Lemon Blueberry Cake Donuts with Lemon Glaze Icing

I got some! Donut pans that is! 😉 Now I’m in the big leagues baby—no more mini bundt cakes or mini heart shaped donuts. It’s my b-day weekend, so of course, I had to ask for some donut pans (amongst other things), and of course, I had to put them to use immediately! As soon as I opened the gift, I knew what I’d be doing the next morning and I instantly started thinking about what was in the pantry and what I could make—because let’s face it—I wasn’t going to be running out to the grocery store first thing in the morning.
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I was also fortunate to get a kit of Young Living Essential Oils for my b-day. I’m in the very beginning stages of learning about all of the great uses and benefits to using the oils, and we’ve already seen some pretty neat results! Aaron has been a snorer (I’ve talked about that before), and a few months ago, a friend told us about an oil for him to put on his big toe. Weird, right? Well we tried it—and it worked! No more snoring! I was pretty much sold at that point! We did some more research, and since b-day time was coming, we waited to make any purchases. We’ve experimented with a few other things—I’m super prone to migraines…felt one coming on…put oil on my temples and back of the neck…within 5 minutes it was gone! Say what?!?! We diffused some oil during the kids “crazy” time of night, and I kid you not, without being prompted, they were calm, laying on pillows in the living room reading books. Pure magic, I tell ya!

My next “big” thing I wanted to try out was baking…could I bake something, incorporating the oils, that would be super scrumptious? Well, yes—yes I could—and did!

Enter the Lemon Blueberry Cake Donuts with Lemon Glaze Icing! I had no lemons in the house, so I opted for the Lemon Oil from Young Living Essential Oils. A few drops goes a long way, and they gave the right amount of lemony deliciousness while boosting the immune and digestive systems. Bonus!

The donuts and glaze are simple to make—another bonus! Since Jax says he doesn’t like blueberries, I opted to blend them with some sugar and melt them on the stove a bit to make a slight syrup to mix into the batter. When he realized that I was baking with blueberries, he started to get a bit sad. I explained that he wouldn’t be able to see them and that I baked them in. He was skeptical, but—drumroll—he loved them! Point for mommy! The others…well…they literally in-haled them! I barely had time to shoot any pics!

 

Lemon Blueberry Cake Donuts with Lemon Glaze

• Servings: 18
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For the Donuts:
2 cups flour
2 TBSP baking powder
1 ½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp nutmeg
2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup blueberries (frozen are fine)
¼ cup sugar
½ cup maple syrup
4 TBSP Earth Balance butter, melted
½ cup vegan sour cream
2 flax eggs (2 TBSP ground flax meal mixed with 6 TBSP warm water)
½ cup almond milk
½ tsp vanilla
4-6 drop Young Living Lemon Essential Oil*

For the Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
2-3 TBSP almond milk**
2-3 drops Young Living Lemon Essential Oil**

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350. Lightly grease your donut pans and set aside.
2. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon.
3. In a small food processor or blender, combine the blueberries and sugar until fully incorporated and some small chunks/pieces remain. Transfer the mixture to a small saucepan and stir on low heat until the sugar melts, creating a syrup of sorts.
4. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, melted butter, sour cream, flax eggs, vanilla, almond milk, blueberry syrup mixture, and lemon oil drops.
5. Pour the wet mixture into the flour mixture and stir to thoroughly combine.
6. Fill the wells of the donut pan half full. The fuller the wells, the poofier the donuts, and the more likely the hole in the center will be filled in.
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a donut comes out clean. Allow to cool in the donut pan for 7 minutes and then turn out on a cooling rack to completely cool.
8. While the donuts are cooling, mix the powdered sugar, almond milk, and lemon oil to make your glaze.
9. Once the donuts are cool, dip one side in the glaze and set aside to let the glaze set.
10. Eat and enjoy! 

*If you don’t have the Lemon Oil for the donuts, you could try decreasing the almond milk to ¼ cup, and add in ¼ cup fresh lemon juice and 1 tsp lemon zest.
**If you don’t have Lemon Oil for the glaze, you could use fresh lemon juice in place of the almond milk.

I hope to keep experimenting with the oils and seeing what I can create to share with you. If you have questions about or are interested in Young Living Essential Oils, shoot me a message. In the meantime, have you baked with Essential Oils? What are your favorite recipes?

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Vegan Chocolate Cake Donuts with Chocolate Glaze

Oh Divine-ness!!! This morning, as Mads and I lay snuggling in bed, we began scheming about all of the deliciousness we could make for breakfast. We thought of flavored pancakes, waffles, oatmeals, breads—but none of them seemed quite right. Mads, defeated, finally said, “Mom, why don’t we just go to the store and get some donuts?” Uhhh…say what??? Did my own child JUST say that? Well, I’ve got one better for you dear innocent child of mine—we will make those beloved donuts!!!

I admit that I didn’t have a donut recipe readily available, but thanks to Pinterest, we were able to piece together a pretty great recipe (if I do say so myself!). Also, admittedly, I don’t have a donut pan…so long live the improvisation! We indulged in “heart” shaped donuts (they looked more like giant misshaped donut holes) and mini bundt cake donuts—but they got the job done!

When Mads and I started out baking, we thought that we’d have regular, plain cake donuts with chocolate glaze, but then we got crazy mid-mix and opted for chocolate cake donuts—and we are so glad that we did! Given my cinnamon addiction, we had to add in some cinnamon, and it is such a great combo. I also loooove browned butter, but I realized that I’m not sure if I’ve really actually browned vegan butter. It does brown up, but it’s much different than regular butter. For one, it takes a bit longer, and the vegan butter seems to separate a bit more. I think that I probably could have browned it a bit more, but I got nervous and pulled the butter off of the stove, so next time, I’ll push it a little further, trying to get more of the yummy browned flavor.

While the donuts were baking, we just had to make a scrumptious chocolate glaze (would you judge me if I said I ate the glaze by the spoonful? If you would judge…then I didn’t… 😉 ). Since no donut is complete without sprinkles, we added a bunch for funzies!

 

Chocolate Cake Donuts with Chocolate Glaze

• Servings: 12
• Print

Donut Ingredients

2 cup all-purpose flour
2 TBSP almond flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
2/3 cup sugar
2 TBSP cocoa powder
3 TBSP Earth Balance butter
2 flax eggs (2 TBSP ground flax meal mixed with 6 TBSP warm water)
1 cup almond milk mixed with 1 TBSP vinegar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the Chocolate Glaze:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
4 TBSP unsweetened cocoa powder
a pinch of salt
3 to 4 TBSP almond milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350F. Lightly grease your doughnut pan with butter and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, sugar, and cocoa powder.
3. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. It will begin to crackle and froth up as it melts and releases its water. The butter will start to separate a bit and will start to calm down. You will get a brown/darker layer on the bottom of the pan, remove the pan from heat and immediately transfer the browned butter (brown bits and all) to a small bowl.
4. In another bowl whisk together the flax eggs, almond milk/vinegar mix, vanilla extract, and browned butter.
5. Add the wet ingredients all at once to the dry ingredients. Stir together until no flour bits remain and all of the ingredients are well combined. Try not to overmix the batter to avoid creating rubbery doughnuts.
6. Use a small spoon to dollop batter into the pan. Fill each doughnut in the pan three-quarters full with batter. Place in the oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Keep an eye on them so you don’t over-bake. They should feel springy to the touch when ready.
7. Remove from the oven and invert onto a wire rack to cool completely. While the doughnuts cool, make the glaze.
8. To make the glaze, sift together powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and salt. Whisk in 2 tablespoons of almond milk and vanilla extract. Add more milk as necessary to create a thick but still just pourable glaze. (Though you’re not going to pour it; you’re going to dunk the donuts)
9. Once the doughnuts are completely cool, dip top-side-down into the chocolate glaze. Return to the wire rack and sprinkle with toppings.

 

We all loved these donuts so much, and now I can’t wait to try making more! I may have to invest in a donut pan…or just keep improvising…

Do you have a favorite donut recipe to share? You just may entice me to get that donut pan afterall! 😉