these high protein donut holes are the perfect treat to pop in your mouth. each donut hole has 35 calories and 3.7g plant protein!

the inspiration

I am at a point in life where the idea of donuts, cakes, cookies always sound amazing but often leave me not feeling my best. So, I would much rather make a version that still tastes delicious but leaves me feeling better.

It is no shock that I love a high protein recipe. Over the years I have created so many like my High Protein Bagels, High Protein Pizza, High Protein Bread, High Protein Brownies, High Protein Cranberry Bread, High Protein Zucchini Bread, and so much more.

So, it only felt right to add to the high protein family with a high protein donut hole! These are awesome because the dough comes together quickly and we just air fry them. Super simple and a treat that hits the spot. You can have 5 of these for 173 calories and 18.5g protein, not too bad if you ask me.

ingredients for high protein donut holes

the ingredients

Vital Wheat Gluten: vital wheat gluten is a protein packed powder made from the protein found in bread aka gluten. This helps to add in tons of protein for our recipe while letting it have a nice texture still. You can find vital wheat gluten in many health food stores like Whole Foods or Sprouts, you can also order it online (paid link).
All Purpose or Bread Flour: to help give our donut hole dough structure we will need either all purpose flour or you can use bread flour. You can also try using whole wheat flour or whatever else you like as long as it is a 1:1 substitue.
Non-Dairy Milk: for this recipe it is best to use a high protein non-dairy milk if you want to keep the macros similar. I used Ripple Pea Protein milk. You can also use soy milk. If you don’t care about losing a little bit of protein (very minimal) you can always use almond milk, oat milk, or any other non-dairy milk you like.
Vegan Yogurt: for this recipe it is best to use a higher protein vegan yogurt. Some great examples are: Siggi’s, Icelandic Provisions Oatmilk Skyr, Cocojune Greek-style yogurt (which is what I used), or Forager’s Greek-style yogurt.
Organic Powdered Sugar: we will cover the donut holes in powdered sugar once we are done. To ensure it is vegan friendly use organic.
Baking Powder & Soda: these will both act as leavening agents to help give the donut holes rise.
Vanilla Protein Powder: this will add in some flavor and of course amp up the protein. You can use any vegan vanilla protein powder you prefer, I used Kos (paid link).
Vanilla Extract: we will use this in the donut hole dough to add flavor.
Spray Oil: this is optional but it helps to create a nice golden outside and prevent any sticking.

how to make high protein donut holes

mixing dry ingredients for protein donut holes

In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients: vital wheat gluten, flour, vanilla protein powder, baking powder, and baking soda.

In a separate bowl combine the wet ingredients: non-dairy milk, vegan yogurt, and vanilla extract. Whisk until mostly smooth.

Pour in the wet ingredients and then mix with a spoon to work into a dough ball.

Lightly dust the surface with flour and use hands to form into a smoother dough ball. You do not need to knead it, just gently push the dough together to form it into more of a firmer dough.

Cut the dough into about 5 to 6 long pieces. Roll into a long log shape.

cutting dough for high protein donut bites

Cut the log shape into 7-10 pieces depending on how long it is.

Roll into balls.

Spray the air fryer basket with spray oil. Then place in as many donut hole as you can, leaving room for them to rise.

high protein donut bites after air frying

Air fry at 400°F (204°C) for 7 minutes or until golden. Every air fryer works differently so your cooking times may vary.

Place into a large bowl. Optional to spray again with spray oil, then sprinkle powdered sugar over top.

covering high protein donut bites in powdered sugar

Shake the bowl vigorously to evenly cover the donut holes in powdered sugar. Enjoy immediately.

flavor variations

The fun part about this recipe is you can do all different types of flavors! For example, if you want chocolate donut holes you can use chocolate protein powder and add in an extra 1-2 tablespoons of cocoa powder. You can even use non-dairy chocolate milk as well!

If you want to change the outside you can swap the powdered sugar for a cinnamon sugar dusting instead. You can also do a glaze with powdered sugar and water, or a chocolate glaze.

There are a lot of fun ways to play around with this recipe and make it into the flavors you love.

why you’ll love this recipe

I think this is a great recipe and one you are going to love for so many reasons. The first is if you are someone like me who enjoys eating high protein and has goals but also wants delicious things this is great!

There is also no deep frying involved which is amazing because of course it is less messy but also better for our health. The air fryer does a great job of turning the dough into a chewy little bite.

If you have kids who are always just wanting to snack on processed foods this could be a great way to get something a bit better into their system as well.

two important recipe notes, storage & sweetness

I do want you to take note of 2 things involving this recipe, so please read!

The dough itself isn’t very sweet. So, if you want it to be sweeter I would recommend adding in 2-3 tablespoons of organic granulated sugar. There is of course sweetness from the powdered sugar, but if you are looking for more sweetness feel free to add in some extra sugar.
After beautifully coating these in the powdered sugar and taking pictures I put them into a container. A few hours later the powdered sugar had basically dissolved and melted off. So, I recommend one of two things: if you are going to eat all of them at once for example using them for a get together or something proceed as is. They will stay fine out in the air or you can always give then a little retoss. If you are making them to enjoy over the course of seperate days, coat them in the powdered sugar right before enjoying.

more high protein recipes

high protein donut hole faq

Is this recipe allergy friendly?

It does use gluten. There is no way to make this recipe gluten free. Depending on the non-dairy yogurt and milk you use it may be soy or nut free.

How do I meal prep this recipe?

For this recipe if you are making them and planning to eat them over the course of a few days, I recommend actually waiting to coat in powdered sugar. Store the air fried balls in an airtight container either on the counter or you can store in the fridge. Then, right before you want to eat pop them in the air fryer to slightly warm and then toss in the powdered sugar.

How do I store leftovers?

If you made a bunch and used them for a get together or something and you have a few leftover I recommend storing in airtight container in the fridge. The powdered sugar will most likely melt off, this is no issue though. Whenever, you want to eat them warm them up in the air fryer and toss in extra powdered sugar before enjoying.

Can I freeze them?

I haven’t tried that. If you do want to freeze them, I would recommend freezing after air frying them and before tossing them in powdered sugar.

Can I use a different flour for this reicpe?

I do believe if you wanted to try something like spelt flour or whole wheat flour it should work fine.

over 75 amazing vegan recipes

Get My Cookbook, Plantiful!

“A fantastic cookbook that stands by itself outside a specific vegan genre. Inspirational and well thought out. I especially liked the early sections which have a great deal of explanation, clearly a lot of thought has gone into every page. If you are a vegan, vegetarian or just looking at adding in different ideas you should be this book! Essential for any kitchen library.”

Get your copy!