These dairy-free donuts can be made with a strawberry mousse filling and are deep fried. Top them with a strawberry glaze or enjoy as is!

Heart shaped donuts crowded around each other

Guys, I made these strawberry heart-shaped donuts three times in the last week. I’m not complaining, don’t you worry, I just want you to know that I tested (and tested, and tested) these babies out for you so that they were perfect.

And guess what? If you use water or a milk substitute instead of milk for the glaze, then you can call these dairy-free donuts!

I decided to tweak my sufganiyah/jelly donut recipe from last year and turn them into strawberry heart shaped donuts.

An arrangement of pink strawberry heart shaped donuts on a gray background.

The first time I tested these out I thought I had the best idea ever. Grind up freeze dried strawberries and use it in the dough. How smart am I?! Except when they were all done, fried, and rolled in cinnamon and sugar, I took one bite and was like EW.

Something happened between the yeast and the freeze dried strawberries that gave the donuts a very sour taste. It was weird and definitely not the strawberry flavor I was going for.

I will tell you though that my Dad was over for the weekend and tried them. He said the first bite is phenomenal, and they are good if you know what you are getting. LOL thanks Dad, but pretty sure I had to go back to the kitchen with these.

Filling the donuts

I ended up not flavoring the dough and only used the freeze dried strawberries in the glaze. Then filled them with Dessert for Two’s strawberry mousse that’s made in a blender. A BLENDER, YOU GUYS. Doesn’t get easier than that.

I was planning on making my own filling, but then I saw Christina’s was made in a blender and I was sold. It’s deliciously sweet and tangy and has the right amount of sour/sweet combo that you actually want. Combine that with the fluffy, golden, fried donut dough and its a match made in heaven.

You can go the extra mile and glaze them (and why not) for an extra strawberry sweet flavor, or you can even eat them plain and unstuffed. You can’t go wrong!

And now after the third test, I can now agree with my dad and say that all bites of these dairy-free donuts are PHENOMENAL.

Pink strawberry heart shaped donuts arranged in a loaf pan.

Ingredients

The donuts themselves are made with classic ingredients like all-purpose flour, yeast, warm water, oil, and eggs. The strawberry mousse filling is made with strawberry jam, cream cheese, sour cream, heavy cream, and kosher salt — aka the good stuff.

And the optional strawberry glaze is a simple combination of milk, confectioners sugar, and freeze dried strawberries.

Strawberry heart donuts lined up on a gray background.

How to make these dairy-free?

To make these heart-shaped donuts dairy-free, omit the strawberry mousse filling and sub non-dairy milk for the tiny amount of milk in the strawberry glaze.

I love the filling in these donuts, but the dairy-free donut dough makes for fantastic deep-fried donuts as is, so the filling isn’t necessary. But if you don’t use the filling, I highly recommend dusting these babies with powdered sugar or making the strawberry glaze, otherwise your donuts will be a little plain.

How to make donuts from scratch

Making homemade donuts is actually really easy, but it does require some extra TLC on your part. You first need to prep the dairy-free donut dough and let it rise for an hour in a warm place.

Then, you need to gently punch down the dough and roll it out. Use a heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the donuts and place them on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet for a second rise. Once they’ve risen a second time, deep fry the donuts in hot oil until golden brown on all sides.

After you’ve fried the dairy-free donuts, make the strawberry mousse filling and strawberry glaze, if using. Fill the donuts, then spoon a little glaze over top and eat!

Can I make these ahead of time?

If you want to make these heart-shaped donuts for visiting friends or family, I recommend starting on the dairy-free donut dough ahead of time but waiting to deep fry the donuts until your guests have arrived.

Donuts are best fresh from the fryer and don’t keep well, so you don’t want to make these strawberry donuts too far in advance.

Strawberry heart donuts being held up in an orange loaf pan

Can I make these into another shape?

Absolutely! And if you don’t have any cookie cutters on hand, you can also cut the dough into squares with a knife and then fry them. You’d wind up with copycat beignets that way!

One thing to note is that depending on the size of your cookie cutter you may need to fry these for more or less time than the recipe calls for. I just fry them until they’re golden brown all over, so use that to determine their doneness.

A mixture of strawberry glazed and plain fried heart shaped donuts on a sheet pan.

Tips for making homemade donuts

  • If you don’t have a thermometer, a good way to tell if your oil is ready for frying is to heat it on medium for a few minutes. Then using a wooden spoon, stick the handle into the oil, and if it starts to bubble around the handle, then you know your oil is ready (you can also take a small piece of dough and do a test).
  • You can use any shape of cookie cutter to make these.
  • Don’t omit the kosher salt in the donut dough. It doesn’t make them salty, it just brings out the other flavors.
Someone holding a pink strawberry heart shaped donut with more dairy free donuts in the background

Need more pastry recipes?

 

A mixture of strawberry glazed and plain fried heart shaped donuts on a sheet pan.
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Strawberry Heart Dairy-Free Donuts

Prep: 2 hours 15 minutes
Cook: 4 minutes
Total: 2 hours 19 minutes
Servings: 24 Donuts
Make these deliciously puffy dairy-free donuts! Fill them, glaze them, or just leave them plain, you can't go wrong either way!
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Ingredients

For the donuts

  • 1 1/2 cups water, warm, not boiling
  • 5 tsp instant yeast, 2 packages rapid or active drive yeast
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs, large
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil, plus more for frying
  • 5 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp kosher salt

For the mousse

  • 1/2 cup strawberry jam
  • 1/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/3 cup sour cream
  • 3 ounces cream cheese
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream

For the strawberry glaze

  • 1 cup confectioners sugar
  • 1/2 cup freeze dried strawberries, crushed
  • 2-3 tsp milk or water

Instructions
 

Make the donuts

  • In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, mix the 1 1/2 cups warm water with the 5 tsp yeast and leave to sit until it froths, about 10 minutes. Add 1/3 cup sugar, 1 tbsp vanilla, 2 eggs, and 1/3 cup oil to the bowl and mix until well combined.
  • Add 5 1/2 cups flour, 1 tsp baking powder, and 2 tsp salt, and knead or mix on medium for 5 minutes until a soft, non sticky dough forms. You will know the dough is ready when it separates easily from the bowl, or when it stops sticking to your rolling surface. Add in more flour by a 1/4 cup if you need to while mixing if the dough is too sticky.
  • Grease or spray a large bowl with pam and place dough inside to rise for 1 hour. Remove the dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Punch it down and roll it out into a rectangle- 3/4 of an inch in thickness.
  • Using a 2-3 inch heart cookie cutter, cut out hearts and set aside on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Gather scraps and repeat.Let the hearts rise for another 45 mins to an hour
  • Fill a deep fryer or a large stock pot with vegetable oil, about 3-4 inches high. Heat your oil to 350°F. When the oil is ready, fry the donuts for 1-2 mins on each side or until golden brown. Remove donuts from oil, and drain on paper towels to remove excess oil.

Make the filling

  •  In a small blender or food processor combine the 1/2 cup jam,1/4 tsp salt salt, 1/3rd cup sour cream, and 3 ounces cream cheese. Blend until smooth.
  • In a mixer bowl fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream until stiff peaks form.Fold the cream into the strawberry mixture and place in the fridge to firm up for a few minutes.

Make the glaze

  • In a small bowl combine the 1 cup confectioner sugars, 1/2 cup crushed freeze dried strawberries, and 2tsp milk. Mix until a runny glaze forms. If the glaze is too thick, add 1/2 teaspoon liquid until you get the desired consistency. If it is too runny, add 1 tablespoon of confectioners at a time till it's thickened.

Assemble!

  • Fill a piping bag or small ziplock bag with the mousse and snip off a little piece of the corner. Push a hole through the top middle part of the heart donut using a straw, or a piping tip if you have it. Squeeze some filling into the donut, dip in the glaze, and set aside. Repeat with all donuts, or leave them plain. They are delicious either way!

Notes

*If you don't have a thermometer, a good way to tell if your oil is ready for frying is to heat it on medium for a few minutes. Then using a wooden spoon, stick the handle into the oil, and if it starts to bubble around the handle, then you know your oil is ready. You can also take a small piece of dough and do a test.
Yes there is baking powder in this recipe too, it adds to the fluffiness.
The filling recipe is from Dessert For Two
Serving: 1donut, Calories: 244kcal, Carbohydrates: 40g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 24mg, Sodium: 261mg, Potassium: 144mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 15g, Vitamin A: 137IU, Vitamin C: 61mg, Calcium: 30mg, Iron: 3mg
Course: Donuts
Author: Sam Adler
Cuisine: American
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