Keto Donuts

Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe

These pillowy keto donuts taste almost like the real thing. The moist, delicate crumb and luscious chocolate glaze are lovely!

They're good with just the glaze, but using different toppings, such as crushed nuts and shredded coconut, is also fun.

Three keto donuts stacked on a white plate.

Keto desserts can be amazing. It's true for keto chocolate chip cookies, keto brownies, and keto cheesecake. And it's also true for these keto donuts.

They are soft, moist, and wonderfully chocolaty. They remind me of chocolate cake donuts. You'll need a donut pan to make them, but other than this, making them is a straightforward affair and not particularly challenging.

Jump to:

Ingredients
Variations
Keto Donuts Instructions
Expert Tip
Recipe FAQs
Serving Suggestions
Storing Leftovers
More Keto Baked Goods
Recipe Card

Ingredients

Here's an overview of the ingredients needed to make this recipe. The exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below.

Eggs: I use large eggs in almost all of my recipes, this one included.
Unsalted butter: I love using European butter, but any unsalted butter will work.
Milk: I use three tablespoons.
Sweetener: I use stevia glycerite.
Coconut flour: Measure it by weight if you can. Each gram makes a difference in this ultra-dry ingredient.
Cocoa powder: You should use natural unsweetened cocoa powder in this recipe.
Salt and baking soda: I use sea salt in this recipe.
For the glaze: Only two ingredients are needed - dark chocolate chips and avocado oil.

The ingredients needed to bake keto donuts.

Variations

You can use heavy cream instead of milk. I tried both versions, and both are excellent.
You can use baking powder instead of baking soda (gluten-free if needed). You'll need 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
Not a fan of stevia? Replace it with a granulated sweetener to equal ⅓ cup of sugar.
I use extra-dark chocolate chips (85% cacao) to make the glaze. You can also use extra-dark chocolate such as Lindt 85% or Lindt 90%.
I like to top the donuts with shredded coconut and chopped nuts. Another tasty option is to drizzle them with melted peanut butter, almond butter, or walnut butter.

Keto donuts topped with a chocolate glaze, shredded coconut, and chopped nuts.

Keto Donuts Instructions

The detailed instructions for making this recipe are included in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of the steps:

You start by whisking all the ingredients (except for the glaze ingredients) in a single bowl. (Photos 1-2).
Add the batter to a greased silicone donut pan. Bake the donuts in a 350°F oven for about 17 minutes. (Photos 3-4).
The donuts are perfect at this point! But we want to glaze them. So your next steps are to completely cool them, then carefully remove them from the pan and glaze them. Allow the glaze to set, then dig in! (Photos 5-6).

A six-photo collage showing the steps for making keto donuts.

Expert Tip

The baking soda in this recipe needs an acid to react with. The milk provides some via lactic acid. But for best results, it's best to use natural cocoa powder and not Dutch-processed cocoa powder.

Natural cocoa powder is acidic and will react with the baking soda to produce fluffy donuts.

Recipe FAQs

What pan should I use?

It's important to use a silicone donut pan. These donuts are made with coconut flour and stick to metal pans, even nonstick ones.

They sometimes very lightly stick even to silicone. So when it's time to release them from the pan, do so very slowly, using a knife or a small rubber spatula to gently separate them from the pan.

What are keto donuts made of?

These donuts can be made with any low-carb flour. Two popular choices are almond flour and coconut flour. In this recipe, we're using coconut flour.

Coconut flour is especially suitable for donuts because it produces baked goods with a slightly spongy texture, which works well in a donut recipe.

Can I substitute almond flour for coconut flour?

Unfortunately, you can't. This recipe was written explicitly for coconut flour, which is highly absorbent and needs extra eggs and liquids to prevent baked goods from being too dry.