Breakfast BakesContemporary WesternMedium

Vegan Sourdough Apple Spice Discard Donuts

Name: Vegan Sourdough Apple Spice Discard Donuts
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 13 min
Total time: 33 min
Yield: 12 servings
Cuisine: Contemporary Western
Ingredients: 1 cup (240 g) active sourdough discard, fed 4–8 hours until doubled and bubbly, at room temperature; 1¾ cups (220 g) all-purpose flour; ½ cup (80 g) granny smith or honeycrisp apple, grated on the large holes of a box grater and squeezed dry in a clean kitchen towel to remove excess liquid; ⅓ cup (80 ml) pure maple syrup; 3 tablespoons (45 ml) neutral vegetable oil (canola, vegetable, or sunflower); 1½ teaspoons (7 g) baking powder; ¼ teaspoon (1 g) baking soda; ½ teaspoon (3 g) kosher salt; 1½ teaspoons (3 g) ground cinnamon; ¼ teaspoon (½ g) freshly grated or ground nutmeg; 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract; 3 tablespoons (45 ml) pure maple syrup; 1 tablespoon (14 g) vegan butter, melted (or refined coconut oil); ¾ cup (90 g) powdered sugar (confectioners' sugar), sifted if lumpy; ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) vanilla extract; ¼ teaspoon (½ g) ground cinnamon; 1 tablespoon (15 ml) unsweetened plant milk (oat or almond), room temperature, optional for thinning (optional)

From the MyKitchenBank Kitchen

These light, fluffy vegan donuts harness the subtle tang and rise of active sourdough discard, combined with fresh grated apple and warm cinnamon and nutmeg. Piped into donut molds and baked until golden, they're finished with a simple maple cinnamon glaze. Perfect for using up sourdough discard, entirely plant-based, and ready in under 90 minutes.

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 13 min
Wait: 43 min
Total: 1 hr 16 min
Makes: 12 donuts

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Ingredients

12 servings

For the donuts
1 cup (240 g) active sourdough discard, fed 4–8 hours until doubled and bubbly, at room temperature
1¾ cups (220 g) all-purpose flour
½ cup (80 g) granny smith or honeycrisp apple, grated on the large holes of a box grater and squeezed dry in a clean kitchen towel to remove excess liquid
⅓ cup (80 ml) pure maple syrup
3 tablespoons (45 ml) neutral vegetable oil (canola, vegetable, or sunflower)
1½ teaspoons (7 g) baking powder
¼ teaspoon (1 g) baking soda
½ teaspoon (3 g) kosher salt
1½ teaspoons (3 g) ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon (0.5 g) freshly grated or ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
For the maple cinnamon glaze
3 tablespoons (45 ml) pure maple syrup
1 tablespoon (14 g) vegan butter, melted (or refined coconut oil)
¾ cup (90 g) powdered sugar (confectioners' sugar), sifted if lumpy
¼ teaspoon (1 ml) vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon (0.5 g) ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon (15 ml) unsweetened plant milk (oat or almond), room temperature, optional for thinning (optional)

Equipment (11)

12-cavity donut pan
Medium mixing bowl (for dry ingredients)
Medium mixing bowl (for wet ingredients)
Whisk
Box grater (large holes)
Clean kitchen towel
Piping bag fitted with a large round tip (about ½-inch / 1 cm diameter)
Cooling rack
Small offset spatula or thin knife
Shallow bowl (wide enough to dip a donut, for glaze)
Heat-safe surface or cooling rack (for hot pan)

Steps

Before you start

Have active, fed sourdough discard ready at room temperature (feed it 4–8 hours ahead if needed, until bubbly and doubled)
Turn on your oven at the start so it preheats while you prepare the batter
Gather all equipment and ingredients, including a piping bag with a large round tip
Lightly grease your donut pan before mixing the batter

1
Preheat oven and prepare panOven 350°F / 175°C
- Position your oven rack to the middle level.
- Turn on the oven to 350°F (175°C) and let it preheat.
- While it heats, lightly grease a 12-cavity donut pan with nonstick cooking spray or vegan butter, paying special attention to the inner curves and the bottom of each cavity so donuts release cleanly.
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Ready when: Oven fully preheated (indicator light turns off)
Tip: Grease thoroughly—poorly greased molds cause donuts to stick and break when removed
2
Whisk together dry ingredients
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Whisk for about 30 seconds until well combined and no streaks of cinnamon remain.
- Set the bowl aside.
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Ready when: All ingredients combined evenly with no streaks of spice visible
3
Grate and squeeze apple
- Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the apple directly onto a clean kitchen towel.
- Immediately gather the corners of the towel and squeeze firmly over a small bowl, pressing out as much liquid as possible.
- You should end up with about 1/2 cup (80g) of drained grated apple.
- Discard the extracted liquid.
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Ready when: Apple is finely grated and squeezed; very little liquid remains
Tip: Squeezing out excess moisture is crucial—too much liquid makes the donuts dense and gummy instead of light and tender
4
Combine sourdough and syrup
- In another medium bowl, whisk together the sourdough discard, maple syrup, neutral oil, and vanilla extract.
- Whisk for about 1 minute until mostly smooth—some tiny specks of discard are fine, but there should be no large visible chunks.
- Fold in the squeezed grated apple and stir until combined.
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Ready when: No visible large lumps of sourdough discard; mixture is mostly smooth with apple evenly distributed
5
Fold wet into dry
- Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients.
- Using a spatula, gently fold the mixture together until just combined.
- Stop folding while a few small lumps of flour are still visible—do not overmix, as this develops gluten and creates tough, dense donuts.
- The batter should look slightly lumpy.
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Ready when: Dry ingredients just incorporated with no flour streaks visible; a few pea-sized lumps remain
Tip: A few lumps in the batter are okay and actually lead to a better, more tender texture than overmixing
6
Fill piping bag and pipe
- Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a large round piping tip (about 1/2-inch / 1 cm diameter).
- Pipe the batter into the prepared donut pan, filling each cavity about 2/3 full.
- You should have enough batter for all 12 cavities; use all the batter.
- Let the filled pan sit on the counter for 5 minutes before baking—this short rest allows the batter to relax and rise slightly, yielding fluffier donuts.
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Ready when: All 12 cavities filled evenly; batter sits undisturbed
Tip: If you don't have a piping bag, you can spoon the batter into the molds, but piping yields more uniform, attractive donuts
7
Bake until golden and setOven 350°F / 175°C
- Place the donut pan in the preheated 350°F (175°C) oven.
- Bake for 12–14 minutes, until the donuts are lightly golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the thickest part of one donut comes out with just a few moist crumbs (not wet batter).
- The donuts should spring back when gently pressed with your finger.
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Ready when: Lightly golden on top; toothpick comes out with just a few moist crumbs; donut springs back when pressed
Tip: Don't overbake—sourdough donuts can dry out quickly. Use the toothpick test rather than relying solely on time or color
8
Cool in pan and loosen
- Remove the pan from the oven and set it on a heat-safe surface or cooling rack.
- Let the donuts rest in the pan for 5 minutes—this firms them up slightly so they won't fall apart when removed.
- Then use a small offset spatula or the back of a thin knife to gently loosen the edges of each donut from the pan, working carefully around each cavity.
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Ready when: Donuts are cool enough to handle and have firmed up slightly
9
Remove from pan and cool completely
- Carefully turn the donut pan upside down, supporting the donuts gently with your other hand.
- Tap the back of the pan until the donuts release.
- Carefully place them right-side up on a cooling rack and let them cool completely, about 15–20 minutes, before glazing.
- The donuts must be fully cooled or the glaze will melt off.
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Ready when: Donuts are at room temperature and firm to the touch
Tip: If a donut sticks, run your spatula around it again or carefully insert a thin knife between the donut and pan to help release it
10
Whisk glaze smooth
- In a shallow bowl wide enough to dip a donut into, whisk together maple syrup and melted vegan butter.
- Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and cinnamon.
- Whisk until smooth, breaking up any lumps of sugar.
- The glaze should coat the back of a spoon and drip off after a few seconds.
- If it's too thick, whisk in plant milk 1 tablespoon at a time until you reach the right consistency.
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Ready when: Glaze is smooth and pourable; consistency is like thick pancake syrup
Tip: The glaze should coat the back of a spoon and drip off after a few seconds. If too thick, it won't coat evenly; if too thin, it runs off the donut
11
Dip donuts in glaze
- Working one at a time, dip the top of each cooled donut into the glaze, twisting it slightly to coat evenly.
- Hold the donut over the bowl for a few seconds to let excess glaze drip back.
- Place the donut glaze-side up on the cooling rack (or a plate lined with parchment paper).
- Repeat with all remaining donuts.
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Tip: For a thicker, more indulgent glaze coating, dip a second time after the first coating firms up (about 5 minutes)
12
Set glaze
- Let the glazed donuts sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes for the glaze to set and firm up.
- Alternatively, refrigerate for 5 minutes to speed up setting.
- Once the glaze is set and no longer sticky to the touch, the donuts are ready to serve.
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Ready when: Glaze is firm and no longer sticky to the touch

Good to know

Tips

Active sourdough discard is essential—use discard that's been fed 4–8 hours prior and is visibly bubbly with a slight dome on top. If your discard is sluggish or hasn't passed the float test, feed it again and wait until it's actively rising.
Squeeze the grated apple thoroughly in a clean towel. Excess moisture is the #1 reason these donuts become dense instead of light—wet batter produces gummy donuts.
Don't overmix the batter once wet and dry are combined. A few flour lumps are fine and actually lead to a more tender crumb; overmixing develops gluten and makes donuts tough and chewy.
Fill the donut molds only 2/3 full, not to the brim, so the batter has room to expand and rise in the oven. Overfilled molds will overflow and donuts may stick together.

Make ahead

"Yes. The batter can be piped into the donut molds up to 2 hours in advance and refrigerated, then baked directly from the fridge (add 1–2 minutes to baking time). Alternatively, pipe and refrigerate overnight, then bake the next morning. Unbaked batter can also be frozen in the molds for up to 1 month; thaw in the fridge before baking. Baked unglazed donuts can be frozen for up to 2 months; thaw at room temperature before glazing."

Storage & reheating

{"room_temp": "Store glazed donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2–3 days. Unglazed baked donuts keep for up to 3 days.", "fridge": "Glazed donuts last up to 4–5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.", "freezer": "Unbaked piped batter keeps up to 2 months; baked unglazed donuts keep up to 2 months. Thaw unglazed donuts at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Reheat in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 8–10 minutes until warm, or microwave for 10–15 seconds. Glaze after thawing."}

Substitutions

granny smith or honeycrisp apple → Unsweetened applesauce. Use 1/3 cup (80 ml) applesauce instead of grated apple; it has less liquid so the batter won't be overly wet
pure maple syrup → Agave nectar, brown rice syrup, or coconut syrup. Use the same amount as maple syrup; these sweeteners work equally well and impart slightly different flavors
vegan butter, melted (or refined coconut oil) → Refined coconut oil. Use the same amount in the glaze; coconut oil will add a subtle coconut note
ground cinnamon → Add ¼ teaspoon ground ginger or a pinch of ground cloves. For a spicier, more complex flavor, add fresh ginger or cloves to the donuts (or glaze, or both)