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Glazed baked doughnuts with sprinkles cooling on a wire rack beside a cup of tea
American · Snacks

Baked Doughnuts

Soft, cake-style doughnuts baked in a ring pan instead of fried, then dipped in a simple vanilla glaze. They need no yeast, no rising time and no pan of hot oil.

Published 1 Oct 2026Tested by Hina Ikram

Prep20 min
Cook12 min
Total32 min
Serves6
DifficultyEasy
CuisineAmerican
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Ingredients

6 servings

Equipment: 6-cavity doughnut baking pan, mixing bowls, whisk, piping bag or zip-top bag, wire rack

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan) with a rack in the middle. Brush the doughnut pan cavities and the central posts generously with the soft butter.

  2. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, caster sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt until evenly mixed.

  3. In a jug, whisk the egg, milk, yogurt, melted butter and vanilla until smooth. Make sure the butter has cooled so it does not cook the egg.

  4. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients. Fold with a spatula just until no dry flour remains. The batter will be thick and slightly lumpy; stop mixing there to keep the doughnuts tender.

  5. Spoon the batter into a piping bag or zip-top bag and snip off a corner. Pipe it into each cavity, filling about three-quarters full and leaving the centre post clear.

  6. Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the doughnuts are lightly golden, spring back when pressed and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

  7. Rest the pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then ease the doughnuts out with a small knife and cool them on the rack until just warm.

  8. Whisk the icing sugar, 2 tbsp milk and the vanilla into a thick but pourable glaze. Add milk a few drops at a time if it is too stiff.

  9. Dip the top of each warm doughnut into the glaze, let the excess drip off, and set it back on the rack. Add sprinkles straight away, then leave 10 minutes for the glaze to set.

Cooking tips

  • Do not overmix the batter. Overmixing develops gluten and makes the doughnuts tough and bready.
  • Grease the central posts as well as the cavities, or the rings may tear when you remove them.
  • Glaze the doughnuts while they are warm, not hot. Hot doughnuts melt the glaze and it runs off; cold ones give a thick, patchy coat.
  • Check at 10 minutes. Small pans bake quickly, and overbaked doughnuts turn dry.

Substitutions

  • No doughnut pan: bake the batter in a greased 12-cup mini muffin tin for 10 minutes and dip them as doughnut holes.
  • Replace the yogurt with extra milk, or use buttermilk in place of the milk and yogurt for a slightly tangier crumb.
  • Swap the melted butter for 40 ml of neutral oil for a lighter texture.
  • For a cinnamon sugar version, skip the glaze. Brush the warm doughnuts with melted butter and roll them in 3 tbsp sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon.

Serve with

"Serve warm with tea or coffee, or with a cold glass of milk. They also work well on a dessert platter with fresh strawberries."

Storage

"Keep glazed doughnuts in a single layer in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Unglazed doughnuts can be frozen for up to 1 month."

Reheating

"Warm unglazed or glazed doughnuts in a 150°C oven for 4–5 minutes, or microwave one for 8–10 seconds. Thaw frozen ones at room temperature before warming and glazing."

Nutrition per serving, estimated

300kcal
5 gProtein
52 gCarbs
8 gFat

Estimated from the ingredient list. Values vary with brands and portion size.

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