Satisfy your doughnut cravings in under 30 minutes! No need to visit the doughnut shop or bust out the deep fryer. These vegan baked doughnuts are absolutely scrumptious and easy to make.
Doughnuts are one of my favorite sweet treats! But I don't get to enjoy them nearly as much as I'd like. Vegan doughnuts are in short supply where I live.
That's why I came up with a recipe for legit vegan doughnuts a few years ago. They taste just like they came from a doughnut shop. But they're also made just like legit doughnuts, which means they're yeast risen and deep fried.
I love them, but I'm not always up for all that. Sometimes I just want a doughnut, stat.
That's what this vegan baked doughnut recipe is for. It's so easy! The batter whips up super quick, using a bunch of pantry staples I usually have on hand, and then they bake up in about 10 minutes.
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Ingredients You'll Need
- Non-dairy milk. Soy milk, almond milk, cashew milk, or oat milk will all work here. you can use just about anything other than canned coconut milk, as long as it's unsweetened and unflavored. My guide to dairy-free milks can give you more guidance in choosing a variety if you need it.
- Vegetable oil. You can use regular old vegetable oil, or substitute your favorite baking oil, such as canola oil, corn oil, or melted coconut oil.
- Vanilla extract.
- Flour. I've only tested this recipe with regular all-purpose wheat flour (a.k.a., white flour), so I can't promise good results with any other varieties.
- Sugar. Make sure to use organic sugar in order to keep the recipe vegan.
- Baking powder.
- Ground cinnamon. This is optional, but great for adding flavor to your baked vegan doughnuts.
- Salt.
Tip: The ingredients listed above are for plain old baked vegan doughnuts. You have topping options though! You may also want to have some vegan chocolate chips, vegan butter, maple syrup, powdered sugar or vegan sprinkles on hand, depending on how you want to top them.
How They're Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
- Stir your wet ingredients together in a small container: non-dairy milk, oil, and vanilla.
- Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl: flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
Tip: With all baking projects, make sure your ingredients are at room temperature (unless otherwise specified). For these doughnuts you may need to warm up your non-dairy milk if it was in the fridge.
- Pour the liquid ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients.
- Stir the ingredients together just until they're combined. Don't overmix the doughnut batter. A few lumps are fine.
- Transfer the batter to an oiled doughnut pan. You can be fancy and use a pastry bag to pipe it in, or just spoon it in and smooth it out like I do.
- Bake the doughnuts until they're set. You can test for this by lightly pressing into one with a finger. It should spring back if it's done.
- Place the doughnut pan on a cooling rack and let them cool for at least five minutes before removing them from the pan. Put them back on the rack to finish cooling.
- Get your toppings ready while the doughnuts cool — chocolate frosting, vanilla frosting, cinnamon sugar, or powdered sugar. Wait until the doughnuts are completely cool before topping them.
Shelf-Life & Storage
Store your vegan baked doughnuts in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days, in the fridge for about a week, or in the freezer for about 3 months.
A word of warning: if you choose to make cinnamon sugar or powdered sugar coated baked doughnuts, the topping might sink into the doughnuts as they sit. They'll still taste good, but if this bothers you or your preparing them for a special event, consider holding off on topping them until just before serving.
More Vegan Desserts
Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Baked Doughnuts
Equipment
- Doughnut pan
Ingredients
For the Doughnuts
- 1 ¼ cups unsweetened non-dairy milk
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup organic granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
- ½ teaspoon salt
Chocolate Frosting (Option 1)
- 1 cup vegan chocolate chips
- ¼ cup vegan butter
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
Vanilla Frosting (Option 2)
- 1 cup organic powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar Topping (Option 3)
- ½ cup organic granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter, melted
Powdered Sugar Topping (Option 4)
- ½ cup organic powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly oil a 12 cavity doughnut pan. (Note 1)
- Stir the milk, oil and vanilla together in a small container, such as a large liquid measuring cup.
- Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a large mixing bowl.
- Pour the milk mixture into the bowl with the flour mixture and stir the ingredients together just until combined.
- Divide the batter among the cavities of your doughnut pan, using either a pastry bag or spoon.
- Bake the doughnuts for 10 to 12 minutes, until set.
- Place the doughnut pan on a cooling rack and let the doughnuts cool for at least 5 minutes before removing them from the pan (Note 2). Place them back on the rack to continue cooling once they're out of the pan.
- Prepare your toppings while the doughnuts cool. Choose one topping option per batch. (Note 3)
For Chocolate Frosted Doughnuts
- Place the chocolate chips into a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave them in 30-second increments, stirring in between, until fully melted.
- Stir in the butter until it melts and blends in with the chocolate.
- Stir in the maple syrup.
- Dip the top of each doughnut into the bowl to coat it with the chocolate frosting.
For Vanilla Frosted Dougnuts
- Stir the frosting ingredients together in a medium bow, adding more milk if the mixture seems to thick, more powdered sugar if it seems too thin.
- Dip the top of each doughnut into the bowl to coat it with the vanilla frosting.
For Cinnamon Sugar Doughnuts
- Stir the cinnamon and sugar together in a medium bowl.
- Brush each doughnut with melted butter, then roll each doughnut in the cinnamon sugar until coated.
For Powdered Sugar Doghnuts
- Place the powdered sugar in a bowl, then roll each doughnut in the powdered sugar until coated.
Notes
- You can use a 6 cavity pan and bake your doughnuts in batches if needed.
- Run a small sharp knife around the edges of each doughnut if you have trouble releasing them from the pan.
- Each topping recipe makes enough for 12 doughnuts, so divide the topping recipes if you want to make more than one topping variation. Otherwise you'll have lots of leftover toppings!
- Nutrition information does not include toppings, because it will obviously vary depending on which topping you use.
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Super simple to make and doesnt take long to bake. Two things I love. The only thing I would change is the amount of sugar for those who are not into really really sweet things. 3/4 c was a little too much but I had actually put a little less than that and it was still too sweet. Other than that the donuts are soooo soft and delicious!
Can I substitute oil with vegan yogurt?
They'll probably turn out very dense if you use yogurt. Applesauce might work as a direct substitution, but I haven't tested it in this recipe, so I can't say for sure. I'd love to hear how they turn out if you try it!
Very delicious! I subbed a half cup of AP for almond flour because I love the texture and made a lemon vanilla icing. Thanks for this recipe!!
Thanks for the head's up! Sorry the button isn't working for you. I tested the button in a few different browsers and didn't have a problem. Could you try using a different browser or clearing your cookies to see if that fixes the problem for you? I hope you enjoy the doughnuts!!