Keto Chocolate Glazed Donuts

Prep: 5 min Cook: 10 min Total: 15 min Servings: 8
Annie Lampella @ Ketofocus

By Annie Lampella, Pharm.D.

Published August 1, 2020 • Updated February 2, 2026

These keto donuts are for you, Homer Simpson

Reader Rating
5 Stars (3 Reviews)
DonutsEasyKid Friendly

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Mornings just got a little sweeter with this sugar-free cake donut recipe. These chocolate donuts are easy to make and pair perfectly with a fresh cup of coffee for breakfast.

Every once in a while, you gotta have a donut – even on keto. It’s nice to have options when cravings hit, especially when someone brings in a dozen donuts at the office.

five chocolate glazed donuts with sprinkles on a white board and rectangle plate

These chocolate glazed donuts are perfection. They’re the ideal combination of cake-like donut with a sugar-free chocolate glaze. Top with your favorite sugar-free sprinkles and breakfast is ready! They’re very easy to make too. You can whip up a batch in less than 30 minutes and enjoy homemade donuts with a cup of freshly brewed coffee.

This recipe starts with a cake-like donut base. It’s denser than what you’d see at Krispy Kreme or Dunkin Donuts.

The combination of almond flour, protein powder, baking powder and sour cream gives these donuts that classic cake-like consistency.

How to make keto donuts

  1. Combine all the ingredients to make a donut – almond flour, protein powder, sweetener, salt, xanthan gum, butter, sour cream, water. Mix.
  2. Press into a donut pan.
  3. Bake.
  4. Coat with chocolate glaze made of melted chocolate and coconut oil.
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Keto Chocolate Glazed Donuts

5 (3) Prep 5m Cook 10m Total 15m 8 servings

Keto Cake Donuts Ingredients

Chocolate Glaze Ingredients

Step by Step Instructions

Step by Step Instructions

1
Preheat

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a donut pan with cooking oil.

red led light 325 bake
2
Dry ingredients

Add all the dry ingredients for the cake donut to a medium bowl. Mix until combined.

dry ingredients in a silver metal bowl
3
Wet ingredients

Add in wet ingredients. Mix until combined. If dough is crumbly, add a splash more of water.

keto donut batter in a bowl
4
Press the donut

Grab a handful of dough and press it into a donut pan. Add enough dough to reach almost the top of the rim. These donuts don’t rise much.

donut dough pressed into a donut pan
5
Bake it

Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes or until the donuts are set and lightly brown around the edges. You also have the option to fry these donuts. Add lard or your favorite cooking oil into a small non-stick skillet. Heat to medium heat. Add donuts and fry on each side until golden brown.

keto donuts baked in a donut pan
6
Let cool

Let cool completely in the donut baking tray then transfer to a wire rack.

donuts cooling on a wire rack
7
Melt chocolate

Once donuts have cooled, melt chocolate and coconut oil in a flat bowl. To melt sugar-free chocolate, microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring in between until chocolate is melted. You can also melt your chocolate using a double boiler if you don’t want to use a microwave. For a pink chocolate glaze, use sugar-free white chocolate and add a couple drops of red food coloring to it.

melted chocolate in a bowl
8
Dip the donut

Dip the top of your donut into the melted chocolate and top with sugar-free sprinkles right away. Set back on a wire rack to cool the chocolate.

donut dipped into melted chocolate
Nutrition Per Serving 1 donut
391 Calories
34.6g Fat
12.5g Protein
4.8g Net Carbs
17.6g Total Carbs
8 Servings
Nutrition disclaimer

The nutrition information provided is an estimate and is for informational purposes only. I am a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.); however, this content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your physician or other qualified health provider before making any lifestyle changes or beginning a new nutrition program.

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Keto Chocolate Glazed Donuts

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use coconut flour instead of almond flour in this recipe?

Coconut flour is much more absorbent than almond flour, so you would need to adjust the quantity and add more liquid. I recommend sticking with almond flour for the best texture.

What can I substitute for the sugar-free sweetener?

You can use any low-carb sweetener you prefer, such as erythritol or monk fruit sweetener. Just make sure to adjust the quantity according to the sweetness level of the substitute.

How should I store the leftover donuts?

Store any leftover donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. If you want to keep them longer, refrigerate them for up to a week or freezing them for up to a month.

Can I make these donuts dairy-free?

Yes! You can substitute the butter with a dairy-free alternative like coconut oil or vegan butter, and use a dairy-free sour cream alternative.

Are these donuts suitable for a low-carb diet?

Yes! These chocolate glazed donuts are low in carbs and sugar-free, so they fit right into a keto lifestyle.

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What’s the difference between cake donuts and yeast donuts?

  • A cake donut is made with a sweetened dough that has a cake like texture. It is leavened with baking powder to help it rise.
  • Yeast donuts, like the ones you see at Krispy Kreme, are made with a yeast based dough. These doughnuts are chewy, light and airy and rely on the yeast to help them rise. Traditionally, both cake donuts and yeast donuts are fried in oil.
I bake the donuts in this recipe. If you want a fried version, try my glazed donuts.

Ingredient substitutions

When it comes to low-carb baking, we all have our preferences in flours and sweeteners. My favorite combination is almond flour with coconut flour or protein powder. I use them for two reasons.
  • The first is that the combination is very similar to all-purpose flour when baking. Your sugar-free chocolate donuts will have a similar texture, flavor and consistency to a traditional old fashioned cake donut.
  • Second, these gluten-free flours are readily available. Most grocery stores now carry almond flour, coconut flour and protein powder.

Here are some substitutions if you don’t have or are allergic to any of the ingredients:

  • Sunflower Seed Flour – If you are allergic to nuts, substitute the almond flour with sunflower seed flour. Sunflower seeds are seeds, not nuts. Sunflower seed flour measures cup for cup with almond flour, so you’ll use 2 cups.
  • Coconut Flour – If you don’t have whey protein powder, substitute coconut flour instead.
  • Sweeteners – My favorite sweetener is Lakanto Classic Monkfruit. It is a blend of monkfruit and erythritol and measures cup for cup with sugar. It doesn’t have that bitter aftertaste or cooling effect like plain stevia or erythritol do. You can use your sweetener of choice as long as it measures cup for cup with sugar.
  • Yogurt – Substitute the sour cream with plain yogurt or even ricotta cheese. Traditional old fashioned donuts use sour cream for that characteristic tang and to provide an acid that reacts with the baking powder to help donuts rise.

Equipment needed

The main tool you need to make these donuts is a donut pan. My favorite is by Wilton. It makes six donuts each and is non-stick. Although, I still spray my donut baking tray with cooking oil out of fear that they’ll still stick to the pan. If you don’t have a donut baking pan and don’t want to invest in one, you can still make these! Just roll your dough into a snake shape and join the ends to make a circle. You can also make donut holes with this recipe. Roll your dough into 1 inch balls and bake on a parchment lined baking tray.

Sprinkles

Homer Simpson and I have something in common, we love sprinkles on our donuts. Ever since I was a kid, I always reached for the donut with sprinkles! Even though those sprinkles really have no taste, they just create the most beautiful donut. Luckily, there are sugar-free sprinkles now! Apparently you can make them on your own too but why go through all the hassle when you can buy sugar-free sprinkles. There are a couple of brands that I have found on the internet that make them. I haven’t been able to find sugar-free sprinkles in the grocery store yet, but hopefully that changes soon. Good Dee’s is a keto-friendly sprinkles brand. These are sweetened with erythritol and are gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan sprinkles.

Storage information

If you have some of these chocolate glazed donuts leftover, which you probably will because no one can eat 10 donuts in one setting, then you can store the excess donuts in an airtight container or Ziploc bag. They can be stored in the refrigerator or at room temperature. You can also freeze these donuts. I wouldn’t recommend glazing them before freezing though. Just freeze the plain cake donuts. Then when you want one, thaw them and make the chocolate glaze right before serving.
About the Author
Annie Lampella, Pharm.D.

Annie Lampella, Pharm.D.

Annie is a Doctor of Pharmacy, mom, and the recipe creator behind KetoFocus. With a B.S. in Genetics from UC Davis, she has over 14 years of experience developing family-friendly keto recipes based on the science of human metabolism.

Learn more about Annie View My Cookbook

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  1. M
    Marilyn Sep 3, 2023

    I just made these. They are good but I feel they are missing some flavor.
    Should there be vanilla extract in the ingredients list?
    Maybe some more sugar as well.
    Thanks for all the great recipes.

    Reply
  2. S
    Sun Sep 12, 2022

    These look tempting & I am curious if you have the macros for just the donuts without the glaze? My husbands favorite donut is a plain fry cake. Thanks!

    Reply
    1. Annie Lampella
      Annie Lampella Sep 12, 2022

      Have you seen my recipe for the Krispie Kreme Donut? He might like that one. https://www.ketofocus.com/recipes/glazed-keto-donuts/ Without the chocolate, the macros are per donut: 297 calories, 27.4 g fat, 8.8 g protein, 7.3 g total carbs, 3.5 g net carbs

      Reply
  3. J
    Jill Fisher Jun 16, 2021

    I am wondering if these donuts could be fried or would they not hold together well enough for that?

    Reply
    1. Annie Lampella
      Annie Lampella Jun 16, 2021

      Yes! You can fry them. Look at my recipe post for Krispy Kreme Glazed Donuts. It will tell you know to do it.

      Reply

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