A taste of Lapland from your kitchen. Our trips to Lapland with kids are some of our favourite. It’s a region we absolutely love and as a family we just have the best time there. As always on our travel we love trying the food and Lapland has such interesting flavours from wild mushrooms and herbs to delicious local breads. One of the most interesting tastes is with the native berries and we’ve eaten the wonderfully evocative cloudberries, crowberries that turned our daughter’s tongue purple for a day and the perfectly tart lingonberries. Lingonberries are one of the standout flavours we always come home talking about – small, tart, and bursting with character. These vegan lingonberry doughnuts are inspired by the flavours of northern Finland and Sweden. They’re soft, fluffy, and filled with fruity jam that tastes like winter holidays in a bite. Whether you’ve visited Lapland or not, these are the perfect sweet treat to transport you to the snowy north.
Click straight to the recipe here –
👩💻 About the author – Nichola is a family travel expert (and food fanatic) and has written for The Guardian, The Telegraph, LonelyPlanet Magazine and Wanderlust amongst many others. She’s spent over a decade travelling the world with her children and loves recreating recipes from those travels.
*AD / This post contains affiliate links & as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. We may also have been compensated in this post either financially or with products / stays. To read more see our Disclosure Policy.
Key ingredients
Lingonberry jam
Tart and fruity, lingonberries are native to the Arctic and Nordic countries. Their sharpness works beautifully with sweet dough. Lingonberry jam is easy to find in the UK – check IKEA, Ocado, or Waitrose.
Lingonberry powder
Made from freeze-dried lingonberries, this adds a punch of flavour and a vibrant reddish-pink finish to the doughnuts. It’s not essential, but it really elevates the presentation. (We used Arctic Power powder)
Aquafaba (chickpea water)
A brilliant egg replacer in vegan baking, aquafaba helps bind the dough and adds moisture. We used Oggs aquafaba for ease, but you can also use the liquid from a tin of chickpeas.
Active dry yeast
This leavens the dough, giving your doughnuts their airy, fluffy texture. Be sure your water is warm, not hot, to activate the yeast without killing it.
Vegan butter
This adds richness to the dough. Choose a spreadable, unsalted vegan butter or baking block for best results.
Ingredients
- 300g plain white flour
- 50g caster sugar
- 50g icing sugar
- 100ml soya milk (or any plant milk)
- 200g lingonberry jam
- 50ml aquafaba (Oggs or chickpea tin liquid)
- 15g active dried yeast
- 20g vegan butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 20g lingonberry powder (optional)
- Sunflower oil (for frying, approx. 500ml)
- Pinch of salt
How to make vegan lingonberry doughnuts
- Melt the butter and allow it to cool.
- In a bowl, combine 60ml warm water with the aquafaba and yeast. Leave for 5 minutes to activate.
- Stir in the flour, caster sugar, melted butter, vanilla extract, salt, and soya milk. Mix well.
- Transfer the dough to a mixer with a dough hook or knead by hand for 5 minutes.
- Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and leave to rise for 1 hour.
- Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently.
- Divide the dough into 12 pieces. Place them spaced apart and let them rise for another hour.
- Heat sunflower oil in a deep pan until shimmering. Carefully add 2–3 dough balls at a time, frying each for about 2 minutes, turning halfway.
- Set aside on a paper towel to cool. Repeat until all are fried.
- Use the handle of a spoon to create a hole in each doughnut. Pipe in lingonberry jam.
- Sift over icing sugar and a sprinkle of lingonberry powder. Serve fresh.
Variations & swaps
- No lingonberry jam? Try raspberry, cranberry, or blackcurrant instead – anything tart works well.
- Lingonberry powder optional – you can dust with extra icing sugar or try freeze-dried raspberry powder.
- Baked version – they won’t be as fluffy, but you can bake the doughnuts at 180°C (fan) for 10–12 mins.
Nutritional information (per doughnut – approx.)
| Nutrient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Calories | 210 kcal |
| Carbohydrates | 32g |
| Sugar | 12g |
| Protein | 3g |
| Fat | 8g |
| Saturated fat | 1g |
| Fibre | 1g |
| Sodium | 0.2g |
Tried our vegan lingonberry doughnuts recipe?
Mention @globalmousetravels on Instagram or tag us in your creations. We love seeing what you bake.
Find our recipe card for vegan lingonberry doughnuts here
Vegan Lingonberry doughnuts
Ingredients
Method
- Heat the butter and allow to cool while you move on to the next step.
- Mix 60 ml of warm water with 50 ml of aquafaba in a bowl. Add the yeast and leave for five minutes.
- Stir in the flour, sugar, melted butter, vanilla extract, pinch of salt and soya milk and mix together for five minutes.
- Pour ingredients in to mixer and using a dough hook mix together for five minutes (you can also do this by hand).
- Set the dough to one side in a bowl, covered with a tea towel, for one hour.
- After an hour, remove the dough from the bowl, knead gently on a lightly floured surface for one minute.
- Divide the dough into 12 equally sized pieces.
- Allow the pieces to rise again on a lightly floured surface for another hour. Ensure that they are not too close and not touching.
- Heat approximately 500 ml of sunflower oil in a pan. It should be shimmering.
- Add two or three of the dough balls (which should have risen to double their size) and cook for two minutes, flipping them over halfway through.
- Set aside and allow to cool.
- Repeat the process until all the doughballs are cooked.
- Use the handle of a spoon to push a small hole into each doughnut.
- Place your lingonberry jam into a piping bag and squeeze into each doughnut.
- Sift icing sugar over the doughnuts and a sprinkling of lingonberry powder on each one.
