A Vegan Baked Berliner Donuts Recipe that makes tasty donuts with no frying! Easy, soft, and delicious donuts filled with apricot jam.
The Berliner donut is a highly popular dessert in our parts, especially during Carnival. The classic version is made with butter and eggs, and fried in hot oil, and is therefore not vegan friendly and not particularly healthy either. But you can totally make Vegan Baked Berliner Donuts!
These donuts are baked instead of fried and only use plant-based ingredients, to keep them vegan-friendly. Still, they are soft and fluffy, sweet and healthier than their traditional version. They are also easier to make (frying them correctly is an art form in itself) and your house will smell fragrant!
Give them a try and see for yourself!
What is a Berliner (donut)?
A Berliner, or Berliner donut, is a type of fried sweet dough, that is usually filled with jam or custard. The Berliner is similar to the donut, but it has no central hole and is shaped into a ball before frying.
You can make the Berliner donut healthier by simply skipping the frying and baking the donuts in the oven instead! The final result will not be the same, though, as the baked donut is more similar to a sweet bun, but it will be healthier and will scratch that sweet itch.
In fact, we love this Vegan Baked Berliner Donuts recipe!
Vegan Baked Berliner Donuts Ingredients
To make the dough for these Berliners you will need:
- yeast – we use dry active yeast but you can also use fresh yeast if you have it (you will need 42 grams of fresh yeast or 7 grams of dry active yeast)
- flour – all-purpose is fine
- sugar for sweetness
- lemon zest – for extra flavor and freshness, orange zest works, too, just make sure the citrus is organic before you use the peel
- turmeric – we added a teaspoon for more yellow coloring, but you can totally skip it
- a pinch of salt
- soy milk – we like it best in baked goods, but almond or rice milk will work as well
- vegan butter for extra moisture and fats
- dark rum – for more flavor, but this is optional. You can also use bourbon instead
You will also need:
- vegan butter to brush them once they are baked
- sugar for dusting – we used granulated sugar, but icing sugar is more traditional to use! You can use either.
- jam for filling – we used apricot jam, but raspberry or strawberry jam would also work; you could also fill them with chocolate or vanilla cream!
How to make Vegan Baked Berliner Donuts
Making Baked Berliner Donuts is easy and straightforward, but that said, there is one rule to follow: the room you work in must be very warm! My kitchen was at about 22°C / 71°F when I was making these donuts, and it was not enough for them to rise properly.
If your room is not warm enough (at least 25°C / 77°F), then proof your dough in a warm spot, or in the oven under the light.
Start by activating your yeast – combine the yeast with 1 tsp of sugar and 1 tsp of flour, and add about half of the warm milk. Whisk to combine, then cover with a towel and let sit for about 10 minutes for the yeast to activate.
To a large bowl add the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, lemon zest, salt, and turmeric (if using), and whisk to combine.
Once the yeast is active, add it to the flour along with warm milk, melted butter, and dark rum (or bourbon, if using).
Stir the ingredients to combine them, then knead them into a smooth and elastic dough, for about 5-10 minutes. I knead it by hand, but you can use a kitchen robot.
Once the dough is kneaded, place it in a bowl and cover it with cling foil – this way it will retain the moisture and not dry out while proofing.
Place the dough in a warm spot to rise for 1-2 hours or until doubled in size. If using fresh yeast and a very warm spot the rise time will be faster, but it took me almost 2 hours with dry active yeast and a cooler room.
Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down, then turn it on a working surface and divide it into about 10 equally sized parts. Use a kitchen scale to be sure they are even in size. The dough should come to about 900 grams, which divided by 10 makes for 10 x 90 grams of dough pieces.
Shape each dough piece into a ball and place it on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Cover and let rise again until doubled in size in a warm place.
The second rising is dependent on warmth even more – at room temperature my donuts would simply not rise, so I put them in the oven at 30°C / 86°F and that did the trick.
Don’t be stubborn like me and make sure the donuts are always warm.
Once the donuts have risen, preheat the oven to 180°C / 356°F (no fan).
If you are rising the donuts in the oven, remove them from the oven once they are fully risen, cover them with a napkin to keep them warm, and then preheat the oven.
Remove the napkin, then place the donuts into the preheated oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes, until golden brown in color.
When the donuts are baked, remove them from the oven, immediately brush them with some melted butter, and roll them in sugar – you can use granulated sugar, or simply dust them with icing sugar.
Set them aside to cool down.
Lastly, fill the Berliner donuts with jam: with a skewer poke a hole into the side of the donut, insert the skewer into the center of the donut, and roll it around to make a hole.
Fill a piping bag with a jam of your choice (we used an apricot jam) and pipe the jam into the hole in the donut.
Serving Suggestions
The Berliner donuts are best served on the same day, usually with a cup of coffee or milk – you can even dunk them, especially if they are not fresh anymore.
Storage tips
The Berliner donuts don’t keep very well stored and are best consumed within the day. You can keep them in an air-tight container on the counter for up to 3 days, but they will dry out soon.
Try reheating them slightly before serving (in a microwave or in an air fryer at low temperature) just to bring them back to life.
You can freeze these donuts for up to 3 months. Thaw on the counter overnight and warm up before serving.
More similar recipes:
- Vegan Pumpkin Bread Rolls
- Yogurt Donut Holes
- Vegan Baked Apple Cider Donuts
- Vegan Garlic Butter Dinner Rolls
Vegan Baked Berliner Donuts
A Vegan Baked Berliner Donuts Recipe that makes tasty donuts with no frying! Easy, soft, and delicious donuts filled with apricot jam.
Ingredients
- 7 grams dry active yeast
- 500 grams all-purpose flour
- 75 grams sugar
- zest of 1 lemon (or orange)
- 1 tsp turmeric (optional, for color)
- pinch of salt
- 250 milliliters soy milk (1 cup, warm)
- 50 grams vegan butter
- 1 tbsp dark rum (optional)
Other:
- jam for filling (apricot or other)
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
- sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Start by activating your yeast - combine the yeast with 1 tsp of sugar and 1 tsp of flour, and add about half of the warm milk. Whisk to combine, then cover with a towel and let sit for about 10 minutes for the yeast to activate.
- To a large bowl add the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, lemon zest, salt, and turmeric (if using). Whisk to combine.
- Warm up the rest of the milk if needed. Melt the vegan butter.
- When the yeast is active, add the liquids to the flour: milk, melted butter, dark rum, and activated yeast.
- Fold the ingredients until roughly combined, then proceed to knead for a solid 5-10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. You can do this part with a kitchen robot.
- Once the dough is kneaded, place it in a bowl and cover it with cling foil. Place it in a warm spot to rise for 1-2 hours or until doubled in size (if you are using fresh yeast and a very warm spot the rise time will be faster).
- Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down, then turn it on a working surface and divide it into about 10 equally sized parts. Use a kitchen scale to be sure they are even in size. The dough should come to about 900 grams, which divided by 10 makes for 10x90 grams of dough pieces.
- Shape each dough piece into a ball and place it on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Cover and let rise again until doubled in size in a warm place (I let them rise in the oven at 30°C).
- Preheat the oven to 180°C / 356°F (no fan) - if you are rising the donuts in the oven, remove them from the oven once they are fully risen, cover them with a napkin, and then preheat the oven.
- Place the donuts (napkin removed) into the preheated oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes, until golden brown in color.
- Once the donuts are baked, remove them from the oven, brush them with some melted butter, and roll them in sugar. Set them aside to cool down.
- Lastly, fill the Berliner donuts with jam: with a skewer poke a hole into the side of the donut, insert the skewer into the center of the donut, and roll it around to make a hole.
- Fill a piping bag with a jam of your choice (we used an apricot jam) and pipe the jam into the hole in the donut.
- The Berliner donuts are best served on the same day.
Notes
- For best results make sure the room you work in is warm and not droughty. Don't open windows so cold air does not enter the room.
- If your room is not warm enough and the dough is rising slowly, place it in a warm spot or in the oven under the light.
- Make sure your ingredients are room-temperature or warm.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 254Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 2mgCarbohydrates: 47gFiber: 2gSugar: 8gProtein: 6g
Nutrition data is automatically calculated using Nutritionix and may not be accurate.