These delicious Gluten Free Donuts are a perfect guilt free treat that satisfies your sweet cravings! They're a delightful gluten and dairy free option that's sure to brighten your day with every bite!
Why you'll love this Gluten Free Donut Recipe!
- They're so easy to make! No frying involved, just simple baking.
- They don't take long at all to make, and they only need about 10 minutes of baking time!
Ingredients Needed for Gluten Free Donuts
- Palm Shortening
- Coconut Sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- Almond Milk
- Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
- Nutmeg
- Salt
- Baking Soda
- Baking Powder
See the recipe card for quantities!
If you're unsure of which palm shortening, this palm shortening by Nutiva is a great one to use. Their palm shortening takes care not to contribute to habitat destruction or deforestation, which you can read about on their website and see on their product labels.
Keep in mind all purpose gluten free flours vary somewhat!
Pamela's All Purpose Gluten Free Flour is a all purpose gluten free flour I really like. The donut texture and taste is great with this brand! They don't crumble and fall apart or get hard fast when stored properly.
Other brands I've tried had a good taste but fell apart very easily, and barely held together when it came time to frost them. No issues with Pamela's!
Substitutions
- If you need a grain free donut, you can try using Cassava flour in place of the all purpose gluten free flour.
- While almond milk has the right consistency needed for these donuts, you can try other milks in it's place. Raw milk works if you are not dairy free!
How to Make
Start by preheating the oven.
In a large mixing bowl, beat together all of the wet ingredients, including the coconut sugar, on low.
In a separate mixing bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients.
While running the beater on low in the wet ingredients, slowly add in the dry ingredients until fully incorporated. I like to take spoonful's of it with a wooden spoon and add it in. Be sure to stop as soon as it's thoroughly mixed.
Now it's time to fill the donut pan! If you have a piping bag you can use that, otherwise take a sandwich bag and cut off a little bit of the edge on either of the bottom corners.
Fill the bag with the batter and squeeze it through the hole and into the donut pan. You should have enough batter to go around the holes at least twice, depending on the hole size.
Bake for about 10 minutes, or until a toothpick or knife comes out clean. Enjoy!
Serving Options
The best way to serve these donuts is with frosting of course! Basically all of the frosting you'd find at regular grocery stores contain high amounts of cane sugar, unnatural forms of sugar, soy, and worse.
- I particularly like to use the frosting mixes from Whole Foods. They have chocolate and vanilla, which are SO delicious!
- Probably the cleanest pre-made frostings are those by Simple Mills. They have chocolate and vanilla with very clean ingredients, and outside of the powdered sugar, they would be considered paleo.
- If you decide to frost them, then sprinkles are a must! Watkins sprinkles are free of artificial dyes which is a huge plus!
- Sprinkle on a cinnamon and sugar mixture in the last 5 minutes of baking for a delicious topping without frosting.
Tools Needed
- Mixing Bowls
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Beater
- Donut Pan
- Piping bags or sandwich sized zip lock baggies.
This is the pan I have, and I love it! It's a great size and easy to clean too. It can clean in the dishwasher, or easily by hand. It's heat proof up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, so no worries of it melting.
Piping Bags
To make these plain gluten free donuts, you'll need to use something to pipe them into the donut pan. One option is to cut off the tip of a gallon or sandwich sized zip lock bag.
If possible, use reusable piping bags! They're better for our environment since they are reusable, and less plastic is always a win. Plus, you'll have them for many other baking projects, such as cake or cupcake decorating, or even cookie decorating!
Storage
While these are definitely best served the same day they've been baked, you can store them.
Either place them in an airtight container with the lid on securely, or place them on a platter or plate and fully seal them with saran wrap.
They'll last up to 5 days this way.
There is! It's very hard to find them in bakeries and even in donut shops, but you can certainly make them, and this recipe is completely gluten free!
Most all donuts do require flour, but you can use a gluten free or even a grain free flour. This recipe uses all-purpose gluten free flour, but see above under Substitutions for a grain free swap!
It typically does not, but read your labels to be sure! It typically contains corn starch which is a gluten free grain.
I have only tried making it about an hour before baking it, but if you try it more in advance than that, be sure to share the results in the comments below!
I recommend eating them the same day, but if you wrap them properly they'll taste fresh and soft for up to 3 days.
More Gluten Free Desserts to Try
- Gluten Free Strawberry Crisp
- Gluten Free Apple Crisp
- Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie
- Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies
Gluten Free Donuts
Ingredients
- ½ + ⅓ cups Coconut sugar
- ½ cup Palm Shortening
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup almond milk
- 2 ⅔ cups Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
- 1.5 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¾ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 425F degrees.
- In a medium mixing bowl, beat together all of the wet ingredients plus the sugar until completely mixed.
- In a separate bowl, mix the baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt. Mix well.
- Add in the flour little by little into the wet mixture while mixing with the beaters. As soon as it's fully incorporated stop mixing so as to not overmix.
- Pour the batter into a gallon sized ziplock bag with the tip cut off, or use reusable piping bag. Squeeze the batter evenly into the donut molds, don't overfill them. You should be able to go around each donut hole twice.
- Place the mold in the oven. Bake the doughnuts for 10 minutes or until a toothpick or knife comes out clean when inserted into the donuts.
- Remove from the oven and let cool a bit. Gently remove the donuts from the pan. When cooled enough, frost the donuts and serve!
If you're interested in more Paleo or Gluten Free sweet treats, check them out here!
Did you make these plain gluten free donuts? If so, let me know down below in the comments! I'd love to hear how they came out, and how you served them!
Feel free to take a picture and post it on Instagram! Tag me @thecleanhappylife so I can see your creations and re-share them!
What other flavors of donuts would you like to see next?
Areil says
I'm gluten free so this is so helpful. Thanks!
Rachel Rivera says
Oh fabulous! I hope you enjoy it!
Lisa says
Gluten free options are always good to have around, especially with so many good sensitivities these days. Thanks for the recipe!
Rachel Rivera says
Oh yes! So many allergies and sensitivities at every gathering now a days, it's definitely nice to have some good gluten and dairy free recipes on hand!
Heather says
Oh my, these look amazing! I’m usually not much of a baker because I hate measuring but I can make an exception for these donuts!
thecleanhappylife says
Ooooh yes, so worth it!
Kali Allen says
I had no idea they made donut pans! Makes sense though. There are pans for everything. I love that this is dairy free! I am allergic to almond milk so I will try to make it with cashew milk. My husband has been asking for homemade donuts. I can’t wait!
thecleanhappylife says
So much easier to store a pan vs an entire new kitchen gadget!! Enjoy them!!
Rachael says
These look amazing. I need to make them!
thecleanhappylife says
Thanks I hope you enjoy them!
Meg says
These look absolutely delicious! I can’t wait to try them!!
thecleanhappylife says
Hope you enjoy them! Much healthier and still tasty!
Mimmie says
These look absolutely delicious! Can’t wait to try them 😍
thecleanhappylife says
Thanks for checking them out! Hope you enjoy 😋
Scott Harrison Rees says
I’m SOLD. Looks amazing.
thecleanhappylife says
Thank you!!
Sophy says
Ohh these look amazing! Will definitely have to give them a go! X
Rachel Rivera says
Yes I hope you enjoy them! So delicoious!