Baked Donuts

These baked donuts are soft, lightly spiced, and topped with a smooth vanilla glaze that sets in minutes. No fryer, no fuss, and the whole batch is done in about 30 minutes.

“I made these on a Sunday morning and my kids were so excited to dip them in the glaze and add sprinkles. The batter came together so quickly and the donuts were perfectly soft inside. We’ll definitely be making these on repeat!”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Melissa

Donuts have always felt like a weekend treat to me, something a little special that makes a regular Saturday morning feel fun These come together so quickly that I’ve started keeping the ingredients stocked just so we can make them whenever the kids and I are craving it!

They’re great on their own, but they also work beautifully as part of a bigger breakfast spread alongside something like my Chocolate Old Fashioned Donuts or this peach donut recipe if you want to offer both a baked and a classic fried option at the same time. Or make this Donut Cake for a full format cake!

Ingredients & Substitutions

• All-Purpose Flour
• Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the donuts and helps them brown lightly in the oven. You can use the same amount of light brown sugar if you’d like a slightly warmer, more caramel-like flavor.
• Baking Powder: This is the leavening agent that makes the donuts puff up in the pan. Make sure yours isn’t expired, a flat baking powder is the most common reason baked donuts come out dense rather than springy.
• Kosher Salt
• Cinnamon: Adds a warm, subtle spice to the donut batter. It’s a small amount, but it rounds out the vanilla flavor in a way that makes these taste a little more interesting than a plain glazed donut.
• Milk: Adds moisture and helps bring the batter together to the right consistency. Any milk you have on hand works here, including oat milk or another non-dairy alternative.
• Large Eggs
• Unsalted Butter: Melted butter adds richness and keeps the donuts moist after baking. Using unsalted lets you control the salt level in the batter, which is worth doing since the glaze adds its own sweetness.
• Vanilla Extract
• Powdered Sugar: The base of the glaze, it dissolves quickly into milk and vanilla to make a smooth, glossy coating. Sift it before whisking if you want a completely lump-free glaze, which I always do!
• Food Coloring: Completely optional, but this is the easiest way to make a batch of these look festive and fun. Gel food coloring gives you more vivid color without thinning out the glaze the way liquid coloring can.
• Sprinkles or Other Toppings: Add these right after dipping while the glaze is still wet so they stick. If you’re a fan of that classic birthday-cake look, you might also love this homemade funfetti cake recipe for more ways to put sprinkles to good use.

Variations for Baked Donuts

• Chocolate Glaze: Whisk a tablespoon or two of unsweetened cocoa powder into the powdered sugar before adding the milk for a simple chocolate coating. You can also pair this with my chocolate baked donut recipe!
• Lemon Glaze: Swap the milk in the glaze for fresh lemon juice and skip the vanilla extract. You get a bright, tangy coating that cuts through the sweetness of the donut in a really nice way.
• Change the spice: You can swap the cinnamon for a spice mix like this apple pie spice or pumpkin spice recipe! You can also add it to the glaze or make the glaze with apple cider!
• Cinnamon Sugar: Skip the glaze entirely and brush the warm donuts with melted butter, then roll them in a mix of cinnamon and granulated sugar just like this apple cider donut cake. They’re best eaten right away while the coating is still a little crisp on the outside.

Professional Tips for Perfect Baked Donuts

• Don’t overmix the batter. Once the wet ingredients hit the dry, stir just until no dry streaks remain and stop there. Overmixing develops gluten and makes the donuts tough instead of tender and springy.
• Pipe the batter, don’t spoon it. Spooning batter into a donut pan almost always leaves you with uneven, lumpy rings. A piping bag or a zip-top bag with the corner snipped off gives you a clean, even fill and a much more uniform bake.
• Fill each cavity about two-thirds full. It sounds like it won’t be enough batter, but baked donuts puff up more than you’d expect in the oven. Overfilling causes them to dome over the top of the pan and lose that classic donut shape.
• Cool completely before glazing. A warm donut will melt the glaze right off and leave you with a thin, drippy coating that pools on the rack. Give them the full time on the wire rack and the glaze will set smooth and opaque, which is what you want.

How to Make Baked Donuts

Use these step-by-step instructions to make soft, lightly spiced baked donuts with a smooth vanilla glaze. Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.

Step 1: Preheat and prep the pan. Start by preheating your oven to 350°F (175°C) and giving your donut pan a light coat of non-stick cooking spray. Make sure you get into the center tube of each cavity so the finished donuts release cleanly without sticking or tearing.

Make The Batter

Step 2: Whisk the dry ingredients. Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk them together until evenly combined. The mixture should look uniform and pale with no visible clumps, which is what you want before the wet ingredients go in. (photo 1 below)

Step 3: Whisk the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar first until the mixture looks slightly pale and smooth, then add the milk, melted butter, and vanilla extract and whisk again until everything is well combined.

The butter should be fully melted and not steaming hot when it goes in. Just let it cool for a minute or two after melting so it doesn’t scramble the eggs.

Step 4: Combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. The batter will come together quickly and should look smooth and thick, similar to a muffin batter. Stop stirring the moment you no longer see dry streaks, even if it looks slightly uneven in a spot or two, which is completely fine! (photo 2 below)

Bake

Step 5: Fill the piping bag. Spoon the batter into a piping bag or a zip-top resealable bag with one corner snipped off. The batter is thick enough to hold in the bag without running, so you have full control when you pipe.

This step makes a real difference in getting even, clean rings rather than the lumpy, uneven shapes you’d get from spooning the batter in directly.

Step 6: Pipe the batter. Pipe the batter into the prepared donut pan, filling each cavity about two-thirds full. The batter will puff and rise as it bakes, so resist the urge to overfill. (photo 4 above)

Step 7: Bake the donuts. Bake the donuts at 350°F for 11 to 14 minutes, until they’re lightly golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. You’ll also notice the tops have sprung back up and lost any raw, glossy sheen, which is the clearest sign they’re done. Start checking at 11 minutes since ovens vary and overbaked donuts lose their soft, tender texture quickly. (photo 4)

Step 8: Cool the donuts. Remove the pan from the oven and let the donuts rest in the pan for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. They’ll firm up slightly as they cool, which is exactly what you want before glazing — dipping a warm donut into glaze just means the glaze slides right off. (photo 5)

Make the glaze

Step 9: Whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract in a small bowl until the mixture is completely smooth and glossy. If the glaze looks too thick to dip into easily, add a little more milk one tablespoon at a time until it reaches a consistency that coats the donut with a thin, even layer. You can also stir in a drop or two of food coloring here if you’d like colored glaze.

Step 10: Glaze and decorate. Dip each cooled donut into the glaze, letting any excess drip off before setting it back on the wire rack. Add sprinkles or any other toppings immediately while the glaze is still wet so they adhere before it sets. Let the glaze firm up for a few minutes before serving.(photo 6)

Recipe FAQs

Before You Go

I hope these baked donuts become a regular part of your weekend baking rotation. Browse our Dessert Recipes or try these brioche donuts next!