Easy Homemade Vegan Donuts Recipe (Oven Baked)
Apr 30, 2019 • Updated Jul 11, 2024
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A delicious and healthy Meyer Lemon Vegan Donut Recipe with Blackberry Chia Jam. These gluten free donuts are so much fun to make, come together easily, and are baked instead of deep-fried!
What Makes This Recipe Great
inspired by an incredible donut I had while I was in Arizona (see photos in the Arizona Travel Guide), and when I got home, I knew I needed to try my hand at making a batch. The lovely ladies who served me my donuts hinted that the flour blend was gluten-free but also nut-free. They mentioned chickpea flour, rice flour, and arrowroot, all ingredients that I love and love to bake with and I’ve used in this recipe.
These Meyer Lemon Vegan Donuts are baked, so inevitably they will be different in texture compared to your deep-fried, glutinous, traditional doughnut, but they make for a perfect sweet treat with a great fluffy texture. In addition to being free of gluten, this recipe is also free of nuts, refined sugar, and oil! To bake them oil-free, I recommend using a silicon baking mold, donut-shaped of course. This is the mold that I used, which made popping the donuts out after baking much easier, sans oil.
How to Make Easy Vegan Donuts
The thing about Meyer Lemons is that they’re much sweeter than conventional lemons, as opposed to sour. It makes it perfect for baking and desserts because Meyer Lemons actually lend a nice sweet flavor, and don’t require as much additional sweetness just to balance out the sourness of a standard lemon. It is citrus season right now too, so I thought, why not try! And if you can’t find Meyer Lemons, give this Raspberry Lemon Poppyseed Muffin (using regular lemons) a try. My friend Minna, who was with me at the time of enjoyment of said excellent Arizonian donuts, was actually my taste tester and mentioned they were… dare I say it? Even better than the original recipe.
I admit we experienced a little bit of a sugar crash after finishing our donuts, but this homemade version is sweetened with maple syrup and is just sweet enough. You can watch us taste test the donuts AND sugar crash in the Arizona Vlog here.
Finally, the blackberry jam is completely optional but it adds a really lovely texture and brightness to the donut (in other words, I’d H I G H L Y recommend it unless blackberries aren’t your jam, ha). I did use organic powdered sugar to create an easy icing, however, this is also optional, and can be subbed for coconut butter, vegan yogurt, or substituted with just the blackberry jam! If you do choose to use powdered sugar though, I recommend making sure you’re using organic powdered sugar, that way you know it’s vegan. Most conventional sugars are processed and filtered through bone char.
Now let’s get to these fluffy vegan donuts 🙂
Ingredient Notes
See the full recipe card below for detailed ingredient amounts and instructions!
Vegan Donut
- chickpea flour and brown rice flour: I used these two flours as my gluten-free flour blend.
- arrowroot powder
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
- maple syrup
- unsweetened apple sauce
- Meyer lemon juice
- raw apple cider vinegar
- vanilla extract
Icing
- organic powdered sugar
- lemon juice
Blackberry Chia Jam
- frozen or fresh blackberries
- filtered water
- maple syrup
- chia seeds
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F while you prepare your batter.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: maple syrup, apple sauce, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract until smooth.
- Sift in the dry ingredients: chickpea flour, rice flour, arrowroot powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Use a spatula to combine the mixture until smooth. The mixture may poof up a little bit–this is ok!
- Transfer your mixture into a donut mold. I recommend using a piping bag, to pipe into the mold, or spoon in but then remove any air bubbles using a toothpick. This will allow for even baking and no craters in your donuts!
- Bake in the oven for 15-17 minutes until golden brown and use a toothpick to check they are cooked through. The toothpick should come out clean! I baked for approximately 16 minutes exactly, but this was my first time using a silicon baking mold too. (For best results, trust the toothpick!).
- While the donuts are baking, prepare icing by combining all ingredients in a small bowl and mixing until smooth.
- Next, prep chia jam (if using), by adding blackberries, water, and maple syrup to a small covered saucepan on low heat. Allow the blackberries to burst, and using a spatula or other utensil, smush them down to break down. Add chia seeds and stir, remove from heat and allow to thicken.
- When the donuts are ready, remove them from the pan and allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Dip each one into icing, and let excess icing drip off of a cooling rack.
- Spoon chia jam into the center of each donut if desired.
- I recommend adding jam when you intend to eat, so it doesn’t cause the donut to go soggy otherwise.
Secrets to Success
- If you can’t find Meyer lemons, feel free to use conventional lemons.
- This recipe yields a baked donut, rather than deep frying. The texture will be a bit different, but it’s still delicious and fluffy! Plus, the cleanup is easier– no hot oil!
- Enjoy these perfect vegan donuts just like you would regular donuts! With a cup of coffee or a glass of plant-based milk– almond milk or coconut milk works well. If you need a nut-free option, opt for soy milk or oat milk!
- A large bowl and a whisk are all you need for this recipe, but if you’d like to use a stand mixer, you can!
Storage Tips
Store leftover vegan donuts in an airtight container separately from the jam. Store at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Store the jam in a separate bowl or jar in the refrigerator for up to a week.
More Vegan Recipes
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
Easy No Bake Key Lime Cheesecake
Gluten-Free Strawberry Peach Cobbler
If you try these homemade donuts out, don’t forget to tag the wonderful creators and me on Instagram @veggiekins so I can see your delicious re-creations and feature them! As always, I love when you share your reviews in the comments below, and if you make any fun substitutions, let me know how it worked out below too.
Easy Homemade Vegan Donut Recipe (Oven Baked)
Ingredients
Donut:
- 1 cup chickpea flour
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 2 tbsp arrowroot powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- pinch salt
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 3 heaping tbsp meyer lemon juice
- 1 tsp raw apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Icing:
- 1/2 cup organic powdered sugar
- 8 tsp lemon juice
Blackberry Chia Jam (based on the original Cranberry Chia Jam):
- 1/2 cup frozen or fresh blackberries
- 1/4 cup filtered water
- 1-2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F while you prepare your batter.
- In a large bowl, whisk together maple syrup, apple sauce, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and vanilla extract until smooth.
- Sift in chickpea flour, rice flour, arrowroot powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Use a spatula to combine mixture until smooth. Mixture may poof up a little bit–this is ok!
- Transfer your mixture into donut mold. I recommend using a piping bag, to pipe into the mold, or spoon in but then remove any air bubbles using a toothpick. This will allow for even baking and no craters in your donuts!
- Bake in the oven for 15-17 minutes and use a toothpick to check they are cooked through. Toothpick should come out clean! I baked for approx 16 minutes exactly, but this was my first time using a silicon baking mold too. Trust the toothpick!
- While the donuts are baking, prepare icing by combining all ingredients in a small bowl and mixing until smooth.
- Next, prep chia jam (if using), by adding blackberries, water and maple syrup to a small covered sauce pan on low heat. Allow the blackberries to burst, and using a spatula or other utensil, smush them down to break down. Add chia seeds and stir, remove from heat and allow to thicken.
- When donuts are ready, remove from pan and allow to cool completely. Dip each one into icing, and let excess icing drip off of a cooling rack.
- Spoon chia jam into the center of each donut if desired. I recommend adding jam when you intend to eat, so it doesn't cause the donut to go soggy otherwise.
Notes
Secrets to Success
- If you can’t find Meyer lemons, feel free to use conventional lemons.
- This recipe yields a baked donut, rather than deep frying. The texture will be a bit different, but it’s still delicious and fluffy! Plus, the cleanup is easier– no hot oil!
- Enjoy these perfect vegan donuts just like you would regular donuts! With a cup of coffee or a glass of plant-based milk– almond milk or coconut milk works well. If you need a nut-free option, opt for soy milk or oat milk!
- A large bowl and a whisk are all you need for this recipe, but if you’d like to use a stand mixer, you can!
Storage Tips
Store your vegan donuts in an airtight container separately from the jam. Store at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Store the jam in a separate bowl or jar in the refrigerator for up to a week.Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Love & lemons,
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