Frightfully easy, these vegan donuts are perfectly light and fluffy when baked to perfection, drizzled with rose-scented glaze and topped with pomegranate tendrils and pistachio.
Ingredients
For the donuts
1½ cups of organic unbleached all-purpose flour (190g)
¾ cup organic cane sugar (150g)
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp sea salt
¼ cup melted organic coconut oil (60ml)
¾ cup almond or soy milk (180ml)
½ tbsp vanilla extract
1½ tbsp applesauce
1 tbsp hot water
½ tsp of saffron threads
For the rose glaze
1½ cups organic icing sugar
1-3 tbsp almond milk
½ tbsp rose water
A few drops of beetroot water (from a can or a pre-packaged steamed beets) or natural food colouring
To garnish
Sliced pistachios
Pomegranate tendrils
Edible rose petals
Instructions
For the donuts
Pre-heat your oven to 180°C/350°F and grease your donut pan with baking spray or coconut oil.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and sea salt and set aside.
Next, add the saffron threads to the hot water in a small cup and leave to rest for about 2-3 minutes until the water is golden in colour. Add to a measuring cup or small bowl to combine with the remaining wet ingredients.
Add the wet ingredient mixture to the dry ingredients and whisk together until well combined and no major lumps remain.
Divide the mixture across your donut pan, ensuring each donut whole isn't more than ¾ of the way full as these donuts will rise a considerable amount.
Bake for 15 minutes - the donuts should be slightly browned and a toothpick or knife should come out clean. Set aside to cool for at least half an hour before frosting.
Once cooled, dip the donuts into the frosting and sprinkle with toppings of choice, then pop them into the fridge for 5-10 minutes to set.
For the glaze
In a small food processor, combine the ingredients starting with just one tablespoon of the almond milk, adding more as needed to thin. It should be pourable but still thick. You should only need a few drops of the beetroot water to impart a bright pink colour, but bear in mind that the more liquid you add the runnier the glaze will be.
Notes
You could try baking these with an all-purpose gluten-free flour mix if you can't tolerate wheat.
If you prefer a refined sugar-free glaze, try combining 3 tbsp of cashew butter, 1 tbsp maple syrup, 1 tbsp coconut oil, rose water and beetroot/natural food colouring instead.
When glazing, you can dip the donuts into the glaze twice for a thicker glaze or just do the one for a more subtle sweetness and colour.
Recipe by One Arab Vegan at https://www.onearabvegan.com/2019/06/vegan-vanilla-saffron-donuts-with-rose-glaze/