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Who needs a doughnut???

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So, I can only recall eating like two or three Twinkie in my lifetime, it’s probably been about a decade and a half since I last had one. You know how everything tastes better when you’re little (especially when it’s something you’re mom doesn’t buy)?

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Well, when I was really young I loved them, they were so soft and filled with fluffy cream. It wasn’t until I was a little older that I realized they really weren’t all that. However, the idea is genius, but a homemade version is the way to do it right.

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I’ve seen people make Twinkie pans out of foil, and that’s something I would totally do, but I thought it would be a whole lot easier to just use my handy dandy doughnut pan and call it a day. Don’t you agree? So much quicker and, come on, who doesn’t get excited at the sight of that familiar O shape of a doughnut?

I went through a bunch of different frosting recipes to get to one that I liked for these. The one I ended up with is a classic buttercream frosting. Simple, but delicious. As for the finished product, basically, if you already have memories of packaged Twinkies then these should make you childishly happy.

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Cream Filled Vanilla Twinkie Doughnuts

If you've ever wanted to make your own version of those iconic treats then this recipe's got you covered. Filled with a creamy buttercream, these will have you completely forgetting the boxed kind for sure.

Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Chilling Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings 12 doughnuts

Ingredients

Doughnuts:
1/3 cup sunflower oil or preferred baking oil
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup full-fat coconut milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 cups flour
Vegan Buttercream:
1/4 cup vegan "butter" (or organic vegetable shortening) room temp
1/4 cup organic vegetable shortening at room temp (not cold or melted) You can also replace this with vegan butter or use a combination
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 tablespoons unsweetened plant-based milk

Instructions

Vegan Buttercream:
Beat "butter" in a large mixing bowl until creamed. Add vanilla and almond extract, salt, and powdered sugar one cup at a time. Add milk beat until light and fluffy. You may need to add more milk as needed for frosting consistency to be light and fluffy.
Doughnuts:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C) and grease 2 non-stick, 6-count, doughnut pans well with oil. Stir oil and sugar together in mixing bowl (no need to wash after the filling) until creamed. Beat in applesauce and milk, then add salt, baking powder, vanilla, and flour and mix until smooth.
Pour scoops of batter into donut pans and fill to the line. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until just starting to brown on top. Remove and cool completely, then loosen from pan (I find the side of a spoon works well for this).
Fill a pastry bag, fitted with long narrow tip, with your filling. Use chopstick or skewer to poke 3 - 4 holes around the doughnuts then pipe filling sideways into doughnuts. Serve as soon as possible after piping.

Recipe Notes

If you need to make this ahead of time it's best to keep filling separately and just wait to fill right before serving.

ALL CONTENT IS MINE AND ORIGINAL! All of these food photos were taken with my Nikon D750 and my favorite Lens, the Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G. You can find out more in my INTRO POST.