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Can’t get to the donut shop? Learn how to make homemade donuts in your own kitchen! These baked donuts have a cake-like texture and a sweet vanilla glaze. They are the perfect treat to satisfy your sweet tooth!
A good donut can provide the sweet part of a sweet and savory breakfast or brunch. Serve them alongside your favorite egg recipes or a spicy Mexican Breakfast Casserole, or make them a delicious part of a dessert spread.
Old-fashioned donuts are my favorite type of donut. They’re sweet without being overly sweet and they have a tender, moist crumb. You can frost them or glaze them or even add sprinkles or nuts on top. They have a cake-like texture but they are fried so they can be quite a hassle to make.
This baked donut recipe is so much easier! They are baked instead of fried but you still get that moist, cake-like interior like old-fashioned donuts. While we love our local donut shop, now I can make donuts at home any time I want!
Baked donuts are easy to make and don’t require any rising. The recipe is similar to a cake recipe or muffins, and just requires a donut baking pan to get those perfect circles. The glaze is optional but totally decadent and delicious, so I strongly recommend it.
How To Make Old Fashioned Baked Donuts
Prep. Preheat the oven and grease a donut pan. If you don’t have a donut pan you can use a 12-count muffin pan.
Make the batter. Mix all the ingredients together following the directions in the recipe below. The batter will be thick. If your batter is too thick to spread into the donut pan, you can add milk a little bit at a time.
Bake your donuts. Fill the donuts wells about ¾ full using a metal spoon or silicone spatula. Bake them until they are golden and fluffy. They will rise above the edges of the pan and should be nice and rounded on top.
Let them cool in the pan for a bit because they can easily fall apart if you handle them when they are too hot.
Make the glaze. The vanilla glaze is super simple and made with powdered sugar, melted butter, milk, and vanilla extract. You could add spices like cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, or cocoa powder for a chocolate glaze.
Do the dip. Take the warm donuts and dip them in the glaze. You could also use a piping bag and drizzle the glaze on top depending on the look you’re going for. Then add your sprinkles or any topping quickly before the glaze hardens.
Tips for Baked Donuts
- The donut batter is very thick, so don’t be alarmed. If it’s too thick to spread into the pans, add some milk a tablespoon at a time.
- If you have one available, use a piping bag for filling the donut pan. Much easier than spreading.
- Take care not to overfill the donut pans more than ¾ of the way or they will spill over and lose their shape while baking.
- Try a double glaze for an extra sweet finish! Double the glaze recipe. Give the baked donuts a first dip and let them sit on a wire rack to finish cooling and let the glaze harden. Then dip them in the glaze again. If the bowl of glaze is too stiff to work with, microwave for a few seconds and give it a good stir.
Make Ahead, Storage and Freezing
Make Ahead: The donut batter can be prepared the night before and stored in the fridge, tightly covered, until you are ready to bake them. You can also bake the donuts ahead of time and add the glaze later.
Storing leftovers: Once the baked donuts are completely cooled and the glaze has hardened, store them in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
Freezing: Allow the donuts to cool completely and the glaze to harden, then store in a freezer bag or airtight container for up to 2 months. Unfrosted donuts can be frozen up to 6 months.
Flavor Variations
Want to flavor your baked donuts? These baked donuts have a vanilla flavor, but you could easily flavor them and have a whole different donut!
- Pumpkin Spice – Add 2 teaspoons of [pumpkin pie spice to the batter with the salt.
- Lemon – Use lemon extract instead of vanilla and add a tablespoon of lemon zest. To the glaze, add more lemon zest and use lemon juice instead of milk.
- Chocolate – Replace ¼ cup of flour with cocoa powder. Make a chocolate glaze by replacing 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar with cocoa powder.
- Cinnamon Sugar – Instead of the vanilla glaze, mix ½ cup granulated sugar with 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon. Dip both sides of the donut in the sugar mixture. This works best when the donuts are warm.
- Maple Bacon – Replace the butter with maple syrup, and add some maple flavoring if you have it. Top the glaze with crumbled bacon. I’ll admit this might sound a little unconventional but it’s kind of my favorite.
- Funfetti – Add ¼ of sprinkles to the batter.
- Chocolate Chip – Add ¼ of mini chocolate chips to the batter.
More Sweet Treats To Love
- Baked Apple Cider Donut Holes
- Fluffy Vanilla Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting
- Coconut Macaroons
- Cookie Dough Dip
- Strawberry Doughnuts
Baked Glazed Donuts
Ingredients
Donuts
- 4 tablespoons butter softened to room temperature
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 â…” all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
Vanilla Glaze
- 1 ¼ cups confectioners sugar
- 1 tablespoon butter melted
- 1-2 tablespoons milk more if needed for thinner consistency
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- In a large mixing bowl beat the softened butter, oil, and sugars together until smooth.
- Add the eggs and beat until combined.
- Add the baking soda, baking powder, salt, and vanilla extract. Mix until blended.
- Slowly add the flour as well as the milk mixing as you go. Combine until fully mixed. The batter will be quite thick which is normal, but you can add a tablespoon of milk at a time if it is too thick to work with.
- Lightly oil your donut tins and place the batter in using a spoon, or spatula. Filling the donut wells about ¾ full works well. You could also use a piping bag if you have one, or fill a gallon sized resealable bag with the batter and snip off the corner to use it as your piping bag.
- Bake in the preheated 425 degree oven for 10 minutes and let cool in the pan for another 5 minutes before transferring the donuts to a cooling rack.
- While the donuts are baking prepare the glaze.
- In a small/medium mixing bowl and the powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon melted butter, 1 tablespoon milk, and vanilla. Stir into a paste-like consistency. If the glaze is too thick, add more milk a tablespoon at a time.
- While the donuts are still warm dip each one face down into the bowl of glaze and tip back over and place on the cooling rack.
- If you want extra glaze let the first round of glaze set and harden, then dip again into the glaze mixture. You may have to double the batch and you can slightly heat the glaze to make it spread easier.
Notes
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Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of "Yellow Bliss Road" is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
