3-Ingredient Lemon Donuts (Healthy, Yeast-Free, Air-Fried)

These 3-ingredient Lemon Donuts are easy, fluffy, naturally yellow donuts glazed with lemon icing. They are the best desserts for lemon lovers, made from plant-based, lemon-flavored Greek yogurt. They are healthy, egg-free, yeast-free, and air fryer friendly.

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You love my banana donut holes so much that they inspired me to create more easy donut recipes. I have been playing with yogurt and self-rising flour to create my 2-ingredient donut recipe, sweet potato donuts, and my air fryer donut holes. Then, came to me the idea to use lemon yogurt to make lemon donuts.

After a few trials, I decided to add lemon juice to the dough, the acidity in lemon juice activated baking powder in the self-rising flour which result in ultra-fluffy donuts. Plus, it enhances the lemon flavor in the dough. I usually air fry these donuts, unlike my Vegan Beignets, but you can bake them and both options are provided below.

Why You Will Love These Lemon Donuts

• Easy to make with just 3 ingredients
• Healthier – it’s a baked donut recipe which means there’s no frying and no oil that raise saturated fat and calories in classic donut recipes.
• Egg-free and dairy-free
• No donut pan needed

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Self-Rising Flour – You can also use all-purpose flour, to which you need to add baking powder. The ratio is simple: 1 cup of self-rising flour is equivalent to 1 cup of all-purpose flour with 2 teaspoons of baking powder. If you are gluten-free, pick a gluten-free all-purpose flour. However, I haven’t tried the recipe with gluten-free flour, so I am unsure how it will impact the donut texture.
• Lemon Juice – freshly squeezed is the best, but store-bought works if it’s all you can find.
• Plant-Based Lemon Yogurt – You can use any yogurt, but make sure your yogurt has a strong natural lemon flavor because it’s the main ingredient to flavor the donut batter. So, if your yogurt has an artificial taste, the donuts will taste the same. I like coconut yogurt because it’s higher in fat and makes the dough a bit moister. But oat, almond, or soy yogurt flavored with lemon are also great.

How To Make Lemon Donuts

1. In a mixing bowl stir the three ingredients together using a silicone spatula.

2. When the mixture forms lumps and looks crumbly, grease your hands with canola oil or olive oil and knead to bring the dough together and form a dough ball.

3. Rub the dough ball with oil evenly then divide into 8 even portions using a knife.

4. Roll each portion into small balls.

5. You can bake or air fry the donuts. For baking, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
6. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and slight oil the paper.
7. Place each donut ball onto the sheet, leaving two thumbs of space between each, and spray the donuts with cooking spray. You can also brush the donuts with oil or melted plant-base butter.
8. Bake the donuts on the center rack of the oven for 15 to 18 minutes until lightly golden brown on the edges and cooked in the center.

Air-Frying Donuts

1. Spray cooking oil in the air-fryer basket. Place the donut balls in the air fryer basket, leaving two thumbs of space between each.
2. Air-fry at 350°F (180°C) for 8 minutes until puffy and light golden on the sides.
3. Let the donuts cool down on a cooling rack at room temperature for one hour before glazing.

Glazing

1. To make the lemon glaze, stir powdered sugar and lemon juice in a mixing bowl until the mixture is runny but not too drippy. Adjust the mixture by adding more lemon juice to thin out or more powdered sugar to thicken the glaze.

2. Then, using two forks, dip each lemon donut hole into the glazing and release on a cooling rack to let the excess glazing run down.
3. Sprinkle fresh lemon zest on top of the glazed lemon donuts if desired.
4. Place the lemon donuts in the fridge for 10 minutes to firm up the icing.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Easy Donut Recipes

Vegan Blueberry Donuts

2-Ingredient Donuts

Vegan Apple Cider Donuts

Banana Donut Holes

Lemon Donuts

These 3-ingredient Lemon Donuts are easy, fluffy, naturally yellow donuts glazed with lemon icing.

5 from 7 votes

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Prep Time: 10 minutes mins

Cook Time: 10 minutes mins

Cool: 15 minutes mins

Total Time: 35 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 9 donuts

Calories: 100.9 kcal

Author: Carine Claudepierre

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Ingredients

US Customary – Metric

• ▢ ¾ cup + 3 tablespoons Self-Rising Flour - (note 1)
• ▢ ½ cup Lemon Yogurt - (note 2)
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice

Lemon glazing – optional

• ▢ ½ cup Icing Sugar
• ▢ 2-3 teaspoons Lemon Juice - (note 3)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Lemon Zest

Instructions

• In a large mixing bowl, add flour, lemon yogurt, and lemon juice.
• Stir with a silicone spatula at first, then when it starts to look crumbly, oil your hands with 2 teaspoons of olive oil or canola oil. It's okay if some oil falls into the bowl. It prevents the dough from turning sticky. Knead the ingredients together into a dough ball. If it's too wet, add more flour, one tablespoon at a time, but don't overdo the flour as it would saturate the dough. The dough should stay moist, and it should be elastic when you knead it with oiled hands.
• Lightly oil the dough ball, then cut it into 8 portions.
• Again, using oiled hands, roll each piece of dough into a small ball – the size of a gold ball.
• Spray oil in the air fryer basket, place the donut holes in the basket, leaving a two-thumb space between each, and spray some oil again on top of the donut hole before cooking.
• Air fry the donuts for 8 minutes at 350°F (180°C) until they puff and the sides are lightly golden brown. You want the center to be cooked and not doughty.
• Remove the warm lemon donuts from the basket and place on a cooling rack.
• Meanwhile, prepare the glazing (it's optional, but it tastes amazing).
• In a small bowl, stir lemon juice and icing sugar until the mixture is smooth and runny. If it's too dry, add more lemon juice or almond milk to thin it out. If it's too liquid, add more icing sugar.
• When the donuts are cooled to room temperature, use two forks to dip and coat with the glazing. Sprinkle extra lemon zest on top of the donuts for a boost of lemon flavor.

Notes

Note 1: One cup of self-rising flour equivalent to 1 cup of all-purpose flour and 2 teaspoons of baking powder.

Note 2: I used lemon-flavored coconut yogurt, but any lemon yogurt you love works. 

Note 3: You can also make a vanilla icing using almond milk instead of lemon juice. 

 

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Nutrition

Serving: 1donut (no icing) | Calories: 100.9kcal | Carbohydrates: 19.9g | Protein: 3.6g | Fat: 0.6g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 0.7mg | Sodium: 9.5mg | Potassium: 56.2mg | Fiber: 0.6g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 6.4IU | Vitamin B12: 0.1µg | Vitamin C: 0.8mg | Calcium: 27.1mg | Iron: 0.2mg | Magnesium: 8.4mg | Phosphorus: 42.4mg | Zinc: 0.3mg