Sugar-free Sweet Ricotta Doughnut Balls

As a father, and general advocate of healthy living I appreciate the need to eat healthier, but as a chef, I always want to create dishes that look and taste amazing – and in particular, desserts that feel indulgent and a little bit naughty.

When I wrote my gluten free cookbook these healthy doughnut balls were one of my favorite recipes, so I thought I’d have a go at creating a no added sugar version and I’m delighted with the results.

For a sweet treat, just make sure the oil is deep and hot enough to make the dough inside fluffy and light.

You can use a wheat flour instead of gluten-free, in which case leave out the xanthan gum. The recipe makes about 30 bite-sized healthy doughnut balls

Servings: 4

Preparation time: 10 minutes, plus 30 minutes to drain the ricotta

Cooking time: 25 minutes

You’ll Need

Doughnuts

Vegetable oil for deep frying

250g ricotta cheese

45g gluten free flour blend (see below)

1/8th level tsp xanthan gum

1level tsp gluten-free baking powder

1tbsp xylitol (available in stores as Total Sweet)

Finely grated zest 1 lemon

1 egg, beaten

1 egg yolk

White & brown rice flour blend

Makes 500g

175g mixture of half white rice flour with half brown

175g potato starch

150g tapioca flour/ starch

Cinnamon dusting

2tbsp xylitol

1tsp cinnamon

– READ MORE: 9 Healthy Baking Books That Aren’t Just For Cheat Day –

Method

Step 1: Drain the ricotta: turn into a colander and leave to drain until dry, about 30 minutes or overnight.

Step 2: Heat the oil in a deep fat fryer to 180⁰C, or a deep sided pan filled one third with oil.

Step 3: Place the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, xylitol and lemon zest into a bowl and mix together evenly. Add the egg and yolk; next add the drained ricotta cheese and again mix well.

Step 4: Spoon the dough into a piping bag (not fitted with a nozzle) and when the oil is hot, pipe small balls of dough straight into the hot oil. If you don’t have a piping bag, roll little balls of mixture between metal spoons and transfer to the oil.

Step 5: Cook a small batch at a time, swirling and turning with a slotted spoon so you get an even color and until nice and golden: about 3- 4 minutes.

Step 6: Drain well on kitchen paper and then roll in cinnamon dusting while still warm.

Step 7: Serve warm and fresh straight away. The recipe makes about 30 to allow 4 servings of six little bites.

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