Whole Wheat Doughnuts with Honey Glaze

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I’ve been thinking about whole grain doughnuts lately. I’m not crazy enough to think that adding some whole grains turns a doughnut into a health food. A doughnut, even one with healthier grain, is still mostly about sugar and oil. But I’ve been playing around with whole grain baking in general, and thought, why not doughnuts? The complexity of flavor and texture that makes recipes breads (like those in “Good to the Grain: Baking with Whole-Grain Flours”) more interesting should make doughnuts equally intriguing.

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Today, I started simply. I substituted whole wheat pastry flour for 50% (by weight) of the all purpose flour in my Chai cake doughnut recipe (“Doughnuts”) topped with a honey glaze. Wow. The whole wheat pastry flour adds a lovely nutty flavor, but the doughnuts are still light and fluffy with a subtle and pleasing crispness to the crust. I’m quite sure you could make the same recipe with 100% whole wheat pastry flour for even more wheaty flavor.

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Next I’ll be trying whole wheat raised doughnuts, buckwheat cake doughnuts and maybe something really crazy like chocolate pumpernickel!

What is your favorite whole grain to bake with?

11 thoughts on “Whole Wheat Doughnuts with Honey Glaze

  1. These look amazing, I’m glad so many people have been inspired by Boyce’s work. Did a lightbulb go off in anyone else’s head? Whole Grain Doughnuts! I’m down for a couple copies. 😉

  2. What a great idea! I’ve also been trying to sneak whole wheat flour into things, a little at a time. I think 50/50 is a good compromise, and works with lots of things – I now only do a slightly whole grain pastry, and it is much tastier and a bit crisper too.
    Happy wholegrain baking 🙂

  3. Oh, all buckwheat doughnuts would be fantastic…especially if they’re made with light buckwheat flour..i’ve made doughnut holes before with a combo of buckwheat flour, rice flour, and garbanzo bean flour before…they were lovely. I’m gluten intollerant, so doughnuts are an extra special treat.

  4. Kim’s book is so inspiring! It has So. Many. Recipes! and the pantry-stocking they require has sent my brain whirring with whole grain ideas.

    At the moment, my favorite whole grain is probably oat flour, but I love buckwheat as well, and spelt. I really love the flavor of oats, so I’m making more and more out of that — scones, cakes, etc.

    When I took a class with Kim, she really raved about rye flour, so I’ve been meaning to look into more of those recipes.

  5. hmmm, at the moment, millet actually! Kim Boyce doesn’t ‘do’ that much millet, but I’m finding it very versatile. I made millet pancakes tonight (with flour and hulled whole grains), and a savoury millet cake yesterday (with roasted capsicum and caramelised onions).

  6. I love whole wheat donuts. But no donut shops make them and I would hate to make a big batch just for me. Sigh…

    TOTALLY beautiful pictures!!!

    You’re making me want to make donuts…

    -Momac

  7. Did you end up making the pumpernickel donuts? I’m doing a project for culinary school and will be experimenting with rye flour and pumpernickel donuts – was wondering if you had diffiulty or advice? Thanks!

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