Sweet Potato Donuts (Orange & Purple)

Table of contents

+ View More- View Less

These sweet potato donuts are healthy spin-offs of my super-simple 2-ingredient donuts. This recipe can be whipped up in less than 30 minutes and will disappear even faster, guaranteed.

Since I developed my Insta-famous 2-Ingredient Donuts, I’ve been finding ways to make it simpler by making Air Fryer Donut Holes, making it high in protein with my Peanut Butter Donuts, or making it super tasty with my 3-Ingredient Lemon Donuts. What was missing from my collection is a healthier version!

I decided to swap some of the plant-based yogurt for some sweet potato puree. This keeps the same moisture, but it brings all the goodness of the root vegetable: antioxidants, vitamins (A, B3, B6, C), and minerals (Manganese, Copper, Potassium).

Ingredients and Substitutions

You only need 3 ingredients to make these donuts and two more for the glazing.

• Sweet Potato – Orange sweet potatoes are the best for these donuts, but the recipe also works perfectly fine with purple sweet potatoes (Ube), you just need to add a bit of water to compensate for their starchier and drier flesh.
• Self-Rising Flour – Self rising flour is a blend of all-purpose flour and baking powder at a rate of 2 teaspoons per cup. You can make your own if you can’t find it in store-
• Vanilla Yogurt – While the recipe works with plain yogurt, it’s better to use vanilla yogurt to give the dough some flavor. I’ve tried this recipe with soy yogurt and a cashew and coconut yogurt blend.

For the glazing, you also need:

• Icing Sugar – You can also use sugar-free powdered sweeteners, like powdered erythritol or powdered allulose.
• Almond Milk – Any plant-based milk works, but I like to use almond milk for this recipe as it strikes the right balance between a mild taste and a good nutritional profile.

Pro Tips

While this recipe is quite easy, I have a few tips for you to make it perfect every single time.

1. I totally recommend using sweetened vanilla yogurt to give the dough some flavor.
2. The dough is sticky, but knead it until you form a rough dough ball. Then, let the dough rest for 10 minutes so it relaxes.
3. Air frying is the best cooking method as they puff up more. They come out packed in the oven and less tasty.
4. The glaze is a must, or they taste like slightly sweet bread rolls. The glaze softens the donut holes, adds sweetness, and crackles as it cools down.
5. Drain the glazed donut holes on a wire rack to let the excess glazing drip down. Glaze them lukewarm. Don’t wait until they are cold, or you will add more glaze, and they won’t soften as much.
6. Add a pinch of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spices to the dough to give it more flavors.

More Donut Recipes

Air Fryer Donut Holes

Peanut Butter Donuts

Lemon Donuts

Vegan Blueberry Donuts

2-Ingredient Donuts

Sweet Potato Donuts

These Sweet Potato Donuts are easy 3-ingredient donut holes made with sweet potato puree. They are healthier, air-fried, yeast-free, and egg-free.

4.75 from 4 votes

Print Review Save Saved!

Share on Facebook Pin Save in Email

Prep Time: 10 minutes mins

Cook Time: 15 minutes mins

Total Time: 25 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 12 donut holes

Calories: 99.2 kcal

Author: Carine Claudepierre

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

US Customary – Metric

• ▢ 1 ¼ cup Self-Rising Flour - (note 1)
• ▢ ½ cup Orange Sweet Potato Puree - (note 2)
• ▢ ½ cup Vanilla Plant-Based Yogurt - (note 3)

Donut Glaze

• ▢ 1 cup Icing Sugar
• ▢ 3 tablespoons Vanilla Plant-Based Yogurt
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Almond Milk - if needed

Optional – for the donut dough

• ▢ ½ teaspoon Cinnamon

Instructions

• Peel, cut the sweet potato into cubes, and place them in a saucepan. Cover them with cold water and a lid.
• Bring the saucepan over high heat or until it boils, then reduce to medium heat and cook until it's fork-tender, which takes about 10 minutes.
• Drain in a sieve over the sink and let them steam out for 30 minutes until the sweet potato cubes are cooled.
• Mashed into a smooth puree with a fork, pack the mashed sweet potato into a measuring cup, sweep off excess, and place the amount needed in a mixing bowl.
• Add the sweetened vanilla yogurt and self-rising flour.
• Stir until it looks crumbly, then knead and squeeze the ingredients to form a dough. It will be sticky, but that's normal. You can sprinkle flour on your hands to remove the sticky dough. Form a rough dough ball and set aside for 10 minutes.
• Wash your hands, spray some oil on them and on the dough balls. Divide the dough into 12 small portions.
• Roll each dough portion between your oiled hands into small balls.
• Place all the dough balls in an air fryer basket, leaving half a thumb between them. They will puff up while baking.
• Air fry the donuts at 350 °F (180 °C) for 12 to 15 minutes until they are lightly golden and dry on the outside. They will look like little bread balls.
• Prepare the glazing by stirring icing sugar, yogurt, and a bit of almond milk if it's too thick.
• Use two forks to dip and coat the lukewarm sweet potato donut holes in the glaze then return to a wire rack to firm it up and let the excess run down.

Notes

Note 1: You can replace the self-rising flour with 1 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour in which you whisk 2 1/8 teaspoons of baking powder.

Note 2: I also tested the recipe with purple sweet potato. It’s a bit dry, and you need 1-2 tablespoons of water to bring the dough together.

Note 3: Any plant-based vanilla yogurt works, like coconut, oat, or almond yogurt. However, it must be vanilla-sweetened yogurt, or the dough won’t have much flavor.

Gluten-Free: I didn’t try gluten-free flour and am not sure it will work well here.

Storage: The donut holes are easy to store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2-3 days or freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature.

Share on Facebook Pin Recipe

Nutrition

Serving: 1donut hole | Calories: 99.2kcal | Carbohydrates: 21.6g | Protein: 2.3g | Fat: 0.4g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 0.8mg | Sodium: 12.1mg | Potassium: 46.9mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 11.9g | Vitamin A: 7IU | Vitamin B12: 0.1µg | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 30.4mg | Iron: 0.1mg | Magnesium: 5.7mg | Phosphorus: 33.2mg | Zinc: 0.2mg