There are no two ingredients that bridge the gap between seasons more perfectly, than peaches and corn. And as we sit on the cusp of Autumn, I thought these vegan peach cornbread donuts would do well to celebrate this strange, hot, impactful summer. For food is the thing that brings us together, to have difficult conversations, to share experiences, to remember the past. I think we could all use a little more sweetness in our lives right now, not to forget, but to give us the energy to keep pushing forward.
The inspiration for these vegan peach cornbread donuts came to me on September 1st, my nine year anniversary here in LA. I went down to the beach for an early morning run; it is my favorite place, and I will always be happiest when near the ocean. There just so happened to be a gourmet donut shop a few blocks up from my sandy stroll, and I decided on a whim, to pick up a couple $4 donuts and see if they would knock my socks off. They didn’t.
Peach Crumble was so overly sweet, I couldn’t stand more than one bite. And Blue Cornmeal, had no flavor whatsoever, but a lovely texture. So while these two pricey, fried gems hugely disappointed my tastes buds, they sparked my imagination. My vegan peach cornbread donuts are lusciously moist, baked, not fried, and topped with a fresh peach glaze, which I could drink.
Vegan Peach Cornbread Donuts
Equipment
- Donut pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup coconut milk + 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- ⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ cup honey
- ½ t. vanilla
- 1 T. flax meal
- 1 cup + 1 tbsp one-to-one gluten free flour I use Bob’s Red Mill
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 ½ t. baking powder
- ½ t. baking soda
- ½ t. salt
- ¼ t. nutmeg
- 1 large ripe peach
- ½ cup powdered sugar for the glaze
Instructions
- Begin by pouring the coconut milk and apple cider vinegar into a small bowl and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients, minus the powdered sugar. Add the wet ingredients and whisk again. While the batter thickens, dice the peach, reserving half for the glaze. Gently fold the other half of the diced peach into your batter.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. You will notice that this isn’t the first step in the recipe; the batter should rest for about ten minutes before scooping into your well-greased donut pans.
- Fill the pans to the top and bake for 17-20 minutes. Allow donuts to rest in the pans on a cooling rack for 5-10 minutes before carefully scooping them out.
- Make the glaze by blending the reserved half of the diced peach in your blender. We want it to be fully liquified, so depending on the juiciness of your peach, you might need a tiny splash of coconut milk, try a teaspoon to start, we don’t want it runny. Pour the peach sauce into a bowl, add the powdered sugar and whisk well to combine. I added 2 little drops of vanilla to bring out the flavor. Dip the donuts generously in glaze then place them on the cooling rack to drip. I tried out a blueberry glaze, but it didn’t hold a candle to the peach glaze, so I won’t even get into to that.
- Enjoy the donuts right away or if you have any leftover, save in an airtight container in the fridge.
