fruit sweetened nor were they made with oat flour, so of course that needed to happen. This new peek-through-pastry is gluten-free, oil-free, and fruit-sweetened.
Coating Options
Dates are an easy way to sweeten the actual donut naturally, but the coating is a little trickier. Of course you can just use powdered sugar, but I experimented with lots of different powdery coating options.
Here are some ideas listed in order form most normal to most out there…
–Powdered sugar
–Coconut milk powder or soy milk powder
-Date sugar or coconut sugar blitzed in a blender
-Unsweetened shredded coconut blitzed in a blender
-Vanilla protein powder (I love Ka’chava)
–Lucuma powder
-Tapioca starch (not super flavorful, but not bad either)
Or if you are open to branching out into other flavors…
–Cacao powder
–Carob powder
–Powdered peanut butter
Giveaway!
No donut pan? You can always make donut holes in a mini muffin pan. Or enter my GIVEAWAY below for a mini donut pan and then you will have the ability to donut for the rest of your life!
In the video you’ll see my flexy red donut pan, which I am really not a fan of. It’s just always flopping and flexing all over the place threatening to dump batter on the floor. I don’t want to curse you with that silicon structure-less situation, so I’m giving away a much more reliable donut pan: the Mini Wilton Non-Stick Donut Pan.
This post is not sponsored or anything like that, I just know the world of baking possibilities that opens up with a donut pan and I want you to be able to make healthy homemade vegan baked donuts too!
Vegan Mini Powdered Donuts
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 10 -12 1x
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup oat flour
- 12–14 pitted Medjool dates
- 1/2 cup non-dairy milk
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp tapioca starch (or cornstarch)
- Powdered sugar for coating (or see other options above)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Blend the dates and non-dairy milk on high until there are no chunks of date remaining.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the oat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and tapioca starch. Stir.
- Add the vanilla extract, lemon juice, and date mixture. Mix till well combined.
- Spoon into a lightly oiled mini muffin pan. If you don’t have a donut pan you can use a mini muffin pan to make donut holes.
- Bake for 10 mins at 350F.
- Remove from the oven. Cool. Then dip in the powdered sugar to coat right before eating.
>>> Pin It <<<
I don’t know where to start!! First, I love all those options for powdered mini donuts! I even have coconut milk powder at home, but I would have never thought of that. Also the donut pan is awesome! I don’t have one, so I’m totally entering that giveaway. 🙂
I love donuts glazed in dark chocolate – I sprinkled some popped quinoa on top last time and that looked super cute.
Well now I want you to win so that you will post a recipe for dark chocolate glazed quinoa-sprinkled mini donuts! Because that sounds AMAZING! I love crunchy toppings, I almost did a chocolate glaze with chia sprinkles on these, but I was trying to stick to powdery things. Oh and the powdered coconut milk instead of powdered sugar is Audrey’s idea. She’s one smart cookie…or more like one smart cake 😀
Hi Natalie, The toppings on your mini donuts are so creative. How do you make/get chia sprinkles and how do I get popped quinoa?
By chia sprinkles, I just mean plain chia seeds sprinkled on top. They have that same size and texture as little round sprinkles. And popped quinoa is made by putting dry quinoa in a pan on the stove until it begins to pop. Be careful it is easy to burn. There are many tutorials if you google it!
How do you make popped quinoa? Also do you have any idea if these can be made with another gluten free flour? (I can’t eat oats or wheat). Thanks.
My favorite powdered doughnuts growing up were those crazy white sweet mini dessert bombs in the white box with the plastic see though window…Little Debbie! That woman knew her doughnuts! The doughnut kinda sucked, but that sugar coating was bliss!
Yes yes the window! The window through which you could watch those sugar bombs disappear all to fast 😀 Those were my fave too! Oh who cares what’s inside, I just wanted that SUGAR! But I thought they were Hostess? Or maybe they both did them.
Yeah, they both still make the mini donuts. They have them with powered sugar, enrobed in chocolate, and also cinnamon. I always bought the Little Debbie ones because they’re just as good, if not better than Hostess, but less expensive. 🙂
Love that thee don’t even have sugar and heck–they are gluten-free to boot. Pinning!
Yes they are! I almost put that in the title too, but it was getting a little long. Thanks for pinning Letty!
Yay! I’ve been wondering what to do with my doughnut pan (normal sized, that is) and this looks so amazing and scrumptious! The powdery doughnuts were always some of my favourites, and I’m so sad I saw this after switching off the oven for the night, but it’s definitely happening!
As for the toppings, I need to get my paws on powdered peanut butter, it sounds amazing.
Yum yum! I don’t know that I’m eligible for the giveaway, but even if not these are still great 😀
Oh good point, I didn’t specify international or US only. Oh well, if you want to enter go for it! Although perhaps if I should ship you anything overseas it should be powdered PB and some mulberries! Mini doesn’t taste any different than full size, and full size means more donut!
LOL, mulberries in the post would be possibly a cause for a public holiday!
And there’s definitely everything right with the idea of more doughnut, especially if they look like this! (no matter the spelling 😉 )
Oh how adorable are these! I could just dunk them all in coffee <3 I can only imagine the deliciousness of coating them in dark cocoa powder and peanut flour, because chocolate and pb!!!
Powdered Reese’s Donut! Genius! Plus just that name would get anyone’s attention. The cocoa powder option is one of my favorites, I love that slightly bitter taste <3
I want those right now! I’m having a doughnut moment and may have to take my doughnut pan out and make these. Fabulous, absolutely fabulous, Natalie!
Well I was having a broccoli cheese moment this morning, I guess it’s just afternoon now so the cravings have switched to dessert 😀 Thank you Linda!
I love donuts. These look so wholesome and I appreciate your recipes for being so delicious and wholesome! I’ll be making these soon.
(Okay I’m sorry for this, but I can’t help the bad pun that is about to follow) Yes they are very HOLEsome! 😀 lol
I used to love these in my pre-vegan days! Can’t wait to try these ones out!
I can’t guarantee an exact Hostess match, it’s been too long, but they are pretty darn tasty!
Yum these sound and look so good, great ingredients! 🙂
Thank you Amy!
Have always wanted to try baking doughnuts like these! Especially now as I set off on recovery! Deep breaths and lots of holes 😉 lots of room for progress.
“Deep breaths and lots of holes” haha I love that! Donut metaphor 😀 Good luck, you got this, and enjoy all the yumminess!
Mmm the protein powder sounds good on the donuts
I’m glad you agree, I was worried people were going to be like huuuuhh?? I’m pretty picky on protein powders, but if you have a good one it tastes yum 🙂
Natalie – my goodness are these gorgeous!! Well done, my friend. These pics are stunning and I want to shove every single one of those donuts straight into my face right now! Every single time I’m at the store, I pick up a donut pan and stare at it and gawk at it and think of all the recipes floating around in my head that I could make with it and…..then I put it down. Ugh! Next time I need to JUST BUY IT! And when I do, these babies are first on my list of things to make!
That was me for the longest time too! Thinking “Do I really NEED baked goods in another shape??” The answer is yes. Yes you do. I would love to see some awesome donut recipes from you! And thank you 🙂
I think you are right! I do NEED it!! 🙂
Oh my gosh! I love that this donut recipe is free from everything I try to avoid (sugar, wheat, and of course it’s vegan :D) but I love it even more that you’re giving away a donut pan! I’ve been searching high and low for one here but haven’t found one yet. Is your giveaway open internationally? Please say yes 🙂 haha <3
★★★★★
Oh, and I would love to coat these donuts in PB2! That would be amazing <3
I forgot to specify that, so yes yes it is international! I’m deciding right now, partially swayed by how much I would love for you to win haha! You’re so good at all things breakfast, as I recently found out, so obvs a donut pan is a must in the Vie de la Vegan kitchen! 🙂
These are so pretty Natalie, they look incredible!! Thank you SO much for not calling them sugar donuts too, since they are not coated with sugar! I love the idea of coating them with lucuma powder, I LOVE that stuff, it is so delicious straight out of the bag! I love donuts, one of my all-time favorite indulgent foods but I haven’t had one in quite awhile since I don’t eat fried crap really anymore, haha. These are so healthy that they are totally guilt-free, now that is what I’m talking about!
Thank you Brandi! Turns out ‘mini powdered’ is better than ‘mini powdered sugar’ for SEO anyways 🙂 Really anything with the word sugar in the name should probably not ever have been a food lol! I have had the same little pouch of lucuma for so long it’s not even funny. I love it but what do you do with it?? I mean donuts of course, but what else!? Need to work on that. Anyways, yay for healthy donuts! Again more breakfast foods that now actually are breakfast acceptable. I was even surprised by how many alternative powdery coatings there really are!
Oh my goodness Natalie!!!!! These are such a dream come true for me! They look sooooo amazing, and I love how healthy they are! This is such an amazing recipe, and the donuts look so beautiful. I can’t wait to try them!
★★★★★
Thank you Harriet! It was such a messy photoshoot, powdery fingers every time I repositioned them haha, but I don’t mind 🙂