When it comes to Christmas, there a few things that feel more merry than sitting by the fire, drinking hot chocolate and biting into a nice warm piece of gingerbread cake. Well, although we may not have the fire bit going, I wanted to come up with something that we could all enjoy eating. Because, let’s face it: we’re not all fans of the spicy gingerbread thing…
My girls and I brainstormed a bit before coming up with this recipe. I wanted the flavors of gingerbread, without the traditionally not-so-liked cake version. That’s when the idea for these doughnuts popped into my head.
These baked (read guilt-free), moist doughnuts are soft and cakey, and they’re full of the traditional gingerbread flavors, without being too overpowering. Then, as if that wasn’t Christmasy enough, they’re dipped in a white chocolate glaze. White. Chocolate. Glaze. The glaze is good for a double-dipping of the doughnuts, but you’ll want to dip lots of things in this. So if you dip the doughnuts once and keep the rest of the glaze for yourself, we won’t judge. Because it’s Christmas. And too good.
White chocolate-glazed gingerbread goodness wrapped in a soft and cakey doughnut = Christmas party in your mouth.
White Chocolate Glazed Gingerbread Doughnuts
{Gluten free friendly}
Makes 12-14
Ingredients:
Doughnuts
- 3/4 cup milk (dairy or non-dairy)*
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (or melted butter)
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 2 cups flour*
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
- Pinch of ground cloves
- Pinch of salt
Glaze
- 10 oz. white chocolate (or almond bark)
- 6 tablespoons milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
- Sprinkles, optional
Instructions:
Doughnuts
Preheat the oven to 425°, and grease a 6-cavity doughnut pan.
In a small bowl whisk together the milk, maple syrup, olive oil, eggs, vanilla extract and molasses until combined, and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and spices until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients, and use a spoon or spatula to mix the doughnut batter together just until combined.
Pour the batter into a piping bag fitted with a large round piping tip (or cut a corner of a plastic ziploc bag) and pipe the batter into the greased doughnut pan. Bake the doughnuts at 425° until they spring back when lightly touched, about 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let the doughnuts cool for 3-4 mins before turning them out on a cooling rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining batter until all the doughnuts have been baked. Let cool completely before glazing.
Glaze
To make the glaze, in a small bowl, melt the white chocolate in the microwave until smooth. Slowly whisk in the 6 tablespoons milk, then whisk in the powdered sugar until a glaze forms. Add more powdered sugar or milk to reach the desired consistency. Dip the top of each doughnut into the white chocolate glaze, top with sprinkles (if using) and return to the cooling rack. Let the glaze harden for at least 30-40 minutes before enjoying!
*For a gluten free version, increase milk to 1 cup, and use a gluten free flour bend (I used Pamela’s Artisan flour blend).
These look so delicious. I hope you’ve had a wonderful Christmas so far! Merry Christmas