Recently, I came across a mini donut tin in the back of my kitchen cupboard, that I haven’t used for ages. The last time I used it was re-making an old recipe on my blog; Mini Pumpkin & Cinnamon Sugar Donuts, which I am obsessed with. I was tempted to make them again but decided to switch it up a little and make some Christmas-themed ones!  

I love how they turned out. Something between an iced gingerbread cookie and a soft, fluffy muffin <3 However, I’m kicking myself because these photos turned out blurry! I did consider making and photographing these again but I’m trying to be less of a perfectionist so… Enjoy these blurry donuts.

To replace eggs in this recipe, I use applesauce which I think also really adds to the flavour. In the UK, it’s not always something that’s easy to get hold of but I found a workaround – baby food! Check out the baby food aisle and you will usually be able to find apple puree. Or you can just make your own.

Mini Gingerbread Donuts (Vegan)

Yield: 12 donuts

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Baked gingerbread donuts topped with icing for an easy Christmassy treat! 

Print

Ingredients

• 200 g self-raising flour, (or plain flour with 1 1/2 tsp baking powder)
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp mixed ground spice, (or pumpkin pie spice mix)
• 55 g applesauce (apple puree)
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 100 ml dairy-free milk
• 80 ml golden syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

For the icing

• 175 g icing sugar (confectioner's sugar)
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp dairy-free milk, (add more if needed)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180C / 350F and grease a mini donut tin with some oil.
2. Stir all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
3. In a separate, smaller bowl or jug, combine all the wet ingredients.
4. Stir the wet into the dry and mix until smooth.
5. For a neat donut shape, I like to transfer the batter into an icing bag with a large, round nozzle and pipe the donuts into the tray. However, you can also just use a spoon and your finger to smooth it down - it's a bit messy this way, though!
6. Bake for 12-15 minutes until the tops are golden brown.
7. Gently remove from the tins and leave to cool completely before adding the icing.

To glaze

1. Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl, adding more milk if too thick or more icing sugar if too runny. 
2. Using a teaspoon, drizzle the icing onto each donut, leaving to set on a piece of parchment paper. 
3. Enjoy straight away or keep in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.