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4.92 from 12 votes

4 Ingredient Lemon Donuts

These lemon donuts are soft and fluffy. They only need 4 ingredients and don't require any eggs, butter or oil. The donuts can be baked, air fried or deep fried. The dough comes together in just minutes and you can have donuts ready in about 20 minutes.
Servings: 16 donuts
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
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Ingredients

  • 1 cup (230g) 4% cottage cheese, see note before starting
  • 1 1/4 cups (175g) self-rising flour, see note before starting
  • 3 tbsp (21g) powdered sugar, plus more for dusting or glaze
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice + 1 tsp lemon zest

Instructions
 

  • If baking the donuts, preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. If cooking the donuts in the air fryer, line the air fryer insert basket with parchment paper. If deep frying the donuts, see recipe notes for frying instructions.
  • Blend cottage cheese in a small high powered blender until smooth. If the cottage cheese is difficult to blend fully smooth, you can add a splash of water to help the blender blend.
  • Add blended cottage cheese, 1 cup flour, powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest to large mixing bowl and mix until a dough forms. If the dough seems too sticky to work with, add the remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. If needed, you can add more flour than the recipe calls for but the more flour you add, the denser the dough will be. You want the dough to be workable but still a little bit sticky.
  • Use a 1.5 tbsp cookie scoop to scoop dough. Lightly wet your hands and roll each dough into a loose ball and place onto your prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Optional step: To have a more even browned surface and slightly crispier exterior, you can brush or spray the tops of the donuts with oil. This is optional because the donuts will still brown even without the oil.
  • Air fryer instructions: Preheat air fryer to 350°F (177°C) and then cook the donuts for about 10 minutes or until puffed and golden brown on the surface and cooked through. You will likely need to cook the donuts in batches because they don't all fit in the air fryer at once.
    Oven instructions: Bake for about 20 minutes in preheated oven or until the donuts are cooked through, puffed and golden brown on the surface.
  • Allow the donuts to cool for a few minutes before enjoying. Donuts are best enjoyed soon after they are done cooking. They will become more dense when fully cooled. If desired, you can dust the donuts with powdered sugar or you can make a simple lemon glaze with powdered sugar and lemon juice. See notes for lemon glaze recipe. Store any uneaten donuts in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer. Reheat before serving.

Notes

  • Cottage cheese note: I used 4% Daisy cottage cheese* which contains 13 grams of protein per 1/2 cup serving. If you use a cottage cheese with less or more protein, this can affect how much flour is needed in your dough. If your cottage cheese has more protein, you will need less flour. If your cottage cheese has less protein, you will need more flour.
  • Self-rising flour note. There are 2 main kinds of self-rising flour sold in the US. One that is a lower protein (2 grams per 1/4 cup serving) flour and one that has a regular amount of protein (3 grams per 1/4 cup (30g) serving). The amount of protein affects how much liquid is absorbed. For this recipe, I tested it with Gold Medal self-rising flour* (regular amount of protein). Please use a self-rising flour with a regular amount of protein (3 grams per 1/4 cup), or make your own self-rising flour with the recipe below.
  • *These product links are affiliate links. This means I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
  • Homemade self-rising flour: Whisk together 2 cups all purpose flour, 1 tbsp baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Make sure your all purpose flour has a regular amount of protein (3 grams per 1/4 cup). Most brands in the US contain this amount but there are some brands with higher protein (4 grams per 1/4 cup) such as King Arthur Flour and Bob's Red Mill, which will not work well for this recipe. Measure out 1.25 cups for the recipe.
  • Fried Version:
    • Add 2 inches of canola oil to a medium saucepan. Bring oil to 325°F-350°F (163°C-177°C). Fry the donuts in small batches for a few minutes until golden brown and cooked through.
  • Optional lemon glaze:
    • 2 cups powdered sugar
    • 3-4 tbsp lemon juice, or more as needed
    • Combine powdered sugar and lemon juice and whisk together until you have a smooth glaze. You can add more lemon juice or water to thin out the glaze or add more powdered sugar to thicken the glaze.
  • Estimated nutrition is for the donut hole and does not include glaze or sugar dusting.
Serving: 1donut, Calories: 56kcal, Carbohydrates: 10g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 0.4g, Sodium: 181mg, Fiber: 0.003g, Sugar: 2g, NET CARBS: 10
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. This is not a comprehensive list of all the nutrients in the recipe (i.e., does not include vitamins, cholesterol, etc). I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
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