With 12g of protein, these delicious protein donuts make a fabulous keto snack. Tender and sweet, these baked vanilla donuts are easy to make and fun to eat!
What do you do when you’re craving donuts but you really know your body needs some protein? You make these keto protein donuts, of course!
I recently published an article on the advantages of a higher protein keto diet, along with a number of low carb high protein recipes. Most of us find it pretty easy to get protein at lunch and dinner. But breakfast and snacks can be harder to figure out.
So I am working on a series of higher protein keto snack recipes. I already published some delicious protein muffins and now I am adding protein donuts to the list. Because who doesn’t want a tender, sweet donut that actually gives you energy and doesn’t cause a sugar crash?
I know I can’t be the only one!
Why you will love them
What’s not to love about keto donuts? They fill a void left by cutting out carbs and sugars. And while you don’t NEED them, they sure are a fun indulgence.
But I believe in making even your keto treats work for you. Because there’s nothing better than feeling like you are indulging and knowing that you’re getting a blast of nutrients at the same time.
And these protein donuts are super easy to make, too. They take 40 minutes, tops, and that includes the baking and the frosting. So you can easily make this sweet breakfast or snack before the rest of your family has even gotten out of bed!
Ingredients you need
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- Greek yogurt: Whole milk Greek yogurt works well in keto baked goods to provide moisture and tenderness. You could also use sour cream.
- Almond flour: I used almond flour for these donuts and I have yet to experiment with coconut flour in a protein recipe like this. So at this time, I can’t recommend a nut-free substitute except for sunflower seed flour.
- Whey protein: I recommend getting a whey protein isolate, as it contains more protein and has fewer carbs than many whey powders. You can also use egg white protein.
- Sweetener: As always, my favorite brand is Swerve Sweetener. You are welcome to use your favorite sweetener but I do want to note that allulose may make the donuts brown very quickly. You need a granular sweetener for the donuts and a powdered sweetener for the frosting.
- Cream cheese: I like to use a little cream cheese in my keto frosting recipes to give it more structure without having to use tons of powdered sweetener.
- Butter and oil: I specify avocado oil for the donuts, but you can use melted butter. Just make sure that if your eggs and yogurt are cold, you whisk the butter in quickly so it doesn’t clump up. You will need butter for the frosting as well.
- Vanilla: While I made vanilla donuts, you are certainly not limited to that. You could have a lot of fun with flavors here, like lemon donuts, caramel donuts, etc. Just switch up the extracts as you see fit!
- Keto Sprinkles: You can make your own sugar free sprinkles, or you can purchase pre-made sprinkles online.
- Kitchen Staples: Eggs, baking powder, heavy cream, salt.
Step by Step Directions
1. Prepare the batter: In a large bowl, whisk together the the yogurt, eggs, oil, and vanilla extract until well combined. Add the almond flour, whey protein, sweetener, baking powder, and salt and whisk until smooth. Add just enough water until you have a thick but pourable consistency.
2. Bake the donuts: Divide the batter between 8 greased wells of a donut pan, filling to about three quarters full. Bake 10 to 15 minutes at 350ºF, until the tops are just firm to the touch. Let cool in the pan.
3. Prepare the frosting: In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until very smooth. Beat in the powdered sweetener. Beat in the cream until you have a spreadable consistency, then beat in the vanilla extract.
4. Frost and decorate: Spread over the tops of the cooled donuts. Sprinkle with sugar-free sprinkles, if desired.
Expert Tips
Protein options: This recipe uses whey protein isolate, but you do have other options. Egg white protein should work well, and some plant-based protein powders may as well. But they won’t necessarily have as high a protein content. I don’t recommend collagen here, as it will make them gummy. It needs a very different approach for baking.
Donut pans don’t come in standard sizes and some are bigger than others. So you may get 7 donuts or you may get 9 donuts. It’s hard to say! If you don’t have a donut pan, you can bake them as muffins. You should get at least 7 or 8.
If you prefer, you can skip the frosting and make a lighter glaze or dust them in powdered sweetener. I personally feel that they need a little something to jazz them up a bit.
Frequently Asked Questions
The main ingredients in these vanilla protein muffins are almond flour, whey protein powder, Greek yogurt, eggs, and sweetener. They do not contain any added sugars and have 12g of protein per serving.
Many protein donut recipes are quite high in carb because they contain wheat flour and added sugar. But these keto protein muffins have only 4.7g of carbs and 1.5g of fiber, so they have a net carb count of 3.2g.
You can easily make the donuts in advance and freeze them unfrosted, then frost them when you plan to serve. You can freeze the frosted donuts as well, but you will want to flash freeze them first. Lay them out on a baking sheet in a single layer until frozen solid. This way, the frosting won’t smear when you place them in an airtight container.
More delicious keto donut recipes
Keto Protein Donuts Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Donuts
- 1/2 cup (100 g) Greek yogurt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tbsp avocado oil, (or melted butter… not hot)
- 1 1/2 tsp (1.5 tsp) vanilla extract
- 1 cup (112 g) almond flour
- 1/2 cup (54 g) unflavored whey protein powder, (protein isolate preferred)
- 1/2 cup (91 g) Swerve Granular
- 1 1/2 tsp (1.5 tsp) baking powder
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) salt
- 2 to 4 tbsp (2 tbsp) water
Frosting
- 2 ounces (56.7 g) cream cheese, well softened
- 2 tbsp butter, well softened
- 1/4 cup (45.5 g) Swerve Confectioners
- 2 to 3 tbsp (2 tbsp) heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) vanilla extract
- keto sprinkles, if desired
Instructions
Donuts
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and grease 8 wells of a donut pan.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the the yogurt, eggs, oil, and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Add the almond flour, whey protein, sweetener, baking powder, and salt and whisk until smooth. Add just enough water until you have a thick but pourable consistency.
- Divide the batter between the wells of the donut pan, filling to about three quarters full. Bake 10 to 15 minutes, until the tops are just firm to the touch. Let cool in the pan.
Frosting
- In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until very smooth. Beat in the powdered sweetener.
- Beat in the cream until you have a spreadable consistency, then beat in the vanilla extract. Spread over the tops of the cooled donuts.
- Sprinkle with sugar-free sprinkles, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
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Just made these! They are delicious! Semi-sweet, moist and sturdy. Love this recipe!
I love these! I used the full 4T of water, and ended up with batter that was eminently pourable. Not only did I get 12 (!) donuts, I got 10 mini-muffins as well! I used orange extract instead of vanilla, and made a chocolate orange frosting by swapping out the vanilla for orange, and reducing the Swerve confectioner’s by 2T for 2T of cocoa powder. (I like my chocolate on the bittersweet side. 🙂 )
These were great! I skipped the frosting and topped most of them with cinnamon “sugar” instead. My spouse enjoyed them naked. A recipe made 12 donuts.
Fab healthy great ! Love this scrolled thru 8 other recipes found this site joined too !
Finally true healthy recipe bake great treat almond flour love this , keep it coming 🥰
So delicious and easy! Made exactly as written, it made 10, no sticking. Ate TWO right off the bat (one without frosting, one with). Both ways are amazing. I had to put them in the freezer so I wouldn’t have more! Carolyn, your recipes are the best! Thank you 🫶🏻
Great to hear!
We loved the fluffy texture of these donuts. Recipe made 10 in my donut pan requiring cooking in batches. Frosting recipe was more than adequate amount, I had a good bit left over. I greased my pan with butter and the donuts didn’t stick much at all.
I really want to give these a try but I am also trying to downsize (or at least maintain) my kitchen stuff. I don’t have a donut pan and am reluctant to buy more stuff so, can these be baked as muffins and if so, does the baking time change as far as you can tell? I’m sure you may not have tried it but perhaps your experience (which is vast) can guide us to a suggested answer. My baking experience is not helpful here.
Thanks again for all that you do.
Valerie
I would just keep your eye on them. It’s probably about the same amount of time but maybe a little longer.
I just made your Vanilla Protein Donuts and WOW!! So soft, flavorful and satisfying! Thank you for what you do!! You have changed my Keto game for the better!!!! I love to bake too, so I will be spending lots of time reading through your recipes and posts. Blessings!! Katy
So glad you like them!
this is the best keto protein snack I’ve found. fluffy, tasty, not high calorie. I made them with sour cream and olive oil and I didn’t need any water. baked them in mini donut pans for 9 minutes (I had to use 2, total of 15 mini donuts).
I work out and hate buying protein bars so these are very convenient.
would love to-go protein snack recipes that use monk fruit drops for those of us who have to go very light on the sugar alcohols! (just as a courtesy to all around me)
I didn’t see the answer in your blog or in questions, so here goes. Will plant-based protein powder work? My son must be dairy-free. Thanks, Carolyn. You take wonderful care of us.
It might… but keep in mind that hemp protein and other vegan proteins can be darker in color so may affect the appearance.
Hi! Can regular whey protein (like the Bob’s Redmill brand) and whey protein isolate be used interchangeably? Could I use the protein isolate in other recipes calling for whey protein and/or will it make a texture or flavor difference to use the regular whey protein in this recipe? Thanks!
In most recipes, yes.
has any one tried this with dairy free ingredients? .
I love the taste of these, but every time (3 times), I make them they stick. I have a Wilton non stick that I grease and they still stick. none of your other donut recipes stick with these pans, so I’m assuming there’s something in recipe that makes them stick. any ideas? I’m going to buy silicone donut pans see if that helps. they taste great, but we have to eat them out of the pan.
I have had those pans before and they lose their non-stickability very quickly. The USA pans are the ones I ALWAYS recommend.
the donuts I made were a little chewy? Is that usual? I haven’t eaten regular donuts for ages.
What protein powder did you use?
I used egg white protein.
Is there any way to substitute the whey protein? What else could I use besides that that would give the same results? I don’t like whey protein
No, that is a main component of the recipe.
I don’t want to argue with Carolyn because this is obviously her recipe, but I’ve tried most of her recipes that use protein powder and simply left it out. Where water is added in the protein powder recipes, I use milk instead, and they turn out fantastic and light! Makes it a lot more accessible to those that don’t buy or use protein powder. 🙂
I have many other donut recipes that you can use if you want regular donuts. But the whole point of these is higher protein so in this recipe… very much important to structure.
I made these because of the protein content and their simplicity however I have to use Botha Sweet because my husband can’t tolerate the other sweeteners. Does this measure equally with the other sweeteners? I haven’t had an issue with other recipes but I felt I could taste the sweetener in these donuts using the same amount. I love all of your recipes!
These donut pans are extremely expensive. If I look for another what do I need to look for or avoid? I was thinking the Wilton donut pans look good. I can’t wait to make these!
I have the Wilton pans, bought them in 2018, and they work well. I think I paid around $15.
They are… but they are FAR better than any other brand and will last you years. I’ve had the Wilton ones and had to toss them within a year or two. The USA Pans are also non-toxic, whereas Wilton are not.
Great recipe but my Wilton pans are terrible! Everything sticks to them even when I use oil. Maybe I’m using the wrong type of oil? Good thing I don’t need to take photos of them , just eat them!
Hi, Carolyn. Thank you for all your free recipes! There is a well-known keto blogger who says protein powders do not contribute to the total daily protein intake…even when combining foods to make complete proteins! While I understand complete vs. incomplete protein, would you please address this issue of protein powder? As a menopausal woman (keto for over 6 years) who tries to prioritize protein, I was very disappointed to hear this. I simply can’t eat that much meat. Thanks!
Did they back it up with any science? Because the vast majority of clinical studies indicate that whey protein does indeed count toward daily protein intake.
I can’t find the particular interaction (months ago) between she and I in order to answer your question, but she is one who keeps up with the science. As of today, she now does recommend egg white protein and whey protein on her website, though! Thanks so much for your answer! That is helpful!
I believe its collagen protein that is not complete and doesn’t count towards daily total. Whey has all 9 essential aminos and is complete.
Would sour cream work in place of yogurt?
Yes… please read the full blog post as I always address questions like this. 🙂