VANILLA & POMEGRANATE BAKED DOUGHNUTS

Belle and Sebastian, boots and baked doughnuts this week (and alliteration).
Make these, you're in for a treat.

VANILLA & POMEGRANATE BAKED DOUGHNUTS

240ml (1 cup) vanilla flavoured soya milk

1 teaspoon cider vinegar

80ml (1/3 cup) sunflower oil or other flavourless oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

120ml (1/2 cup) pomegranate juice

195g (1 ½ cup) plain flour

40g (1/2 cup) ground almonds

120g (1/2 cup) caster sugar

¾ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

100g (3/4 cup) pomegranate seeds

Vanilla glaze:

180g (3 cups) icing sugar

80ml (1/3 cup) hot water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pomegranate glaze:

60g (1 cup) icing sugar

1 tablespoon pomegranate juice

Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F) and lightly grease two doughnut tins. Start by preparing the vegan buttermilk – mix the soya milk with the vinegar and leave aside for a few minutes to curdle. In a bowl mix together oil, vanilla extract and pomegranate juice, in a separate one sift in flour and add ground almonds, sugar, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and salt. Add the buttermilk and the rest of the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, mix everything together with a spoon until just combined then fold in the pomegranate seeds. Spoon the mixture evenly into the doughnut tins and bake for 12-15 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tins for at least 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. In the meantime make the vanilla glaze – combine icing sugar, hot water and vanilla extract and whisk until combined. Dip the top of each doughnut into the glaze then place back onto the cooling rack to set. When set, make the pomegranate glaze: mix together icing sugar and pomegranate juice in a small bowl and pour or pipe over the doughnuts.

Notes: The pomegranate glaze doesn’t really come out a pomegranate colour (that is, red. Pomegranates are red), so if you want to be really fancy/professional you may consider adding a tiny bit of red food colouring. I don’t mind. When the thought came to my mind I’d already eaten all the doughnuts.