Grey, misty mornings mean waking up late and slowly sipping coffee. Staring out the window at my cherry tree, water curled up on the leaves. In the early hours of the day my brain works slowly. I roll out my yoga mat and stretch out my muscles. Logan and I make a smoothie together, or eggs and avocado toast. Sometimes I get bored of breakfast and make something like muffins or granola. Or donuts. In my living room right now:

Two vintage linens my grandmother gave me that I'll be using on tables for my wedding.

A bunch of dried yellow and peach roses Logan gave me last week that I can't let go of.

My friends scarf folded into a head band with Taijitu symbols all over it -- he left it here after playing Super Smash Bros with Logan one afternoon.

A coffee plant that I'm hoping I won't have to repot (but it's not super happy in its tiny pot).

A new-to-me biscuit cutter with a wooden handle, some vintage aluminum jello molds with patina from age, a tiny cocktail spoon.

Another friends Mountain Stage t-shirt, left here after a meeting with our (Frolic Chocolate's) branding team Stonestreet Creative. 

One donut left over from yesterdays batch.

I've never really loved donuts. Never liked them really. I would eat a cake donut if my dad bought it for me from our local convenience grocery store (the only shop in our tiny beach town). But other then that, I could happily live without donuts in my life. When I went wheat free I got the Babycakes NYC Covers the Classics book and baked through every recipe. Cover to cover. My copy is stained, beat up. And I discovered that I really like donuts. These donuts, anyway. They're so cute and round and convenient to dip in coffee. More than that, they're health(ish) made with coconut oil and applesauce. So I don't feel like death after eating, say, 5 of them.

A couple of notes on this recipe. I use psyllium as a binder in these donuts because xanthan and guar gums are freaky. You can get it at most health food stores, and both powdered and whole psyllium work in this recipe. I use Better Than Soy Milk Powder in the icing -- again, most health food stores carry this and you can get it on Amazon. You can use Better Than Rice Milk Powder as a substitute if you're avoiding soy. There's no substituting in the icing recipe other than this, and I stress that you must make it exactly as directed. Like mayonnaise, you have to make it in a specific way for it to work. Cool the icing in the refrigerator and it will become a thick, spreadable icing for cakes or cookie sandwiches. It stores for up to a month in a covered container. If you have any issues, comment or email me and I'm happy to help. 

Black Raspberry Iced Cardomom Cake Donuts (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Ingredients

For the Cake Donuts (Adapted from Babycakes NYC)

• ¾ cup white or brown rice flour
• ⅓ cup coconut flour
• ¾ cup arrowroot flour
• 1 cup vegan sugar (evaporated cane sugar)
• 1.5 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon psyllium
• ⅛ tsp salt
• ⅛ tsp baking soda
• 5 tablespoons apple sauce
• ½ cup coconut oil
• ¾ cup hot water
• ½ teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon ground black cardamom

For the Black Raspberry Icing (makes 2 cups icing)

• ¾ cup room temperature almond milk (I used Califfia Farms Unsweet Vanilla Almond Milk)
• ⅓ cup Better Than Soy Milk Powder
• 1 tablespoon coconut flour
• ¼ cup agave (honey also works, if you're not vegan)
• 1-3 tablespoons black raspberry jam (depending on how fruity you want it)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla or almond extract
• ¾ cups liquid coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice

Instructions

Making the Cake Donuts:

1. Preheat the oven to 325F. Oil donut pans (mini bundt pans work well, too!) with coconut oil. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine rice flour, coconut flour, arrowroot, sugar, baking powder, psyllium, salt, and baking soda, stirring to incorporate everything evenly. Add apple sauce, coconut oil, hot water, and almond or vanilla extract. Stir to combine.
3. Using a tablespoon, spoon about 2½ scoops into each mold, spreading the batter to fill the molds evenly. Bake 15 minutes, until the edges begin to go golden brown. Remove and let cool at least 10 minutes before icing (the cooler the donuts the thicker the icing will go on). Dip each donut in icing to serve. Yields about 12 donuts.

Making the Black Raspberry Icing:

1. Add almond milk, Better Than Soy Milk Powder, coconut flour, agave, and raspberry jam to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to combine. Turn the food processor on and, while the blade is running, add vanilla extract. Add half of the coconut oil. Then add the lemon or lime juice. Then add the second half of the coconut oil. Blend 10 seconds more. Your icing should have a glossy, creamy consistency. If your icing breaks, the best thing to do is leave your food processor running until you reach a smooth texture -- the heat of the blades melts the coconut oil and brings everything back together.