Whole Wheat Biscuit Donuts

Sometimes you just want something to eat that satisfies your sweet tooth.  This is when you usually get in trouble and settle for putting something horribly unhealthy in your body.  Refined, processed sugar is so damaging to your health!  I will make a future post pin-pointing it's damaging effects, but for right now, take my word for it.  But, I do want sweet things to eat and my dessert-loving kids and husband don't want to feel denied either.  This is where healthy sweeteners that are processed free come in.  They are absolute life savers when it comes to having your cake and eating it too, literally!  Here is my take on a "donut."  I didn't start out making these as a donut recipe, but they are a quick substitute for a donut craving.  After all, they are fried dough rolled in a sweetener or glazed!  These little cuties are tiny, kid-friendly, and extremely fast to make.  You'll have them made and eaten before you run to the store to buy something you will later regret!

2 1/4 cups whole wheat baking mix (found here)

2/3 cup milk

Mix ingredients and roll out to about a 1/2 inch thickness. I like to roll them out on wax paper that I wet on one side to keep it from sliding on the counter, then sprinkle some whole wheat flour down and some on the top to keep it from sticking to the paper or your rolling pin. Cut out with a small round biscuit cutter or something else that will give you a small circle.  (If this all sounds familiar, you're right - up to this point it's pretty much the same as making my regular whole wheat biscuits, but here is where we change it.)

 

In a small pan, put enough coconut oil to make it about a 1/4 in high.  You won't need very much if your pan is small and you drop these in the oil in batches of three.  I found that these only take about 30 seconds per side, so three at a time was perfect.  Don't let let burn - it really does take no time at all to fry these. 

Fish them out with a slotted spoon and lay them on some paper towels to drain.  I just line a baking sheet with them so I have a convenient landing spot.  I like to have my dips or glazes already selected and in bowls before I put them in the oil.  Here are the three we used this day.  

This picture shows the donuts rolled in cinnamon and coconut/palm sugar.  I always have this mixture in a small container in my cupboard ready to use all the time - I talk about it here.  This is the only mixture that I dropped them into right after being in the oil without letting it drain on the paper towel.  I thought it helped the cinnamon/coconut sugar adhere better.

This one shows the sucanat powdered sugar - I talk about this here.  I did let these drain for a second, then rolled them in the healthy powdered sugar.  I thought these had the best texture - a bit crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle.

This last picture shows a glaze I made with some of the sucanat powdered sugar, milk, and a little vanilla extract.  If you use sucanat to make your powdered sugar, this will have a slight molasses flavor to the glaze, which my kids loved!  If you use something else like coconut/palm sugar or erythritol it won't have that added flavor.  (I explain this more in the post about making the powdered sugar.)

These end up being kind of like a flatter-shaped donut hole when you are done.  They are awfully easy to keep popping in your mouth, so make sure everybody gets some before devouring the whole pan yourself.  I love how quick these are to make and that they satisfy an unruly craving with something healthy.