Baked Gluten-free Ring Doughnuts
Photography by Simeon Crofts
DIETARY – Gluten-free, Vegetarian, Nut-free
Back home in England, we would frequently have my niece, nephew and cousins over for a day of baking. We made everything from sherbet and lollipops to pizza and cakes together, often spending the whole day in the kitchen. Cooking and baking with kids has always been something I’ve loved to do. It not only keeps the little ones entertained but you’ll also find they’re a lot more willing to eat new dishes if they’ve helped to make them!
In my experience, one thing kids love is decorating what they’ve baked, and doughnuts provide the perfect excuse to get creative with icing and sprinkles. Of course, it wouldn’t be Deliciously Free if we weren’t looking after those with dietary requirements, so we’ve created a recipe for an entirely gluten-free doughnut suitable for those with celiac disease or gluten intolerance. Even better, the recipe is super easy to make, even for a beginner baker!
Traditionally, doughnuts are fried in oil, but in this version, I’ve gone for a slightly healthier doughnut that is baked in the oven instead. It’s much quicker and easier to make too, but of course, it does mean these doughnuts have a different consistency and flavour to a regular doughnut that is made with leavened dough. Baked doughnuts are more cake-like but still taste absolutely delicious, especially with oodles of icing. Enjoy!
Baked Gluten-free Ring Doughnuts
Ingredients:
- 130g gluten-free plain flour
- ½ tsp xanthan gum
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 80g caster sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- 30g unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 100ml whole milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 150g icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp milk
- Food colouring of your choice
- Sprinkles (optional)
Method:
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (160°C Fan)/350°F/Gas Mark 4 and lightly grease your doughnut moulds with butter or vegetable oil. If you do not have a doughnut mould, you can line a baking tray with parchment paper and use a piping bag (or use a sandwich bag and cut one corner) to pipe a ring shape.
- In a bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients until combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the melted butter, oil, egg, milk and vanilla extract with an electric hand or stand mixer.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix until fully combined – the batter will be quite stiff.
- Pipe your doughnut batter into your moulds or on to a baking tray. If using a mould, try to spread the batter right to the edges of the moulds and level out for a nice even bake.
- Bake in the oven for approx. 20 mins, or until lightly golden and springy to the touch. You can test the doughnuts are cooked by inserting a knife or skewer and checking it comes out clean.
- Leave to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes before turning out on to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once cool, you can glaze your doughnuts. To make the icing glaze, add all of the ingredients (except the sprinkles) to a bowl and mix vigorously with a spoon, adding a little more milk if required. You want a nice thick consistency.
- Then, add the colouring of your choice and mix to blend.
- Dip each doughnut, one at a time, into the icing mixture so that it comes about halfway up the doughnut.
- Decorate with sprinkles or your topping of choice and leave to set for 20 minutes before eating.