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Home / Muffins, Breads & Donuts

Baked Vanilla Donuts

You don't need advanced baking skills to make perfect cake donuts. With this easy recipe, anyone can make them!

Erren Hart

|

last Updated:

11/01/2020
4.91 from 40 votes
Jump to Recipe
Serves: 18 Donuts
Prep: 20 minutes mins
Cook: 15 minutes mins
two Baked Vanilla Donuts on a plate with a cup of coffee behind it
Vanilla donuts with vanilla glazed and pink, yellow, and white sprinkles.

two Baked Vanilla Donuts on a plate with a cup of coffee behind it

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Make soft, fluffy cake donuts with this easy recipe. These tasty Baked Vanilla Donuts are topped with glaze and decorated with sprinkles.

two Baked Vanilla Donuts on a plate with a cup of coffee behind it
Pin This Recipe For Later!

This recipe makes a much healthier version of a popular treat.  They may be baked instead of fried, but taste just as good.  

Why This Recipe Works

  • Using Vanilla Bean Paste gives a deep vanilla richness.
  • Using melted butter instead of oil gives a much more flavorful result.
  • Double Glazing gives an extra thick coating of glaze.

Baked Donuts Anyone Can Make

Baking donuts are really simple! There’s no fancy equipment needed! All you need is a bowl, wooden spoon, and a donut pan!   

The hardest part of this recipe is melting the butter, but it’s well worth the extra effort because it adds a lot of flavors.

How To Make Baked Vanilla Donuts

Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl.

The flour in a glass mixing bowl

In a small bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Then Make a well in the flour mixture

Pour the egg mixture into the well and stir until just combined.

The egg mixture being poured into the flour mixture

Spoon the batter into the baking pans, filling each one a little more half full.

the batter added to the donut pan

Bake 15 Minutes.

Before icing let them cool completely on a cooling rack.

the freshly Baked Vanilla Donuts cooling on a cooling rack

To Make Glazed Donuts

  • Dip the donuts, you glaze while they are still warm.

For the icing mix the sugar, butter, and vanilla together in a bowl and then add the milk one tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency is reached (I like mine fairly thick).

The glaze mixed in a glass bowl

Dip the cooled donuts into the icing one at a time covering the top half of the donut.

a Baked Vanilla Donut being dipped into the icing

Place back onto the cooling racks and dip again for a thicker icing look. Then top with sprinkles of your choice.

iced Baked Vanilla Donuts cooling on a cooling rack

These Easy Baked Iced Vanilla Doughnuts are really amazing.  They are soft, fluffy and it might be odd to say, but they are like real doughnuts.

I say that because quite often, homemade baked donuts are more like cakes with a hole in the middle, but that’s not the case here.  

three Baked Vanilla Donuts on a plate with a cup of coffee behind it

These donuts are just as good as the ones you get in a bakery, but without being fried so there is a lot less guilt.

For Perfect Baked Donuts

  • Don’t overfill the pan. Do a test run with a single donut to make sure they don’t rise too much (making an uneven donut).
  • Use a squeeze bottle to pour the batter this keeps things neat and more precise.
  • Be sure to grease your pan. Most donut pans are nonstick, but that’s not always a guarantee.
  • Don’t have a donut pan? If you’re in the US, you can get a like mine, you can get it here on Amazon. (#paidlink).  I highly recommend the two-pack.

FAQs

Can Baked Donuts be frozen?

Baked donuts store easily. To freeze baked donuts, once cooled place (without glaze) in a freezer bag, seal and freeze for up to three months.

How do you store baked donuts?

To store these baked donuts, put them in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Rate This Recipe

Click here to leave a star rating!

two Baked Vanilla Donuts on a plate with a cup of coffee behind it

Recipe

Baked Vanilla Donuts

You don’t need advanced baking skills to make perfect cake donuts. With this easy recipe, anyone can make them!
4.91 from 40 votes
Print
Prep Time: 20 minutes mins
Cook Time: 15 minutes mins
Total Time: 35 minutes mins
Serves 18 Donuts

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1½ cups sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 large egg (lightly beaten)
  • 1¼ cups whole milk
  • 2 tablespoons butter (melted)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste ((or good quality vanilla extract))
For the icing:
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons melted butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2-4 Tablespoons milk
  • sprinkles (optional)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350F/175C degrees. Grease 2 doughnut pans well.
  • Into a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, melted butter, and vanilla.
  • Stir the wet mixture into the dry ingredients until just combined.
  • Spoon the batter into the baking pans, filling each one about ½ full.
  • Bake for 15-17 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.
  • Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then tap the doughnuts out onto a sheet pan and transfer to a rack to completely cool.
  • Place baking paper under wire racks to catch the excess icing.
For the icing:
  • Prepare by mixing the sugar, butter and vanilla together in a bowl and then add the milk one tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency is reached (I like mine fairly thick).
  • Dip the cooled doughnuts into the icing one at a time covering half the doughnuts then place on the cooling racks.
  • Add the sprinkles before the icing sets.
  • Leave on cooling rack to completely set the icing before serving.

Tips

  • Don’t overfill the pan. Do a test run with a single donut to make sure they don’t rise too much (making an uneven donut).
  • Use a squeeze bottle to pour the batter this keeps things neat and more precise.
  • Be sure to grease your pan. Most donut pans are nonstick, but that’s not always a guarantee.
  • Don’t have a donut pan?  If you’d like one like mine, you can get it here on Amazon.  (#paidlink).  I highly recommend the two-pack.
Show Nutrition Hide Nutrition

Nutrition

Calories: 206 | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 164mg | Potassium: 87mg | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 120IU | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 0.7mg
Created by Erren Hart
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4.91 from 40 votes (28 ratings without comment)

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48 responses

  1. Lisa Mallis Avatar
    Lisa Mallis
    10/28/2023

    Mine stuck to the pan, and I super greased in a non stick. 1 1/2 cups of sugar caused the batter to caramelize and stick terribly. The recipe most likely works with only 1 cup of sugar. Future warning so you don’t have a sticky mess to clean up like I did!

    Reply
    1. Erren's Kitchen Avatar
      Erren’s Kitchen
      10/30/2023

      Hi Lisa. I appreciate your feedback and the warning about the sugar amount. It’s important to share experiences like this to help others have a smoother baking process. If you found that the donuts stuck to the pan and the sugar caused them to caramelize and stick, reducing the sugar to 1 cup is a helpful suggestion for avoiding this issue. It’s possible that a lower sugar content might lead to a less sticky result. Thank you for sharing your experience and the tip to improve the recipe!

      Reply
  2. Diane B Avatar
    Diane B
    10/30/2022

    I’m on the hunt for a Duck Donut copycat-type recipe, but unfortunately this one isn’t it. It’s very flavorful, but the texture is a bit too rubbery for my taste.

    Reply
    1. Erren Hart Avatar
      Erren Hart
      10/31/2022

      Hi Diane, Thanks for the feedback! If the donuts came out rubbery, you may have overmixed them. That said, try my glazed donut recipe. I think it’s a lot closer to duck donuts. I can’t say it’s exactly because I only tried them once, but it’s close as far as I remember.

      Reply
  3. Susan Avatar
    Susan
    08/27/2022

    Hi, these look amazing and will be making them tomorrow. I have a grandchild that has to have dairy/soy free food. Do you think almond milk would work? Also I can’t use butter but we use earth balance for her. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Thank you!!!

    Reply
    1. Erren Hart Avatar
      Erren Hart
      08/28/2022

      Hi Susan, soy milk will work just fine. I would just use oil in place of the butter as you’re just looking to add moisture. I hope she likes them!

      Reply
  4. Marie Avatar
    Marie
    01/30/2022

    My son loves donuts and I am constantly trying to find a healthier version for us to bake at home, but the results have always been disappointing. These are by far the best I have ever tried, they look beautiful and the taste gets a big thumbs up from my son and friends! I halved the sugar and added strawberry jam (and red color) to the icing to add some variety. Will DEFINITELY be making this again!

    Reply
    1. Erren's Kitchen Avatar
      Erren’s Kitchen
      01/31/2022

      I love to hear this Marie, and the strawberry jam in the icing sounds amazing! 🙂

      Reply
  5. Miriam Avatar
    Miriam
    11/29/2021

    My kids really liked these donuts. I reduced the sugar to 1 cup and did not use the icing at all, and they were still slightly sweeter than I would prefer. If you want to add the icing or a glaze, I would recommend cutting the sugar down even further.

    Reply
    1. Erren's Kitchen Avatar
      Erren’s Kitchen
      11/30/2021

      Thank you for the feedback Miriam, I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe 🙂

      Reply
    2. Lorraine Avatar
      Lorraine
      12/13/2021

      Hi, did you add anymore flour when using only 1 cup of sugar?

      Reply
  6. Dianne Avatar
    Dianne
    04/01/2021

    I just made these this morning! They were amazing! I dare you to eat just one!

    Reply
    1. Erren Hart Avatar
      Erren Hart
      04/01/2021

      I’m delighted to hear you liked it so much! 🙂

      Reply
  7. Karina Barrett Avatar
    Karina Barrett
    03/01/2021

    Lovely easy recipe came out perfect will defo follow this recipe

    Reply
    1. Erren's Kitchen Avatar
      Erren’s Kitchen
      03/01/2021

      Fantastic, thank you Karina 🙂

      Reply
    2. Kelly Avatar
      Kelly
      05/06/2021

      Can u freeze the donut batter??

      Reply
      1. Erren's Kitchen Avatar
        Erren’s Kitchen
        05/07/2021

        Hi Kelly, yes you can freeze the batter, I wouldn’t leave it in the freezer for more than three months, and I would let it defrost overnight in the fridge. I hope this helps 🙂

  8. Annie Avatar
    Annie
    09/04/2020

    Hi Erren, when I made the donuts I felt as though they didn’t rise very much and had a more whitish texture on the top than expected. I also noticed that there were some small air pockets in the donuts. Any idea on what I may have done wrong?

    Reply
    1. Erren Hart Avatar
      Erren Hart
      09/05/2020

      Hi Annie, Air pockets can happen if the baking powder isn’t mixed evenly throughout the batter which can also cause them to not rise properly. If you try making them again, try sifting the baking powder into the flor before starting. This helps to combine them better. Hope this helps!

      Reply
  9. Erren's Kitchen Avatar
    Erren’s Kitchen
    06/11/2020

    Thank you Judy, I’m so pleased you like them

    Reply
  10. Mary Chalk Avatar
    Mary Chalk
    06/03/2020

    These are delicious! But a little too sweet for me, was wondering if you could reduce the sugar? If so how much, and would I need to add some flour to replace…do not like artificial sweeteners!

    Reply
    1. Erren Hart Avatar
      Erren Hart
      06/05/2020

      I’ve never done it, but this is a great article on reducing sugar https://www.kingarthurflour.com/blog/2017/04/26/reduce-sugar-in-cake Hope it helps!

      Reply
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