Mini Funnel Cakes

Close-up of a mini funnel cake dusted with powdered sugar sitting on a wire cooling rack.

These mini funnel cakes are crispy on the outside, soft in the middle, and dusted with powdered sweetener while still warm. They're fried in avocado oil and ready in about 20 minutes, no dough resting required. Sugar-free, gluten-free, keto, and high protein, they taste just like a fair funnel cake.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Pennsylvania Dutch

Keyword gluten-free funnel cake, keto funnel cake, mini funnel cakes, protein funnel cake, sugar-free funnel cake

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 66.87kcal

Author Olivia Wyles

Ingredients

2 eggs room temperature
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup water
1 cup vanilla protein powder (80g, see notes)
1 teaspoon cinnamon optional for flavor
Avocado oil for frying

Topping

¼ cup powdered sugar-free sweetener

Cups - Metric

Instructions

Pour avocado oil into a pot with high sides, ensuring there's at least 3 inches of oil, over medium heat. Heat the oil to 375 degrees F (use a candy thermometer for accuracy)
Whisk together all ingredients except topping in a medium bowl until smooth and no lumps remain. Transfer dough to a piping bag (or ziplock bag with the corner snipped off).
Carefully pipe dough into the hot oil swirling it around in circles to create the mini funnel cake. Fry for approximately 1-2 minutes or until they turn golden brown and crispy on both sides. Remove from oil using metal spatula or metal slotted spoon. Place on wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining batter, then turn off the heat.
While still warm, sprinkle with powdered sweetener or glaze them as desired. Best enjoyed warm, right after being sprinkled with the sweetener.

Video

Notes

Storage: Best fresh and warm. Leftovers keep for the next day. Reheat in the air fryer or toaster to crisp back up.

Equipment: Candy thermometer | Piping bag or ziplock bag | Metal slotted spoon or spatula | Wire cooling rack

Protein powder: This is in place of flour so you need an absorbent protein powder. I recommend a milk protein isolate-based protein powder like Keto Chow, which also has xanthan gum and acacia fiber added for better texture. 20% whey/80% casein blends may also work. I do not recommend plain whey. If yours isn't sweetened, whisk in ¼ cup of a sugar-free powdered sweetener (erythritol-based) too.

Topping sweetener: Must be powdered, not granulated, so it dusts on properly.

Oil: Avocado oil is recommended for its high smoke point at frying temperature.

This recipe also makes good base for fry bread or donut holes!

Nutrition and carbs - Some nutrition labels omit sugar alcohols or allulose from the nutrition calculation since it does not affect blood sugar. I have included all carbs in the nutrition label above and calculated the net carbs below. Always use a food logging app like Cronometer according to the brands you use in order to get accurate nutrition information.

44.77 Total Carbs – 3.94 Fiber – 36.01 Sugar Alcohols – 0 Allulose =4.82 Net Carbs per mini funnel cake or ⅙ of recipe.

Nutrition