The decision is Yours
These gluten-free mini donuts or mini bundts (your choice of what you would call them) with tiger nut flour have a golden crispy exterior and cake-like interior coated with an elderflower floral glaze. You can use your preferred flour (see our recommendations in the sections and FAQ below). This recipe is an accident that turned into a crowd-pleaser in our home.
You might wonder why these mini donuts almost resemble a mini bundt cake without fancy swirls or indentations. Knowing these were gluten-free, I thought these donut mini versions might rise less than I would like. Turns out they did rise! Why did we keep the shape? Well, it turns out that keeping the bottom whole creates a well for your glaze or preferred topping to sit! Our kids love these little treats and we feel good giving them a dessert that we made from scratch.
Did you know there are medicinal and nutritional benefits to using elderflower? Elderflower can be used to reduce the symptoms of irritated sinuses, as well as to reduce inflammation and help manage fevers (Wild Dispensary). Beyond that, elderflower is high in antioxidants and bio-flavonoids that support the immune system (Indigo Herbs). Elderflower’s not a bad thing to add to your recipe. Check out the instructions below to see how you can incorporate it to the floral glaze!
A little work goes a long way
We were inspired by the Seasonal Cravings donut recipe. This recipe leverages our gluten-free tiger nut all-purpose flour, but you can experiment with your preferred gluten-free flour recipe. We recommend that if you use your gluten-free flour version, use one whole cup of it and do not add the cornstarch. For all-purpose flour, please take a look at the FAQ section below. Let’s begin!
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177℃) and grease a mini donut pan.
- In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Mix the cooled melted butter, vanilla, egg yolks, and milk in another bowl. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and stir gently.
- In a small bowl, lightly whisk the egg white to thicken for a minute or two, then stir into the batter until just incorporated.
- Pour the batter into a piping or Ziploc bag with the corner cut off for easy filling of the donut pan. Fill each mold, ensuring the center post isn’t covered. When it bakes, the bottom will rise over and cover the center post.
- Bake for about 20 minutes and let cool completely. The below picture (please excuse the poor lighting in the top one) is what the bottom should look like. The picture after is what the top looks like.
- For the glaze, gradually mix powdered sugar with milk and elderflower cordial until smooth and slightly thick. Dip the cooled donuts in the glaze and set on a wire rack over a lined baking sheet to dry.
- Serve and enjoy the donuts once the glaze has set.
FAQ
Can this work with all-purpose flour?
For the donut batter, we have not tested that, but if you are going to experiment, we recommend taking out the baking soda, cream of tartar, and cornstarch and using 1 whole cup of all-purpose flour.
How should these gluten-free mini donuts be stored?
We recommend storing this in an air-tight container at room temp for two to three days. You can refrigerate it, but the glaze will become runny.
Why do I need cream of tartar?
Cream of tartar acts as a leavening agent when mixed with baking soda because it creates carbon dioxide and raises the batter in gluten-free baking (Fearless Dining).
What are other uses for elderflower?
We understand buying a bottle of elderflower for one recipe may seem extra, but we believe this takes these donuts mini versions to the next level. You can use elderflower in cocktails, cakes, tarts, jellies and jams.
Gluten-free Mini Donuts (or Mini Bundts) with Floral Glaze
Equipment
- 1 Piping bag or ziplock bag
- 1 Tall glass
- 1 Liquid measuring cup
- 1 Rubber spatula
- Measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- 1 Medium bowl
- 1 Small bowl
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Wire rack
- 1 Baking sheet lined with parchment paper
Ingredients
Donut Batter:
- 1 Cup Tiger nut all-purpose flour less two TBSP
- 2 TBSP Cornstarch
- 1/8 tsp Baking soda
- 1/8 tsp Cream of tartar
- 3/4 tsp Baking powder
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1/3 Cup Granulated white sugar
- 4 TBSP Unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract or paste
- 1/2 tsp Lemon extract
- 1 Egg yolk and whites separated
- 1/2 Cup Milk
- For Glaze:
- 3/4 Cup Powdered sugar
- 1 TBSP Milk
- 1/2 TBSP Elderflower cordial
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF/ 177℃.
- Spray your mini donut pan with cooking spray.
- In a standing mixer bowl or a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl – flour through sugar.
- Whisk the melted and cooled butter, vanilla, egg yolks, and milk in a medium bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in. Stir until just incorporated.
- Whisk the egg white in a separate small bowl for about a minute or two with a fork. You are just trying to get the egg white to thicken to add fluffiness to the donuts.
- Add egg whites to the batter and stir just until incorporated.
- Transfer the mixture to a piping bag or Ziploc bag and cut the corner tip off. This makes it easy to pipe the batter into the donut pan.
- Fill each mold to the top without covering the middle post.
- Bake for about 20 minutes. You should see that the baked donut covers the middle post entirely on the bottom.
- Allow to cool completely before removing the mini donuts from the pan and then glazing. When you remove the donuts from the pan, you will see a well or hole in the middle.
- Mix the powdered sugar with the desired amount of milk and elderflower cordial for the glaze. Only add a little at one time.
- Dip donuts in glaze and place on a wire rack to dry. We recommend placing the wire rack on top of a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Serve and enjoy!
Let Us Know What you Think of these Mini donuts!
Drop us a comment down below if you made these! Interested in more dessert ideas? Check out our salted caramel cookie skillet recipe or our brownies recipe.