Low Carb Coconut Flour Donuts have real fried donut flavour. Grain-free and gluten-free, this homemade fried donuts recipe makes the best sugar free donuts I’ve ever eaten.
I am about to toot my own horn here. You ready for this? You might want to stand back, it’s going to be a bit loud. Cover your ears!
YIPPEE, I MADE FRIED COCONUT FLOUR DONUTS! Sorry about the all caps, but it needed to be done. I needed to shout a little bit, because coconut flour is such a tricky ingredient and getting it to fry up without disintegrating in the oil is a sweet little accomplishment for me. And by sweet, I mean sweet with that real fried donut flavour. Baked donuts are all very well and good and I love them, but this homemade fried donuts recipe is everything a donut should be.
And I am very thankful for whoever invented the donut pan, as it allows us home cooks to easily whip up baked donuts for breakfast. But let’s face it…baked donuts are really donut-shaped muffins or cupcakes. As a general rule, I am okay with that. It’s really a lovely thing to have another shape for my muffins and my cupcakes, especially since they delight my kids so much. Somehow, being circular with a hole in the middle makes those donut muffins that much more exciting to my kids.
Fried Coconut Flour Donuts
But fried donuts are another creature altogether. They have an intensity that is unrivaled by other baked goods, by virtue of the fact that they are fried. In fat. And in my world, that’s a very good thing. A healthy thing, assuming you are using quality oils and not yucky processed or hydrogenated stuff. Quality oils will soak beautifully into fried donuts, giving them a deeper, more satisfying flavour. And they will be good for you too, as long as they are not full of sugar and other carbs. They will keep you full longer, give you more energy and increase your good cholesterol. All that from a fried donuts recipe? You bet.
But here’s the tricky part. Almond flour and coconut flour don’t really lend themselves well to being cooked in oil. Lacking the magical binding properties of gluten, things made with almond or coconut flour tend to simply disintegrate when subjected to hot oil. I’ve tried it before, and ended up with a pan of oil and a lot of little bits floating around. Fried coconut flour crumbs don’t quite have the caché of fried coconut donuts, do they? Plus I wasn’t ever sure how to get a nice round donut with a hole in the middle without special equipment. But my solution to this was rather brilliant, if I do say so myself.
I baked them first and THEN I fried them. Yup. These coconut flour donuts are baked and fried, and they’re awesome. This way, they hold their round, lovely shape, they soak in some lovely, healthy oil, and they taste phenomenal. It’s an extra step, but it’s so worth it!
PS – I highly recommend using the Wilton Non-stick Donut Pan. I had a cheaper one, with smaller cavities, and it’s non-stick ability wore off quite quickly. My kids bought the Wilton version for me for Mother’s Day and it’s been a treat to use. Treat it kindly so it keeps non-sticking for a while! I help my donuts release by inserting a thin rubber spatula between the donuts and the pan, and I always clean it with a soft cloth.
Looking for more tasty donut recipes? These Gluten-Free Cinnamon Sugar Donuts from Gluten-Free Palate and these maple-bacon doughnuts from It’s Yummi look amazing. They are not low carb, but I bet the recipes could be adapted!
Fried Coconut Flour Donuts – Low Carb and Gluten-Free
Ingredients
Donuts:
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 cup Swerve Sweetener, or other erythritol
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 large eggs
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 tsp stevia
- Oil for frying, coconut, grapeseed, etc.
Coating:
- 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, lightly toasted
- 1/4 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener, or other powdered erythritol
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F and grease a donut pan well.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, sweetener, baking powder and salt.
- Stir in eggs, coconut oil, almond milk, vanilla and stevia until well combined and batter is smooth.
- Fill wells in donut pan about 2/3 full (you will have leftover batter and will need to do another batch).
- Bake about 16 minutes, or until set and just barely brown around the edges. Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes in the pan, then flip out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining batter (I got 10 donuts out of my pan).
- In a large skillet, add oil so it is about 1/2 inch deep. Heat over medium heat.
- While oil is heating, combine toasted coconut and powdered sweetener in a medium bowl.
- Once the oil is hot, add 5 or 6 donuts to the pan. Flip after 1 to 2 minutes (they brown quickly), and cook the other side another minute or so. Remove from the pan and quickly dip each side in the coconut coating, pressing lightly to adhere.
- Let cool slightly on wire rack (they are really good warm out of the oil!).
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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We’ve been on a “fauxnut” kick here for the past week or so. I’ve been using your Vanilla Bean cupcake recipe — just baking them in a donut pan instead of a cupcake tin — and topping them with chocolate glaze and shredded coconut, and the kids have been delighted. But they’re not really “donut” texture. I’m eager to try some of your actual donut recipes to see how you’ve dealt with that.
My concern of late, though, is calories. I know it’s not as important a concern on a low carb diet, but once you’ve made the jump to a low carb lifestyle, it’s a detail that eventually matters. Does your calorie count for these donuts include the frying fat, and if so, how do you calculate it?
Thanks. I love, love, love this site, and may be your biggest work-of-mouth promoter on the planet! 🙂
It does not include the frying fat. I suppose you’d have to add a bit per serving. It wouldn’t be all that much, though. Once baked, these don’t absorb a ton of fat and they don’t stay in the oil long enough to really take on much. I’d probably guess you’d add 2 tsp per serving? Maybe 1 tbsp?
Hahaha, the joke’s on me — this IS your vanilla bean cupcake recipe, almost exactly the way I make it for donuts (half recipe, 4 eggs, no bean — except I double the vanilla)! I can just figure an added T of oil if I worry about the calories, or, well, google it, I guess! I wonder if there’s some standard formula for such things. Thanks for responding.
That’s something I’ve never investigated but I bet there is. Although it would be probably be for flour based things and it may be different with coconut flour?
Just made these and they’re fantastic! Totally satisfied my coffee and donut craving. I’ll definitely be making these again and playing with some other flavours too. Thanks for sharing your recipes!
Sadly these didn’t work for me — I followed the recipe to the T and am familiar with baking with coconut flour and all that. When I added my coconut oil, eggs, milk, etc. into the dry ingredients the coconut oil immediately went hard (despite being JUST melted). I used my immersion blender to break it up as well as sitting the bowl on the preheated oven. I used the same pan as you and the donuts completely stuck (I’ve used the pan to successfully make donuts that didn’t stick at least a half-dozen times). When I took them out they completely disintegrated into piles of crumbs. I was able to remove one *almost* whole and it completely felt apart into crumbs in the oil. I think I’ll try a different donut recipe next time and then try your frying method. On another note, I made your peanut butter/chocolate pudding cake for Thanksgiving and it knocked it out of the park — it’s definitely going to be on repeat for us.
Any chance you can use an egg substitute?
Not with coconut flour, no. It won’t rise at all.
One word: perfection!
Well, that’s nice to hear!
Thanks so much, I really miss the doughnuts my mother used to make. The smell of yeast bread and treats is always a reminder of home. True comfort food. I wonder if I couldn’t add a little yeast and honey to this recipe keeping it just as low carb because the yeast would eat the sugar…..?
I have no idea but it’s worth a shot.
Hi Carolyn, can you please tell if if you meant powdered or liquid stevia. Can you please also tell me what the equivalent for this in Swerve might be in case I want to sub in Swerve? Looking forward to having my first lowcarb donut!!
It was liquid stevia and you can use another 1/4 cup of Swerve in its place.
This recipe was awful for me. The batter was fine but once they cooked they were stuck inside the silicon mold despite oiling. They also had a muffin-like consistency which I hoped would go away with frying in oil…nope. The best part about a donut is the amazing chewy texture! Mine were sort of a greasy crisp on the outside and muffin on the inside. Total failure!!!!!
I’m sorry you found that it didn’t work out. I always use metal donut pans so maybe the silicone was part of the problem when they stuck.
Oh MY! Genius! I have terribly missed my favorite D.D. Sour Cream donuts, which definitely have a crispy outside. The chocolate donuts I’ve baked are delicious…but like you said, they are basically a muffin, or brownie, with a hole. 🙂
I can’t wait to try these and will add some nutmeg to be more like my “favorite”. I’m sure you have saved me from falling off the wagon. My vacation trip always included 2 sour cream donuts; so when I leave in 2 weeks…I won’t have to buy those. 🙂
Thank you!
So glad to help!
These came out fabulous! I made a chocolate ganache from sugar free chocolate chips, heavy cream and a tad of vanilla extract. Thank you!
Wow…i just baked these….totally awesome…and i didn’t even put a topping on yet…. the BEST donut recipe i have found, just the perfect consistency…..not eggy like others i tried….THANK YOU!
So glad to hear it!
Are they good just baked? I have an electric donut baker just sitting here collecting dust! Now I can make donuts again!!!! Thank you!
Sure,they are delicious just baked. You may want to bake them a touch longer to get them browner.
Hi Carolyn,
I love the idea of frying the donuts after baking, but I don’t like coconut flour and coconut oil, how do I substitute with almond flour and butter? Thanks!
Nut allergy here! Can I substitute 10% or higher cream for the almond milk?
Do half cream and half water so it isn’t too thick.
Thanks for this recipe! I’ve made these twice now and they’ve been delicious both times. I added some cinnamon to the second batch and did a Swerve/cinnamon topping for them.
This is my first attempt ever at making donuts. They are so yummy! I mixed up some of your browned butter icing, dipped the donuts in it and then in the toasted coconut. I will be making these again. Wondering if I can save the coconut oil and use it again? Thanks!