If I had a dollar for every cat hair I had to edit out of these Brownie Crumb Donut pictures, I’d be a millionaire. I made these donuts for my cookbook, but I’m sharing them with you because it’s National Donut Day! Or do you spell it Doughnut? I feel like that’s fancier. Like when British people spell Flavour and Colour with an extra U. It’s just fancier. Kind of ridiculous, but definitely fancier. What donuts are your favorite?! I love Sidecar Doughnuts in the Los Angeles area, they always have a gluten-free flavor of the month (flavour) and some of them are super fancy! I wish they’d hire me to photograph their donuts, they are so gorgeous, I’d love every second of it. During the holidays they had an Eggnog one and I almost drove an hour and a half to get one, but then realized I left my wallet at work. Doh.
I just got back from Paleofx in Austin and I hope you are following me on Instagram (@vanessabarajas) and Snapchat because I ate so much crazy food, trust me, you want to see it. I love Austin. The people are so welcoming and there’s so much to do. The weather was crazy humid though and there were crazy lightening and thunder storms all week. Which was kind of cool, until you actually spent time doing your hair, or wanted to sleep.
Austin also has the best kombucha ever and all the best brands are there, like Siete Foods, Buddha’s Brew, Tin Star Foods, and Blue Northern (Picnik’s brand!) Speaking of both Siete and Picnik, every time I’m in town, they are just so amazing. Siete hosted a dinner for us and it was one of the most amazing meals I’ve ever eaten and I loved every second of it! They had a chef cook a 5-course meal using their almond flour and cassava tortillas in each dish and every single thing had so much flavor. I died.
And then there is Naomi, who is literally my favorite ever and rules the butter coffee and butter blondie universe. Have you guys every seen that movie Girls Just Want to Have Fun? It’s that old 80’s movie with Sarah Jessica Parker pre Sex in the City, and Helen Hunt pre Mad About You and they are trying to get on D-TV and dance and then at the end when they win (spoiler alert) Helen Hunt rides in on a chariot, well that was Naomi at Paleofx, on a chariot passing out butter coffee to everyone. It was the best part of my day. Then she gave us a huge tray of butter blondies. I think I ate 8 blondies. Serious. They are also one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. I wish she’d just let me sign an NDA and give me the recipe so I could make them at home. Sigh.
If you’ve never been to Austin you need to go, and your first stop needs to be Picnik for the butter blondies and coffee. The Yeti is my favorite. Then you need to hit up The Salty Sow for the Duck Fat Fries, 24 Diner for the Sweet Potato Hash with pochies, Chilantro for the kimchi fries, Odd Duck for the Sweet Potatoes, Dolce Neve for grass-fed gelato, Whole Foods HQ for Topo-Chico and all the Tart Cherry Buddha’s Brew kombucha you can get your hands on. That was a huge tangent about food. Sorry. Sometimes that happens.
- 1 cup (92 g) sifted fine-ground blanched almond flour
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup (7 ounces/200 g) dark chocolate (63% to 72% cacao) or semisweet chocolate chips
- ½ cup (120 ml) canned full-fat coconut milk, room temperature
- ¼ cup (55 g) palm shortening
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups (14 ounces/400 g) dark chocolate (63% to 85% cacao) or semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) melted coconut oil
- Preheat a mini donut maker or, if using a donut pan, place an oven rack in the middle position and preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine the dry ingredients—the almond flour, coconut sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon—and stir together using a fork until combined; set aside.
- Melt the chocolate chips and coconut milk in a double boiler over low heat or in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. Stir frequently, using a rubber spatula, until the chocolate and coconut milk are completely melted and combined. Then add the palm shortening and stir it into the mixture as it melts, until completely combined. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
- Stir the vanilla and eggs into the melted chocolate mixture.
- Gently fold the dry ingredients into the melted chocolate mixture and stir using a rubber spatula or whisk until just combined. Using a rubber spatula, transfer the batter into a large resealable plastic bag and snip off a corner. Squeeze the batter evenly into the donut maker or pan. If using a donut maker, cook for 3 minutes on one side and then flip the donuts, using a knife or fork to help remove the donut, and bake for another minute. Times may vary according to manufacturer. Remove the donuts and place on a wire rack to cool before glazing. If using a donut pan, tap on the counter to remove any air bubbles, then bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool slightly, then flip the pan upside down onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the donuts are cooling prepare the Chocolate Shell Coating to use for the glaze.
- Dip the top of a donut into the chocolate glaze and place back on the cooling rack. Repeat the process until all but two donuts are left. Crumble the two donuts and sprinkle the crumbs across the donut tops, onto the wet glaze. Enjoy immediately or place in the refrigerator to let the glaze harden. Store any leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler over low heat or in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. Stir frequently, using a rubber spatula, until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in coconut oil. Let sit until the bowl is relatively cool to the touch. Store in a covered container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. If the mixture hardens, reheat over simmering water or microwave for 30 seconds until the mixture becomes liquid again.
Ydanis
June 3, 2016 at 5:22 am (7 years ago)Wow! These look great! But you mentioned palm shortening in the directions but it’s not listed in the ingredients list. Please update! Thanks! Can’t wait to try these!
Vanessa Barajas
June 3, 2016 at 8:08 am (7 years ago)Gah! Thanks for catching that! I’ve updated it. 🙂
Kelly
June 3, 2016 at 7:54 am (7 years ago)Can I use a natural sugar free sweetener instead of the coconut sugar?, if so, how much do you think i should use?. my Mom has diabetes.
Vanessa Barajas
June 3, 2016 at 8:11 am (7 years ago)You definitely could. I would maybe try stevia? I don’t use stevia because I don’t really care for the taste, so I’m not really sure what the amount would be, but liquid or granulated would be fine. Maybe do a quick google search to see what the ratio would be for 1 tablespoon. I’m guessing a few drops would be fine. Let me know how it goes!
Lisa
June 3, 2016 at 1:40 pm (7 years ago)Is there something else I could use instead of palm shortening? Not sure I know what that is or where to find it.
Vanessa Barajas
June 3, 2016 at 2:14 pm (7 years ago)Hi Lisa, I’ve never tested the recipe with anything else. If you used a baking fat like butter/ghee/coconut oil it would probably be more dense like a brownie, but you could certainly try. The Palm Shortening makes it more airy. It’s actually relatively easy to find. If you live near a Sprouts, Whole Foods, Alberson’s, Vons/Safeway, or natural food store they should have it. Even Amazon has it! This is the brand I use, Spectrum organic shortening but Nutiva brand is good too. 🙂
Amy
June 5, 2016 at 5:24 pm (7 years ago)How many donuts did the recipe make?
Vanessa Barajas
June 6, 2016 at 9:17 am (7 years ago)The yield is 18 mini-donuts or 12 regular size. Sorry, my recipe plug-in won’t let me input two different yields so I just left it blank. 😉
Linda
June 9, 2016 at 9:00 am (7 years ago)I don’t have a mini-donut maker or donut pan. Can I use muffin tins or any other type of pan?
Vanessa Barajas
June 9, 2016 at 9:13 am (7 years ago)Sure you could use a muffin tin, just realize you’ll be making something more like cupcakes than donuts. 🙂 If you’re in the market, here’s an option for an inexpensive mini-donut maker or a donut pan. Happy Baking.
Jen
November 17, 2016 at 7:27 pm (6 years ago)I love your cookbook! And I would really love if you could hack those butter blondies from Picnik. I have one every time I visit Austin and you’re so great at coming up with decadent, paleo-friendly recipes I bet you could do it. Pretty please??
Vanessa Barajas
November 20, 2016 at 3:58 pm (6 years ago)OH MY GOSH! The Picnik Butter Blondies are one of my favorite things on Earth! Every time I have one I try to reverse engineer the ingredients, but I really have no idea how they make them! Gah!!! Maybe I’ll try and come up with my own Blondie recipe and call it a day? 😉 So happy to hear you are enjoying my cookbook! Yay! 🙂
Brittany
January 31, 2018 at 6:19 am (5 years ago)Is there a substitute for almond flour? My son is allergic to nuts.
Vanessa Barajas
January 31, 2018 at 10:28 am (5 years ago)You could try Cassava flour or a gluten-free flour blend like Cup 4 Cup. Either of those would probably work fine. 🙂