Gluten-free and refined sugar-free, these baked mochi donuts have a soft and chewy interior with a lightly crisp exterior, dipped in a salty and sweet caramel glazing. These allergy-friendly mochi donuts are a perfect AIP/Paleo copycat for Japanese mochi donuts. The texture is really incredible — soft and chewy, with a springiness from the cassava flour and arrowroot powder, while the coconut sugar provides a delicious caramel flavor.
When my husband tasted the mochi donut for the first time, he said that it reminded him of the Pon De Ring from Mister Donut in Japan — what a compliment!
Main ingredients for Salted Caramel Mochi Donuts:
- Cassava flour
- Arrowroot powder
- Coconut flour
- Baking soda
- Full-fat coconut milk
- Gelatin egg
- Apple cider vinegar
- Maple syrup
- Coconut sugar
- Coconut butter & coconut oil
- Maldon salt
RECOMMENDATIONS
- I recommend glazing the donuts just prior to eating — this keeps the donut texture nice and light without soaking too much into the donuts. I also enjoy the donuts without the glazing if you prefer to skip this step.
- The salted caramel glaze can be stored in a glass container in the fridge and just reheated prior to glazing. The recipe will make a bit of extra glazing so this can also be stored in the fridge. The salted caramel tastes delicious in coffee!
- Store the donuts in an air-tight sealed container. These can be left on the counter for 3-4 days.
Salted Caramel Mochi Donuts (AIP/Paleo)
These allergy-friendly mochi donuts are a perfect AIP/Paleo copycat for Japanese mochi donuts.
Ingredients
- Dry Ingredients
- 1/4 cup cassava flour
- 1/2 cup arrowroot powder
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Wet Ingredients
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 3 tsp coconut sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup full-fat coconut milk
- Egg Replacement
- 1 tbsp unflavored gelatin
- 1 tbsp lukewarm water
- 2 tbsp hot water
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- Salted Caramel Glaze (optional)
- 1 tbsp coconut butter
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tbsp full-fat coconut milk
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- 1/8 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Topping (optional)
- Maldon salt
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat the oven to 350°F. Set aside donut pans and lightly coat with coconut oil.
- Step 2 In a small bowl, mix together the dry ingredients until well combined.
- Step 3 In a separate medium-sized mixing bowl, mix the maple syrup, maple sugar, and vanilla together. Let sit for a couple of minutes to dissolve. Stir in the full-fat coconut milk.
- Step 4 Pour the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and mix well to fully combine.
- Step 5 Prepare the egg replacement by making the gelatin egg first. Pour 1 tbsp lukewarm water into a small cup and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Combine the water and gelatin into a paste. Add 2 tbsp of hot water to the gelatin mixture and whisk vigorously until the gelatin is dissolved and frothy.
- Step 6 Fold the gelatin egg into the mixture and add the apple cider vinegar as the last step. Make sure to not overmix.
- Step 7 Evenly distribute the batter into the donut pan molds, filling each mold 2/3 of the way. The donuts rise, so be sure to leave enough space at the top of the mold.
- Step 8 Place the donut pan into the oven and bake for roughly 25 minutes.
- Step 9 Once done, remove from the oven and let cool for 3-5 minutes before removing from the pan. Gently place donuts on a cooling rack.
- Step 10 While the donuts are cooling, prepare the salted caramel glaze (this is optional – the mochi donuts also taste amazing without the glazing).
- Step 11 In a small saucepan on low heat, add the ingredients for the glaze, stirring until combined and smooth.
- Step 12 Pour the glazing into a shallow bowl and dip the donuts into the salted caramel, topping with Maldon salt if desired.
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Hi! If I wanted to make this but am fine with using actual eggs, how many eggs would this work out to?
Thanks for reaching out – I am not totally sure since I am unable to eat eggs but I would suggest trying the recipe with one egg. Let me know how it turns out for you!
These donuts are delicious! I love the chewy texture. They are so much like mochi donuts. I have been on AIP for almost a year now and this absolutely satisfied a craving. I have successfully reintroduced eggs and used one medium egg in this recipe in place of the gelatin egg and it worked out nicely. Thank you for a great recipe!
Rachel, so happy to hear you enjoyed the mochi donuts! It is great to hear you can tolerate eggs again. I need to make this recipe again soon!
This is a great baseline recipe that is very versatile. I use just a regular egg and I have used this to recipe to make several versions. I have made vanilla, chocolate/coconut, blueberry and lemon. I make more of a muffin version instead of a donut but I have made both. All the flavors are a hit and it seems that I am making a different flavor every night. The mochi comes out so good that a glaze is not necessary. In fact I omit the glaze all together. This recipe is a keeper, I have already saved it. Thanks for finding a paleo version. My family loves it.