Baked Vanilla Donuts
These Baked Vanilla Donuts are cakey, soft, and perfect topped with glaze and sprinkles! Naturally sweetened, they can also make the perfect snack.
Who doesn't love a donut?! I crave them most often on a Saturday morning. My favorite is the ones filled with vanilla pudding. Donuts are kind of having their moment in the sun, it seems. When I go to the city, I see donut shops popping up all over. There are so many variations of toppings and flavors, and I am here for it! I love them, I have always loved them, and I think I always will. I don't eat them often, and when I say not often, I mean maybe once every couple of years. That was until I made homemade fried cake donuts for the girls for Valentine's Day this year. They were so fun to make and now a new tradition!
I was on a mission to figure out a good baked donut, just because I don't love frying. It is messy, and stinky, and just makes me a little nervous to be honest! And I feel like these are just where I want these to be! With them being baked, I feel a little less guilty eating them, and it is always great to simplify a recipe to make at home. It is healthier and still tasty!
The Baked Vanilla Donuts are soft, very vanilla forward, and have the inside texture of a cake donut. Now, to be honest, you are not going to get that signature crunch that comes with a fried donut, but these are a really great option and really fun to make with kids!
Naturally Sweetened Donuts
The donut batter is sweetened with maple syrup. If you have caught on, you know I like to find ways to swap out refined sugar in recipes. Using natural sweeteners like maple syrup and honey are great ways to lessen the blood sugar spikes and have other health benefits. We like to limit the amount of refined sugars in our house when we can.
I have been working on trying to remove the sugar in a baked donut and still getting the right texture, and these are it! If you top them with the glaze and sprinkles, you will obviously be adding some sugar. But if you eat the donut on it's own, there are no refined sugars!
Customize!
I made these as plain vanilla donuts, but you could easily add chocolate chips, sprinkles, nuts, or whatever you like to the batter! You could also top with a chocolate glaze or a strawberry glaze! You really have so much versatility with these so try out some fun things! My girls especially love the chocolate chip version!
I hope you give these a try and love them as much as we do!
Glazed Vanilla Baked Donuts
These donuts are fluffy, sweet, and the perfect amount of vanilla! They are so fun to make and the kids will love them!
For the donuts
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted and cooled slightly)
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup (room temperature)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup whole milk (room temperature)
- 1 egg (room temperature)
- 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoons salt
For the glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 -6 tablespoons water
- salt (just a pinch! )
How to make the donuts
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a donut pan well and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add in the melted butter, maple syrup, vanilla, egg, and milk. Whisk together until completely combined and smooth.
- Gently sprinkle the flour, baking powder, and salt on top of the wet mixture. Give it a gentle whisk while it sits on top of the wet ingredients and then gradually work it into all together. Whisk until just combined being careful to not overmix.
- Pour the mixture into a piping bag or a large Ziplock bag with the corner snipped off. Pipe the batter into your greased donut pan (I prefer silicone), filling each about 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Let them cool for 5 minutes in the pan and then remove them from the pan, allowing them to cool completely on a wire rack.
How to make the glaze
- In a medium mixing bowl, add in the powdered sugar, salt, vanilla, and water. Whisk together until smooth. Dunk each cooled donut into the glaze on both sides and place on a wire rack. Top with sprinkles or desired toppings.