Baked Donuts with Cinnamon Chocolate
These fluffy baked donuts with cinnamon are light as air. I like to serve them with a bowl of warm cinnamon-chocolate glaze. They’re much like Spanish churros.
Last week, one thousand donuts passed through my kitchen doors. In a single day! It was the work of 5 enthusiastic teenagers, churning out mini donuts en masse for their Big Business assignment. The donut marathon raged on for what felt like days, eventually pulling in extra volunteers and donut makers. I’m now the proud owner of 5 donut machines!
These baked donuts are a quick and fuss-free alternative to the deep-fried method and are made with a one-bowl batter mixture. There’s no yeast dough or proofing involved. I’ve used a combination of butter and vegetable oil for this recipe. The butter adds a richness while the oil helps to keep the crumb moist for longer. You can use all butter if you prefer. Donuts are really good served fondue style or as a casual dessert with a bowl of warm chocolate sauce alongside. Donuts are always best eaten on the same day, so don’t waste time here.
Baked Donuts with Cinnamon Chocolate Glaze
Makes 18
100 g melted butter
45 ml (3 tablespoons) vegetable oil
125 g castor sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
100 ml buttermilk
60 ml milk
5 ml (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract
210 g all purpose cake flour
5 ml (1 teaspoon) baking powder
2.5 ml (1/2 teaspoon) bicarbonate of soda
1.25 ml (1/4 teaspoon) ground nutmeg
a pinch of fine salt
cinnamon sugar, for coating
For the cinnamon-chocolate ganache
80 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
60 ml single cream
1.25 ml (1/4 teaspoon) ground cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 180° C. Spray a doughnut pan with non-stick cooking spray. In a large jug, whisk together the butter, oil, castor sugar, eggs, buttermilk, milk and vanilla extract. In a mixing bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder, soda, nutmeg and salt. Pour the wet ingredients in the dry and mix with a balloon whisk until the batter is smooth and lump free.
Spoon or pipe the batter into the doughnut pan and tap lightly to spread evenly. Be careful not to overfill as they have a generous rise. Bake for about 15-18 minutes until cooked through. Leave to rest for 2 minutes before turning out and coating on both sides with the cinnamon sugar. I find it easiest to place the cinnamon sugar in a small bowl and toss each doughnut gently about to get an even coverage. Set aside on a wire rack to cool completely.
Place the chocolate, cream and cinnamon in a small heat-resisitant bowl and microwave for about 50 seconds. Whisk until glossy and smooth. Serve as a dipping sauce with the doughnuts or drizzle over.
17 Comments. Leave new
Yummy, just need coffee ….!
These look great!!
Have only ever made the yeast version that are deep fried, so keen to give these a go. Where does one find a doughnut pan Di?
As you know, I have ample doughnut makers! You can buy the doughnut pans at Chefs n Icers in Sandton City. They’re brilliant to bake with.
I just baked these now and I must confess, you can’t eat one or two. They are super yummy. Thank you Di. So easy and quick to make.
Pleasure Habi. Sometimes a short cut method is just the thing.
I have never used a machine to make doughnuts. I have a doughnut cutter which requires that I painstaikingly roll out the dough and cute it into shapes. I wonder if this house would see more doughnuts if I had a nifty machine like yours? It does seem to make countless perfectly round doughnuts – or is that simply your own special skill 🙂
To be honest, this is the first time I’ve used a mould. Usually it is the traditional pressing route, but for baked doughnuts, moulds are the bomb. I used a doughnut ring mould, like a muffin tin. They’re super easy, fuss-free and thankfully, deliver perfectly round shapes.
Hi Dianne
Please advise if this batter can be used in an electric doughnut maker instead of baking in an oven.
Thank you!
Hello Nisha. The batter is a little too thin for an electric doughnut maker. I have experimented with it once before and found that by adding 2 heaped tablespoons self raising flour to the batter, the consistency was better. If you’re still in a quandary, you could bake them in muffin tins for 20-25 minutes and then roll the baked muffin in cinnamon sugar. This works perfectly.
These are absolutely perfect!! I am forever craving donuts 😉 So I will definitely give these a try
Thanks Jane. Fortunately they’re also on the lighter side of deep-fried so a win for us doughnut lovers.
I’m really keen to try this baked version. I’m going to bake mine in muffin pans. Done😁
I love the no-knead, simple method of this baked version. Fortunately the recipe is really adaptable. Enjoy!
Just baked these and the kitchen smells heavenly of cinnamon and spice! Added cinnamon, clove and ginger to the dry mix and they’re just magical! Thanks for the super quick and easy recipe! These will be an addition to my baked donut collection.
Hi Martha. Love your addition of ginger and cloves. I think there certain aromas kitchen aromas that are pure magic. This must be one of them. I’m so glad these donuts will be joining your collection. Thanks for stopping. To happy baking days!
I have made this the night before last and it tasted fabulous even today..! My whole family loved it but I think I ate most of them… I couldn’t find the donut pan so I got a mini bundt pan. It looked cute and tasted delicious. Thank you for a wonderful recipe.
Aren’t they just irresistible? Such a clever idea with the bundt pan. It seems for us donut lovers, there’s potential in almost every vessel. So glad you loved it. Happy baking. Take care Di