“Mmmmmmm, doooonuts” – Homer Simpson
I haven’t had real (read fried) doughnuts in ages. I’ve always wanted to make them from scratch and it seemed like the perfect weekend specialty sourdough bake. (I like to try a something new with my starter each week in addition to the weekly loaves.) Boy was that a good idea. Oh my. These are dangerously good.
These doughnuts fried up light and fluffy with a slight sourdough tang. The dough itself is not sweet. They rely on the glaze(s), sugar coating and/or filling(s) to make them sweet and add different flavors. You can glaze, coat or fill them with anything you’d like. We made a classic vanilla bean glaze, chocolate ganache glaze , cinnamon sugar coating and made some mini filled ones with rhubarb jam. This recipe made a big batch which is perfect for larger families, to share with friends or bring to a function/gathering. Or you can do like we did and bring them to school for the teachers and staff to enjoy. You can halve this recipe if you want to make a smaller batch.
Doughnuts are best enjoyed the day they are made but I do have to say these were still pretty darn good on the day 2. You can also freeze the plain doughnuts (pre-glaze stage) and then reheat them in the oven at a later date and then glaze/coat/fill them.
If you’ve been longing for a real old-fashioned doughnut that is vegan friendly, the time is here my friends!
xx Kaity
recipe after the jump…
Vegan Sourdough Donuts
Prep
Cook
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Total
Old fashioned sourdough yeast-risen doughnuts. Light and airy and fried to perfection. Glaze ‘em, sugar ‘em, fill ‘em. Totally dunkable, completely delicious!
Ingredients
Donuts
- 100 g active bubbly sourdough starter
- 650 g-700 g all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) vegan butter alternative
- 1-1/4 cup unsweetened non-diary milk
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons coconut milk
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 6-8 cups neutral oil for frying, plus more for the bowl
Vanilla Bean Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons non-dairy milk
- seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean
Chocolate Glaze
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- optional: sprinkles or orange zest curls
Cinnamon Sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
- In a small pan, melt vegan butter over medium heat. Once melted, remove pan from heat and stir in non-dairy milk, water, coconut milk, and sugar to dissolve.
- In the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the dough hook blade, beat together starter, wet mixture and salt on low-medium speed to combine, about 1-2 minutes.
- Reduce mixer to lowest speed and add 1/2 of flour (325g), and beat to combine, raising the speed as the flour incorporates. Repeat with another 325g of flour and beat until dough comes away from the sides of the bowl. Add more flour as needed, 2 tablespoons at a time. Beat for a total of 5-6 minutes until a soft smooth dough forms.
- Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead into a smooth ball, about 30 seconds. Put the dough into an oiled bowl and bulk rise until dough is puffy and has doubled in volume, about 8-10 hours. Make dough in the evening to rise overnight and fry doughnuts in the morning. You can also refrigerate the dough once it has risen until you are ready to to proceed to shaping and proofing.
- Turn dough out onto and tied or floured surface and roll to about 1/2” thickness. Cut doughnuts using concentric circle cutters, about 2.5” circle for outer edge and 1“ circle for the center. Save centers to make doughnut holes. If making filled doughnuts do not cut out centers. Rework and roll scraps and repeat to cut more doughnuts.
- Transfer doughnut cut-outs to floured baking sheets. Cover with kitchen towels and proof in a warm spot for about 1 hour until puffy.
- About 10-15 minutes before doughnuts are done proofing heat oil in a deep-sided 8” cast iron or enameled or heavy bottomed pan to 375˚F.
- Fry doughnuts in small batches until they are deep golden in color, about 45 seconds per side. If they are too delicate to pick up by hand, use a spatula to help pick them up and slide them into the oil. Use a slotted spoon or spider strainer to turn and lift doughnuts.
- Transfer fried doughnuts to cooling racks (or paper towels) set over sheet pans to drain oil. USE CAUTION when working with hot oil. Have a bowl of ice water ready for burns.
Make Vanilla Bean Glaze:
- Sift powdered sugar into bowl and whisk in milk and vanilla bean seeds to create a smooth glaze.
- Dip doughnuts into glaze and return to cooling racks to let glaze drip and set.
Make chocolate glaze:
- Warm coconut milk in a small saucepan, but do not boil. Remove from heat and whisk in chocolate chips, maple, and vanilla until chocolate melts into a smooth glaze.
- Dip doughnuts into glaze and return them to cooling racks. Add sprinkles or orange zest for decoration. Glaze will set as it cools.
Make cinnamon sugar:
- Whisk together sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
- Roll warm doughnuts in cinnamon sugar, coating all sides.
To make filled doughnuts:
- Pipe your choice of filling such as jam, custard or curd into the doughnuts and dust with powdered sugar.
Enjoy!
Notes
Doughnuts are best enjoyed the day they are made, but will keep covered at room temperature for several days. You can also freeze plain unglazed doughnuts for up to 6 months. Reheat them in the oven first and then glaze them.
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Prop Love: Table linen by Nade Studio. Ceramic loaf pan by Facture Goods.
Those look awesome!!
Thank you Lisa!
xx Kaity
These doughnuts seem great! I love trying new recipes, this will be my next one!
Thanks Sean! Let me know how they turn out. xx Kaity
Is there any way to do them faster? Maybe within a 1-3 hour time span?
Hi Hannah! It may be possible, depends if the dough can double in size that quickly. Sourdough usually takes longer to rise. You can try placing dough in a warm spot to rise and see if it happens faster. Or maybe add dry active yeast to help it rise. Thanks for your question! xx Kaity
These donuts are fantastic! My son is allergic to egg and has been asking for a while to have donuts. I was inspired by Sourdough September and found your recipe. I used coconut oil instead of coconut milk, and dairy milk and butter. Thank you.
Thank you Jodee! That is so wonderful to hear. xx Kaity
Hi Kaity. I’ve made these doughnuts a few times now and they seem to get better each time. I have also baked them as little milk buns to use in school lunches. Thanks again.
So happy to hear you love this recipe, Jodee! Those milk buns sound amazing. Lucky kiddos! xx Kaity
I only have oatly milk at home. Can I omit the coconut milk or sub in more of the oat milk I have for this?
What does the coconut milk do?
Hi Tahmina! You can use oat milk. Coconut milk is richer but other milks will work. Thanks for your question! xx Kaity
Thank you for the lovely recipe. I followed it word-by-word. I mixed the dough by hand instead of using a standing mixer, and it came together nicely. The amount of dough seemed like a lot when I was in the middle of the kneading process, but I then re-read your post and saw that you mentioned it would be sufficient for a family portion. The recipe yielded about 16 donuts for me, and we managed to eat every one (no regrets!). Next time I make this, I’ll probably opt for a half batch. The end result was a light, airy, not-super-sweet, donut, with only the smallest hint of sourdough. Well done!
Hi Ravi! So happy to hear that you liked the doughnuts! Yes it does make a large batch, but you can halve it if you like. Happy baking! xx Kaity
Looks amazing but cB these be baked instead? I know it’s probably not as good, but just curious before I make them. Thanks!
Hi! Thanks for your question. Yes they can be baked I’m sure. They will be more like buns and not doughnuts though. xx Kaity
Made these the other day- absolutely incredible- the dough really benefits from not being sweet – not greasy and nice and airy – wish i could share a crumb shot – will easily be making these again!
So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, Simon. Thank you!