Lemon gluten free donuts are the perfect homemade baked donuts to make for breakfast or brunch, and these gluten free lemon donuts are dairy-free too! This easy gluten free donuts recipe is quick; the little lemon donuts are ready to eat in under 20 minutes.
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Lemon gluten free donuts are the snack my kids love when they get home from school. Drizzle icing on top, or eat these lemon gluten free donuts plain! They are bursting with delicious lemon flavor!
Just look at those little lemon gluten free donuts and you can see how moist and delicious they are!
If you love donuts as much as we do, you will check out my BEST gluten free donut recipes!
My gluten free lemon tart recipe and my gluten free lemon bundt cake recipes are other great ways to use up those lemons :-). A delicious breakfast addition would be these gluten free lemon poppy seed muffins.
Why these donuts are great:
These moist and delicious gluten free donuts are so quick and easy to make with this Babycakes Mini Donut Maker. From start to finish we had little lemon donuts in under 15 minutes!! If you don't have a donut maker, I include directions for baking in the oven!
I love to make these donuts for kids. This easy gluten free donuts recipe is a lot less guilt because I used applesauce to keep these gluten-free doughnuts super moist and to reduce the amount of sugar in this recipe.
For even more delicious lemon desserts, check out my Gluten Free Lemon Desserts roundup!
Ingredient notes:
- Gluten free flour blend - I tested this recipe using Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten Free Flour Blend and King Arthur's Measure for Measure Gluten Free Blend. That doesn't mean others will not work, I just have not tested other flours.
- Almond flour - helps add some protein so there isn't a big sugar crash after eating one or two of these....(okay, maybe more like four or five. These are hard to resist!)
- If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or guar gum, please add 1 teaspoon.
- Non-dairy milk - I used almond milk but other dairy-free kinds of milk will work but I do not recommend canned coconut milk.
Variations:
The beauty of this recipe is that you can easily customize the flavor.
- Omit the lemon and you have a delicious vanilla donut.
- Add white chocolate chips.
- Add blueberries or raspberries, which would taste delicious with this lemon donut.
Recipe step by step directions:
Step 1: Add the dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend.
Step 2: In a smaller bowl, add the wet ingredients and whisk to blend.
Step 3: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until "just barely mixed." This will help keep your donuts light and fluffy.
Step 4: Preheat your donut maker. When the light indicates it is hot, add some of the batter to each donut section. Close the lid and cook for 3-4 minutes. Remove the cooked donuts to a rack to cool.
Step 5: Allow the donuts to cool completely. Drizzle icing over the donuts, or dip in white chocolate.
Donut pan baking instructions:
I get this question a lot from my readers. I tend to use this little donut maker in most of my donut recipes. It is easy to use, and it makes my donuts taste like they were fried...but they aren't!
It takes about 5 minutes to bake donuts in a donut maker. If you prefer to use a donut pan, bake these gluten free lemon donuts for 350º F for 20 minutes. Remove the donuts from the pan onto a cooling rack.
Tips and Recipe FAQ:
I do suggest spraying the donut pan or donut maker with a little coconut oil so the outside of the donut gets a little crispy.
You can easily make this gluten free lemon donut recipe nut free! To make these NUT FREE, instead of the almond flour, add ¼ extra gluten free flour blend.
This recipe is naturally dairy-free. You can create a delicious dairy-free donut glaze by mixing 2 cups of powdered sugar with ¼ cup of almond milk.
You can definitely use coconut sugar in this gluten free lemon donut recipe. Note your donuts will be more of a brown color as coconut sugar is dark like brown sugar. To make a sugar-free lemonade drizzle, use honey with a small amount of lemon juice.
Reader Raves:
These were very good. Didn't have applesauce so used vanilla yogurt. Added a teaspoon of agar-agar. Used Monk fruit as sweetener. Drizzled with honey and lemon mixture."
Rachel St. M, Pinterest user.
More gluten free donut recipes:
Recipe
Gluten Free Lemon Donuts
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup gluten free flour blend * see note
- ¾ cup almond flour * see note
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup applesauce
- ⅔ cup coconut oil melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ cup almond milk * see note
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients and whisk together to blend.
- In a medium bowl, add all wet ingredients and whisk.
- Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well.
- Preheat the Babycakes Mini Donut Maker.
- Put a little dough into each section of the donut maker.
- Cook for 5 minutes until done.
- Remove and put onto cooling rack.
- Ice, frost, or eat plain.
Oven Baking:
- Preheat your oven to 350º F. Add your donut batter to a donut pan. Bake 20-22 minutes until the donuts are baked.
Notes
- I have tested this recipe with King Arthur Measure for Measure GF and Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 GF blend. That doesn't mean others will not work, I just have not tested other flours.
- If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or guar gum, please add 1 teaspoon.
- I highly suggest using almond flour and not almond meal. Almond meal is more coarse and will make your donuts grainy.
- I used almond milk but other dairy-free kinds of milk will work but I do not recommend canned coconut milk. I used ½ cup, but starchier gluten free flour blends may need more milk.
- These will donuts keep up to 4 days in an air-tight container, or up to 4 months in the freezer.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
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This post was updated from an older June 2015 post with more details and easier-to-follow directions.
Nancy Morabito
Would flax eggs work with this recipe?
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Nancy, I haven't tested this recipe with flax eggs. If you try it, please let me know how it turns out.
Nav
Can I bake them in the oven? At what temperature and for how long?
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Nav, you can definitely bake them in the oven. You can use a donut pan, or in a muffin tin if you are in a pinch.
Brenda
What temperature would you bake these at...350? 375? In the oven.
Thanks
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Brenda, Bake at 350º degrees for about 15-20 minutes. The time will really depend on the size and depth of the donut pan you are using.
Becky
Can I still deep fry these? We are having a family donut day and I wanted something for my son in law. I don’t have a donut maker or pan.
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Becky, I am not sure if the donuts will keep their shape as the dough is a bit wetter than regular fried donut dough. Try my fried gluten free fried jelly donuts recipe. That dough is better for frying.
Linda
To make it nut free, you said to add 1/4 extra gf flour. Do you mean to omit almond flour and add 1/4 cup extra of gf flour or to add 5/8 cup extra? That would be 1/4 of 1 1/4 cup. Thanks!
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Linda, You need less almond flour because it absorbs less liquid. You would omit the almond flour and add 1/4 additional gluten free flour blend. I hope this helps.
Richard Jones
Hi, what could I use as a sub for the coconut oil? Olive oil, butter?
Thanks, Richard
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Richard, I would recommend butter or light oil like canola or avocado. Olive oil would impart too much of an off-flavor. Thank you, Sandi
Caroline
What can I use to replace applesauce?
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Caroline, I haven't made this without the applesauce. Perhaps a different fruit like pear sauce?