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These baked gluten-free and vegan donuts are incredibly tender, moist, buttery, and coated with cinnamon sugar! Ready in less than 30 minutes, these cinnamon sugar donuts are a must-try! Our all-time favorite donut recipe!
🥣 How to Make Vegan Cinnamon Sugar Donuts
Making these cinnamon sugar donuts is easy and requires basic ingredients you most probably already have in your pantry!
Donuts
First, whisk together the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. To keep these donuts gluten-free, we went with a blend of gluten-free flours:
- White rice flour: It gives structure to the donuts.
- Almond flour: Not only it brings moisture, but it also makes the donuts extra tender!
- Tapioca starch: To prevent the donuts from crumbling and give them a lighter texture.
Next, add the remaining ingredients:
- Baking powder
- Nutmeg & Cinnamon: Nutmeg gives the donuts that “bakery flavor” we all love!
- Unsweetened Almond Milk: Or oat milk, cashew milk, etc.
- Melted Coconut Oil
- Vanilla Extract
Whisk all of the ingredients together until fully combined. The batter should have the same consistency as a pancake batter: thick but slightly runny.
Fill the cavities of a greased donut pan using a spoon or a piping bag to the 4/5. Cavities should be almost filled to the top if you want thick donuts.
Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown, and let cool for a few minutes before coating.
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
Finally comes the icing on the cake: the cinnamon sugar coating!
Whisk together the sugar with ground cinnamon and our secret ingredient: a good pinch of salt! Salt enhances the flavors, and who doesn’t like sweet and salty?
Using a pastry brush, coat the donuts with melted vegan butter and quickly dunk them into the cinnamon sugar, coating all sides.
Another option is to dip the donuts into the melted butter. It yields moister donuts but can add extra calories.
📔 Tips
- If your donuts stick a little bit to the baking pan, run a tablespoon along the edges of each donut. This way, you won’t damage the pan, and the donuts should pop out easily.
- There is no need to dip the donuts completely in melted butter. Simply brush them generously.
- During baking, donuts will crack slightly on top. That is normal. It won’t be visible, though, since you will coat them in cinnamon sugar and present them upside down.
💬 FAQ
Donuts will keep for about 2 days but taste best on day one.
Store the donuts at room temperature in an airtight container. You can stack them. It is not an issue.
Yes, however, your donuts will have a darker look.
We do not recommend it. Donuts will have a more gritty texture. Plus, brown rice flour does not absorb liquid like white rice flour, so you would have to adjust the amount of wet ingredients.
Of course! If using a muffin pan, we recommend baking for about 20 minutes instead of 15.
I hope you are going to love this vegan donut recipe as much as we do! It is perfect for the holidays and can easily be made with kids!
🍰 More Gluten-Free Vegan Sweets
Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!
Gluten-Free Vegan Cinnamon Donuts
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup white rice flour
- 1 cup almond flour
- 3 tbsp tapioca starch
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2/3 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 3 tbsp melted coconut oil or other neutral oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- 1/4 cup melted vegan butter
- 1/2 cup sugar white or coconut sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and lightly grease a donut pan.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the white rice flour, almond flour, tapioca starch, coconut sugar, ground nutmeg, and cinnamon.
- Add the wet ingredients: almond milk, melted coconut oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk until well combined.
- Using a spoon or piping bag, fill the cavities of the donut pan to 4/5. You should have enough batter to make 6 very thick donuts or 8 thinner ones.
- Bake the donuts for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for at least 20 minutes before removing the donuts from the pan. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool.
- Cinnamon sugar coating: in a small bowl or deep plate, mix the sugar with the cinnamon and the salt. Working with one at a time, generously brush each donut with the melted butter and quickly dunk it into the cinnamon sugar. Try to coat all of the sides.
- Donuts are best served the same day but will keep for up to 2 days stored at room temperature in an airtight container.
Notes
Nutrition
About the Author
Thomas Pagot is the founder, photographer, and recipe developer behind Full of Plants. He created the blog in 2016 as a personal cookbook for vegan recipes. Through years of recipe development, Thomas has successfully grown Full of Plants into a trusted resource for plant-based recipes.
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Hi, I made these amazing donuts this morning!!! They are soooo good and easy to make😀. Thanks so much!!!
Thank you so much Teresa! Your donuts looked delicious!
Can I make this recipe with just white flour and if so what is the Ratio?
I’m afraid it won’t work. Almond flour is essential to get that moist and tender texture.
I sent this recipe to my sister who has a young son recently diagnosed with celiac disease and she said all her kids loved these! They said they’re better than ice cream… high praise indeed haha! Wanted to thank you for this recipe and let you know it made her day.
Thanks for your feedback Kathryn! Glad to hear your nephews liked the donuts 😉
Hi! Can these be fried instead of baked if less liquid is added (or I stick some xanthan gum in there or something)? I’m trying to give my very allergic friend the authentic donut experience
Hi Jay,
I’m afraid this is not the right recipe for fried donuts, sorry.