These Southeast Asia-inspired low carb donuts are powered by the leaves of the Pandan plant. And each of these Keto Pandan Cake Donuts has just 3g net carbs. Sweet!
So what is Pandan extract and why is it so mesmerizingly green?
It's made from the leaf of the Pandan plant, also known rather endearingly as the Screw Pine. It's often found in the cooking of Southeast Asia, and in places like Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia, it's as common as vanilla. It tastes a little bit like vanilla too. It's very hard to describe the taste, so I'll just quote Saveur.com's take on the flavor of Pandan:
"Floral like vanilla but with a grassy lilt and a tropical bouquet that verges on coconut plus a distinct note of...is that bubblegum?" -Christopher Tan
But let us not forget Pandan's vibrant greenness.
That's what first drew me in. I saw a delicious-looking recipe for Coconut Pandan Chia Seed Pudding on Two Sleevers and I had to know more about this exotic flavor. So I did a google image search for Pandan recipes and found all these wonderfully green desserts. One recipe jumped out at me though: Pandan Donuts.
The recipe was for a normal sugary donut, but no matter, I knew I could make it low carb.
I decided to adapt a great recipe for Sugar-Free Donuts that the Sugar-Free Londoner makes. I swapped out the vanilla for Pandan extract, switched up the glaze a little bit, and Bob's your uncle. I had a low carb Keto Pandan Cake Donut with only 3g net carbs each. It's fluffy, sweet, and incredibly tasty. And the flavor will have you asking yourself...
"Is that a hint of bubble gum that I'm tasting?"
Check out my Pandan Waffles as well!
PrintKeto Pandan Donuts
These Southeast Asia inspired donuts are powered by the leaves of the Pandan plant.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 19
- Total Time: 29 minutes
- Yield: 20 mini donuts 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: East Asian
Ingredients
donuts:
- cooking spray
- ⅓ cup butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup Swerve or equivalent granulated sweetener
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon Pandan extract
- 1 cup super fine almond flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
glaze:
- ½ cup Confectioner's Swerve or equivalent powdered sweetener
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- ¼ teaspoon Pandan extract, optional
Instructions
Step 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and spray a mini or regular sized donut pan with cooking spray.
Step 2. Add melted butter, cream and sweetener to a blender and blend until combined.
Step 3. Add eggs and Pandan extract and blend again.
Step 4. Add almond flour and baking powder and blend again. Scrape down the sides of the blender and blend one final time.
Step 5. Fill the wells of the donut pan with batter.
Step 6. If you are using a mini-sized donut pan, then bake the donuts for 15-17 minutes until firm to the touch and a toothpick comes out clean. For a regular-sized donut pan, bake for 17-19 minutes.
Step 7. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then carefully remove them from the molds and place them on a cooling rack.
Step 8. To make a white glaze, mix together powdered sweetener and cream until smooth. To make the glaze bright green and Pandan flavored, add ¼ teaspoon Pandan extract and mix well. Drizzle glaze on top of the donuts.
Notes
Yield: 20 mini donuts or 5 regular sized donuts
Nutrition
- Serving Size: see Note
- Calories: 357
- Fat: 33
- Carbohydrates: 6
- Fiber: 3
- Protein: 10
Keywords: Low Carb Pandan Donuts, Keto Pandan Donuts
Leung says
Can I use pandan sauce made from fresh pandan leaves instead of using the extract?
EmilyKrill says
It depends on how concentrated it is. You are only using 1 teaspoon, so it needs to be very strong in order to taste it.
Sharon says
Looks yummy! I want to try this! Thanks for sharing!
EmilyKrill says
Sure thing!
kungfoodninja says
Hi,
Can I use coconut flour instead of almond flour for your donut?
EmilyKrill says
No, the two aren't interchangeable in recipes because they each absorb liquids differently. I'd use a recipe that was formulated to use coconut flour like this one:
https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/coconut-flour-fried-donuts-low-carb-and-gluten-free/
Just substitute 1/2 teaspoon pandan extract for the 1/2 vanilla extract called for in the recipe. And you can leave it as a baked donut, or do a last step of frying it in oil like the author recommends. Either way they will be good. I've made these donuts and they are wonderful.
Emma says
I'd never heard of Pandan but I ordered it to make this recipe. Now I am in love with it. Do you have any other recipes I can use it in?
★★★★★
EmilyKrill says
I don't, but I found a couple low carb pandan recipes on Two Sleevers. There is a chia seed pudding https://twosleevers.com/coconut-pandan-chia-seed-pudding/ and something called a Nyonya Ondeh Ondeh https://twosleevers.com/nyonya-ondeh-ondeh/ . I haven't tried them both but they look fabulous.