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    You are here: Home / Breakfast / Vegan Lemon Coconut Donuts

    LAST UPDATED: January 16, 2022 • FIRST PUBLISHED: April 18, 2014

    Vegan Lemon Coconut Donuts

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    These scrumptious vegan doughnuts are baked (not fried!), flavored with zesty lemon, sweet shredded coconut, and drizzled in a tangy lemon glaze!

    Stack of Three Lemon Doughnuts Topped with Glaze and Coconut Sitting on a Colorful Napkin
    When I was a little kid, my mom had this cake she made every year for Easter. It was made to look like the Easter Bunny's face and covered in coconut, to mimic the Easter Bunny's fluffy white coat. Little pieces of candy decorated this coconut covered bunny face to illustrate bunny eyes, nose and mouth. The coconut covered frosting was always my favorite part though. I guess that's why when I started brainstorming for springtime Easter recipes, coconut was the ingredient that repeatedly came to mind.
     
    Vegan Coconut Lemon Donuts
     
    Part of me felt like I had to come up with something cutesy and shaped like bunnies or Easter eggs, but alas, I just wasn't being hit with any cutesy Easter critter inspiration. So, I tried for a more practical approach. What would I bring to Easter brunch?

    I've had this donut pan sitting at the back of my pantry for quite some time now. This happens a lot. I learn about something I haven't cooked yet, in this case baked donuts, get all excited and buy the necessary ingredients or equipment, and then forget about this new awesome food that I wanted to make until one day it falls from the pantry shelf and hits me in the head. In this instance the timing couldn't have been better. Everything soon came together in the form of lemon coconut donuts.

    I found eating baked donuts from my donut pan to be oddly satisfying. Yeah, I recognize that the point is to feel like you're eating something fried and thus way badder than you really are, and I usually don't buy into that kind of thing, but I really think it works here! I should also mention that you can achieve this without a donut pan (even thought the donut pan rocks), by just rolling your dough into donut holes. Donut holes are really satisfying too. You just gotta eat a few more of them ;)

    Vegan Coconut Lemon Donuts
     
    Stack of Three Lemon Doughnuts Topped with Glaze and Coconut Sitting on a Colorful Napkin
    5 from 2 votes
    Print

    Vegan Lemon Coconut Donuts

    These scrumptious vegan doughnuts are baked (not fried!), flavored with zesty lemon, sweet shredded coconut, and drizzled in a tangy lemon glaze!

    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Prep Time 10 minutes
    Cook Time 12 minutes
    Total Time 22 minutes
    Servings 8
    Author Alissa

    Ingredients

    For the Donuts

    • 3 tbsp. water
    • 1 tbsp. ground flax seeds
    • 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour could sub all purpose
    • 1 ½ tsp. baking powder
    • ¼ tsp. salt
    • 2 tsp. lemon zest
    • ¼ cup vegan margarine at room temperature
    • ⅓ cup sugar
    • ½ cup unflavored unsweetened non-dairy milk
    • 1 tsp. lemon extract
    • 1 cup shredded coconut divided

    For the Glaze

    • juice of ½ lemon
    • ½ to ¾ cup powdered sugar

    Instructions

    Make the Donuts

    1. Preheat oven to 350 and spray donut pans or baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
    2. Whisk together flax seeds and water. Set aside and allow to sit for at least 10 minutes.
    3. Meanwhile, stir together flour, baking powder, salt and lemon zest in small bowl. In a separate bowl, cream together margarine and sugar.
    4. Add flax mixture then milk, maybe just a bit at a time to avoid splashing, and lemon extract.
    5. Add in dry ingredients and blend until a uniform dough is formed. Fold in ½ cup coconut.
    6. If you're making the "full" donut form of this recipe, distribute dough among donut forms. I found the best way to do this was by spreading it around with my hands. Otherwise, just roll dough into 24 balls and place on baking sheet.
    7. Bake for 12 minutes.
    8. Remove from oven, allow to cool and remove from pan before glazing.

    Make the Glaze

    1. While baking, whisk glaze ingredients together, using as much powdered sugar as needed to get the right consistency.
    2. Drizzle glaze over donuts and top with remaining ½ cup of coconut.
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    About Alissa Saenz

    Hi, I'm Alissa! I'm a former attorney turned professional food blogger. I love creating vegan recipes with bold flavors! You can read more about me here.

    I'd love to connect with you on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Debra says

      May 23, 2016 at 1:17 pm

      Where is the recipe for the lemon donuts? I have tried with Safari and Chrome and I've updated my flash player. No recipe. Cruel.

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        May 24, 2016 at 9:49 am

        Sorry! I found a technical glitch that was causing the recipe not to display. I think it should be fixed now.

        Reply
    2. Netty says

      June 15, 2016 at 1:37 pm

      Hoping this recipe works well in a mini donut maker! These are a MUST-try!!! :)

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        June 19, 2016 at 7:00 pm

        I haven't tried mini donuts, but I think they'll work! Hope you enjoy!!

        Reply
    3. Emily says

      June 30, 2016 at 11:42 am

      Any idea about nutrition info for these (not that it really matters since they're in the oven baking ?)

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        July 01, 2016 at 9:56 am

        I don't usually calculate nutrition info, but this is a great tool if you'd like to take a crack at it. :)

        Reply
    4. Josephine says

      July 05, 2016 at 10:21 pm

      Using what I had on hand, I used all purpose flour, sweetened almond milk, vanilla instead lemon flavor, and chia seeds instead of flax. I reduced sugar to 1/4 cup and baking powder to 1 tsp because of high altitude where I live.. The result was 18 lovely little cakes with a fine texture. I will freeze them till needed, and then glaze them and top them with toasted coconut. Our vegan friend will be delighted!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        July 10, 2016 at 10:42 am

        Awesome! I hope you and your vegan friend enjoy them!!

        Reply
    5. Natalie says

      March 01, 2017 at 12:12 am

      I made these. They turned out so delicious. I had to use a lot of sugar for the icing (2.5 cups).

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        March 01, 2017 at 9:01 am

        Thanks Natalie! I'm glad you enjoyed them!

        Reply
    6. Aimee B. says

      June 02, 2017 at 3:50 pm

      My family really enjoyed these. Thank you! :)

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        June 04, 2017 at 10:43 am

        I'm glad they were a hit!

        Reply
    7. Jennifer says

      June 24, 2017 at 6:02 pm

      These were great! I didn't have lemons, so I used limes instead (including a bit of lime juice in the batter instead of extract). I also substituted three Tbsp aquafaba for the flax egg. My cooking time was 20 minutes. The texture was divine and the flavor was so delicate; my non-vegan husband ate four in one sitting!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        June 25, 2017 at 9:43 pm

        I'm so glad they were a hit! Thanks Jennifer!!

        Reply
    8. Susan K. says

      July 15, 2017 at 1:26 am

      How to make gluten free?

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        July 15, 2017 at 10:24 am

        I would try subbing a one-to-one gluten-free flour blend. Bob's Red Mill ususally works for me, but I haven't tested it with this recipe, so no guarantees!

        Reply
    9. Emily says

      February 24, 2018 at 10:01 pm

      Can these be frozen for later??

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        February 25, 2018 at 9:10 pm

        I haven't frozen them, but I'm pretty sure they'd be fine. Just seal them up tightly in a freezer bag or container and you should be good to go. :)

        Reply
    10. Kathleen says

      June 30, 2018 at 1:41 pm

      5 stars
      Made these donuts this morning and they were a hit with the entire family! They are light, moist and full of lemon flavor! Will be making these again! Thanks, Alissa!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        July 01, 2018 at 8:24 pm

        I'm so happy to hear that!! Thanks Kathleen!

        Reply
    11. Sheila says

      March 04, 2019 at 11:18 am

      5 stars
      The texture was outstanding. Very soft. I did have some issues getting the glaze to a consistency that wasn’t absorbed by the donut. Still good thoufh.

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        March 10, 2019 at 9:18 pm

        I'm so glad you liked them! Thanks Sheila!

        Reply
    12. Debbie says

      June 16, 2019 at 1:27 pm

      Can you use vegan butter if you don't have margarine?

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        June 16, 2019 at 1:56 pm

        Yup! They're actually the same thing. :)

        Reply
    13. Schilling Janet says

      May 27, 2020 at 6:15 pm

      Can you substitute olive, canola or vegetable oil for the vegan butter?

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        May 28, 2020 at 8:53 am

        I think any of those would work, but I can't make any promises as I haven't tested the recipe with them.

        Reply

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