Easy Baked Glazed Donut Recipe
When I bought my donut pan, I didn’t know I was going to enjoy making homemade donuts as much as I have been. But boy, I’m glad I finally got around to picking up that donut pan. These donuts remind me of the Original Krispy Kreme Glazed Donuts. These vanilla donuts are baked, not fried, so they are not exactly the same as KK’s, but they’re remarkably similar. Let’s face it, baked and fried, apples and oranges, but you’d be surprised how similar these are. If you’ve never had a KK doughnut, you’re missing out!
No Krispy Kreme? No drive-thru? No problem. It’s probably better that way, anyway. And you can make these baked vanilla donuts. They are dense and yes, they are a ‘cake-style’ donut, but they are very moist. They are not cakey or dry like many cake-style donuts tend to be. You know those donuts that taste like you’re eating dry cardboard or ground up chalk? These are not like that at all. The texture of them is what you’d have if there was a marriage between a donut and a muffin top. Moist and dense.
This recipe is so easy and yielded great tasting donuts. Like, you need these in your life, right now! I loved that they were not fried because I just don’t make fried food. Not because of health or dietary objections. Oh no, that’s not the reason I don’t do fried food. It’s because the thought of standing in front of a pot of grease and having it splatter all over me, my stove top, and stink up my house with that grease smell that lingers for days is a triple whammy. No thanks. I’ll bake, sans grease. In 10 minutes of baking time I can have these bad boys.
What’s in the Baked Vanilla Glazed Donuts?
To make the baked vanilla donuts, you’ll need:
All-purpose flour Granulated sugar Baking powder Cinnamon Salt Buttermilk Egg Vanilla extract Butter
And to make the vanilla glaze recipe, all you’ll need is:
Powdered sugar Vanilla extract Milk or heavy cream
How to Make Baked Vanilla Glazed Donuts
From start to finish — making the batter, baking the donuts, letting them cool for 5 minutes, and then glazing them, and even doing the dishes — this recipe was a 30-minute project. Simply whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl, then add in the wet ingredients. Using a piping bag or a Ziplock bag with a tip snipped off, pipe the batter into a 6-count donut pan. Bake the vanilla donuts until they spring back quickly when gently poked. Let the donuts cool for about 5 minutes before dipping into the vanilla glaze.
Can I Make This Recipe Without a Donut Pan?
Yes! If you don’t have a donut and really don’t foresee yourself buying one, you can make these donuts as muffins instead. I tried that with the leftover batter because I could have made 7 donuts but instead I made 6 donuts + 2 small muffins. But maybe looking at these will convince you to just buy the stinkin’ donut pan. I have no idea what took me so long, either.
Can I Bake These in a Mini Donut Pan?
I’m sure you could, but I don’t have the patience for baking mini foods so I can’t advise you on the bake time. I’d fill the mini donut pan about 2/3 full and watch them like a hawk in the oven!
Can I Add Sprinkles?
Of course! Add the sprinkles a minute or two after you’ve glazed the vanilla donuts.
Can Glazed Donuts Be Frozen?
Yes! Let the vanilla glazed donuts cool completely on your counter, then seal inside a freezer bag for up to three months. When ready to eat, thaw on your counter.
Tips for Making Baked Vanilla Donuts
I think making the glaze with some sort of cream, rather than water or milk, is best. That’s what I did because I love a good, rich glaze. I want to try making the glaze with coconut milk next. Interestingly enough, the baked glazed donuts got better the second day. There were two donuts left over and 24 hours later, the glaze had really soaked into the donuts leaving them heavier, denser, and even more moist and rich. If you like “light and airy” donuts that are really cakey and dry, don’t make this recipe. And definitely don’t let them sit with a glaze on them for 24 hours. But I actually love that really dense and heavy texture. I’ve always said I love leftovers.
More Baked Donut Recipes:
ALL OF MY DONUT RECIPES! Tried this recipe? Leave a review! Consider leaving a 5 star rating if you’ve made and loved one of my recipes! Baked Chocolate Sprinkle Donuts — Making donuts at home is as easy as making muffins! These chocolate sprinkle donuts are baked rather than fried so you can have seconds, of course!
Baked Lemon Donuts with Lemon Glaze — These taste like the Starbucks lemon loaf, but in donut (or mini muffin) form!! Easy, no mixer recipe with a tart-yet-sweet lemon glaze that’s PERFECT!
Banana Donuts with Browned Butter Caramel Glaze — Banana bread in the form of soft, fluffy baked donuts and donut holes!!
Baked Cinnamon Donuts — If you’re a cinnamon roll fan, you’re going to love these donuts.
Cinnamon Sugar Mini Donut Muffins – Part cinnamon-sugar donut hole, part mini-muffin, no matter what you call them, they’re fast and easy to make, and so tasty and pop-able.
