Like I said yesterday, I’m not vegan, but I’ve found that I really enjoy many vegan recipes. You know, similar to how if you’re not diabetic you can still buy a “diabetic cookbook” and enjoy the amazing and always healthy recipes (btw, I have about three diabetic cookbooks that I use often). One of the benefits of vegan foods is that they are typically lower in saturated fats. When I saw this recipe for vegan cinnamon donuts on Jessie’s Blog I didn’t think twice about printing the recipe and making them (I actually did this on the same day I read her post, haha, I guess I had a sweet tooth). I ran out to buy mini muffin pans, and I got to work (but, if you don’t have a mini muffin pan you can make these in a regular muffin pan, just bake about twice as long). As you’ll see, my “donuts” didn’t really look (or taste) like donuts. I enjoyed them very much, but Nick helped me decide what to call them; biscuits. Yes, biscuits. They looked and tasted more like biscuits but in the best way possible.
Whole Grain, Gluten-Free, Vegan Sweet Cinnamon Biscuits
Ingredients
- 5 T coconut oil, at room temp. plus ¼ cup, separate and melted
- ½ cup sugar, plus ⅓ cup
- 1 T chia seeds, mixed with 3 T warm water
- ½ cup almond milk
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 5 cups brown rice or oat flour
- ½ tsp. cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Cream coconut oil (5 T) and sugar (1/2 cup) for 2 minutes. Add chia seed mixture, almond milk, and vanilla. Stir well. Mix in baking powder. Add flour and stir until just combined.
- Use a little coconut oil to grease mini muffin pan. Fill cups ½ full. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until tops are set. Allow cooling in the pan for 2 minutes before removing.
- Combine sugar (1/3 cup) and cinnamon for topping. Dip biscuits in melted coconut oil (1/4 cup), then roll in cinnamon sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
If you are following a low FODMAPs diet, these are safe to eat. Shredded coconut does contain FODMAPs (when consumed in amounts greater than ½ cup), but coconut oil does not. By using the brown rice or oat flour, instead of whole wheat or white all-purpose flour, these are also gluten-free.
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 1/12 of batch Calories: 230 Fat: 11.5 g Saturated fat: 9 g Carbohydrates: 30 g Sugar: 14 g Sodium: 10 mg Fiber: 2 g Protein: 2 g Cholesterol: 0 mg
Nutrition Highlights: Hmm, well, these are a dessert. What can I say? This is a perfect example of how “vegan” and “gluten-free” doesn’t necessarily mean “healthy”. Not to say that these are “unhealthy” but I’m not going to pretend like there are really any health benefits. Remember, I’m The Candid RD, I tell it like it is. I mean I could say “these are lower in sugar than most desserts, have only 10 mg sodium, and provide almost a good source of fiber”, but, that’s just bologna. It’s a dessert. Deal with it. And on another note you’re probably thinking “but, didn’t she say vegan recipes are typically lower in saturated fat??”. That’s what you’re thinking, right? I knew it. Well, this recipe contains a lot of highly saturated oil, coconut oil. Read more about coconut oil in this post that I wrote last year. Basically, yes, it’s very high in saturated fat, but the type of saturated bat is said to be better for you than that found in animal products (mainly dairy and meat). That being said, it’s still good to limit your intake, but overall getting saturated fat from coconut oil is probably better for your health. More research to come, I’m sure.
Ok, I love the mini muffin pan. It was worth the $10.
When Nick saw (and smelled) these, he said: “What are those?!”. I called them donuts. I did not say “healthy” or “vegan” or “gluten-free”. TIP: keep those words out of the explanation when feeding a male.
Nick and I ate one (maybe two) and then froze the rest for that week’s sweet treat. They were delicious (especially with a small scoop of ice cream. Just sayin’). And of course if you wanted to reduce the sugar in these you could either a) not add the additional sugar on top or b) use Splenda or Stevia (or any other sugar-substitute).
Thanks, Jessie, for the wonderful recipe! I’ll be honest, I’ve had this jar of coconut oil in my cabinet for months now, and have been searching for ways to use it. These were perfect. Also a student at work the other day told me he mixes a scoop of coconut oil into his coffee every morning. Brilliant. Coconut coffee without added sugar, and full of flavor? I might just have to try that.
Thanks for reading, and happy biscuit eating!
The Candid RD
