This Low-Carb Chocolate Donuts recipe is my first one here on the blog. My boys and their friends go gaga for this low-carb dessert and once you try it you will too!
Low-Carb Chocolate Donuts Recipe with Coconut Flour
Thankfully, this is another super easy low-carb recipe, with only 7 ingredients total. All you need to whip these up is coconut flour, cacao powder, salt, baking soda, eggs, coconut oil, and maple syrup. To make it simply dump the ingredients into a food processor, throw the mixture in the doughnut pans, bake it, and bam! You’ve got gluten-free, grain-free low-carb donuts.
Nut-Free Low-Carb Donuts
My husband said this nut-free Paleo dessert tasted like an Entenmann’s cake style doughnut. My boys simply scarfed them down. They love my low-carb treats and are total suckers for anything with sprinkles. I tested this doughnut recipe with both coconut oil and palm shortening and found that coconut oil was far superior in this recipe. When I tested the donuts with palm shortening it was a challenge to get them out of the pan and their texture was too dry.
Low-Carb Chocolate Donuts
Ingredients
Donuts
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- ¼ cup cacao powder
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup coconut oil, melted
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
Topping
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon palm shortening
Instructions
- In a food processor, pulse together coconut flour, cacao powder, salt, and baking soda
- Pulse in eggs, coconut oil, and maple syrup until thoroughly combined
- Fill each well of a donut mold half way full of batter
- Bake at 350°F for 15-18 minutes
- Remove doughnuts from pan and place on a cooling rack
- Use a paring knife to cut hole in center of each doughnut
- In a saucepan, melt chocolate chips and shortening
- Drizzle doughnut with chocolate glaze
- Cool and serve
Equipment
Creating and Testing a Low-Carb Nut-Free Donut Recipe
As with all of my recipes, I tested this one several times. Each time I test something, I make a very minor change, so that I can investigate how this single change impacts the recipe overall. For one of my test batches, I played with the amount of batter needed to make each doughnut. From that test, I can tell you a couple of things. First, do not fill up the donut wells in your donut mold all the way. Fill the wells around halfway with batter, and spread the batter evenly in each well. This batter will rise and the wells will be full when you are done baking. You’ll have perfect homemade doughnuts.
How to Make Low-Carb Donuts
I use two silicon doughnut molds
Low-Carb Donuts for Kids with Sprinkles
You can eat these adorable low-carb donuts with or without the glaze. For the boys, I add India Tree sprinkles
Keto Dessert Recipe with Erythritol
If you’re looking for recipes for a very low-carb diet (VLCD) check out my Keto Diet Recipes page. If you’re in need of a keto dessert, you’ll want to make my Keto Brownies recipe sweetened with erythritol! Although I can’t eat erythritol because it’s made with corn and is a sugar alcohol that I can’t digest, I created my Keto Brownies recipe for my readers and I hope you all enjoy it!
This post is an oldie but goodie from the archives. I first published this recipe in February 2015.
audrey says
Is there any way you could deepfry these?
Elana says
Hi Audrey, I haven’t tried that so not sure. If you do please let us know how it goes.
Kathy says
Hi, please let me know how the frying worked. Also, Elana, would the baked donuts freeze well?
Elana says
Hi Kathy, I haven’t tried that so not sure. If you freeze the donuts please let us know how they are when they thaw out :-)
MIchelle says
Probably a silly question, what is the difference between palm shortening and palm oil? When I try to research the two, I get so many articles lambasting the use of palm anything due to the inhumanity of its collection. Can you shed any light on this? Also, is there differences in processing – I’m thinking of coconut oil, or olive oil, etc and how you can get various flavors depending on the way it was handled. Which one has the most neutral flavor? Thank you so much!
Bridgette says
I made these tonight and they were amazing! It was our first attempt at making donuts. I followed the recipe exactly. I wasn’t sure if I should melt the coconut oil. I left it solid and measured out 1/2 a cup. They came out perfect. They tasted like a Mounds Bar! Will definitely make these again. Thank you!
Michele says
Can you fill these with jelly. I am thinking about these for Chanukkah. suvganiyat – jelly donuts are traditional.
Jeanette Regas says
Did you try this? I am thinking a muffin tin, fill 1/4 way to add spoon of jelly; top off with batter. Hmmmm. Yumm.
Tess says
Considering these for my two year old’s birthday party this weekend. He doesn’t like chocolate, could you suggest a banana flavor or alternative flavor that might work?
Kenna says
These ARE delicious! I just pulled them out of the oven. I accidentally used 1/4 cup coconut oil but they are delicious! I used a mini bagel pan to curb my desire to eat copious amounts of food! I have a batch of plain (non-chocolates) baking now!
Thanks Elana!
Ticamom says
How did you modify the recipe to make plain ones?
Jo says
can you use something instead of shortening as we don’t have it here.
thanks
jo
Ellen Germaine says
The silicon donut molds come in small, medium and large. Which size do you use?
Elana says
Hi Ellen, that product is linked in the recipe above to the large size :-)
Jhanell says
These are delicious and will be making them again! Do you know what the calorie count per doughnut is?
Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Erin says
I do not have a food processor. :( Can I use a blender?
Cecilia says
I have made these twice already. The first time I made it exactly as specified. The second time, I ommitted 1 egg and substituted 1/2 a banana, and I used honey instead of maple syrup. My 2 year old scarfed down 3 before I even frosted them. Also, for those asking about not having a food processor, I mix it all by hand, and they turn out fine.