Baked Cinnamon Sugar Donuts
Hot take: you don’t need a deep fryer to make a great donut. These baked cinnamon sugar donuts are proof — soft, fluffy, cake-style rings with a tender crumb, brushed with butter and rolled in cinnamon sugar while they’re still warm. They taste like the ones from the orchard stand in October, except you made them in your own kitchen in under 30 minutes.
Now, a note on what these are and aren’t. These are cake donuts, not yeasted donuts — they get their lift from baking powder, not from proofing dough. That means no waiting around for rises and no wrestling with hot oil. The texture is closer to a tender muffin in donut shape, which is exactly right for cinnamon sugar: the coating needs something warm and buttery to cling to.
And yes — our site already has an apple cider donut recipe in the October lineup. Think of these as its classic cousin: same cozy cinnamon-sugar spirit, but the pure, simple, everyday version. No apple reduction required. Just donuts.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- No frying — all the donut joy, zero hot oil, zero splatter, zero smell lingering for days.
- 26 minutes start to finish — faster than driving to the donut shop.
- Fluffy, tender crumb — the butter-plus-oil combo keeps them moist for days.
- Kid-friendly project — little hands are excellent at the butter-dip and sugar-roll steps.
- Endlessly adaptable — the same base batter takes chocolate glaze, maple, or vanilla.
Ingredients
For the donuts
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ cup (180ml) whole milk, at room temperature
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- ¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup (60ml) neutral oil (vegetable or canola)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
For the cinnamon-sugar coating
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, melted
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 1½ tablespoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat and prep. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 12-cavity donut pan well with butter or nonstick spray — get into the center tubes, or the donuts will stick.
- Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg until evenly combined.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk the milk, eggs, melted butter, oil, and vanilla until smooth and emulsified.
- Combine — gently. Pour the wet mixture into the dry and stir with a spatula just until combined. A few small lumps are completely fine. Overmixing develops gluten and turns tender donuts tough — stop the moment you stop seeing dry flour.
- Fill the pan. Transfer the batter to a piping bag or a zip-top bag with the corner snipped off, and pipe into the donut cavities, filling each about ¾ full. Piping (instead of spooning) keeps the rings neat and even.
- Bake. Bake 10–12 minutes, until the tops spring back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Don’t overbake — even one extra minute dries these out. Cool in the pan for 3 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.
- Coat while warm. Put the melted butter in a shallow bowl and the cinnamon sugar in another. While the donuts are still warm (this is key — the sugar won’t stick to cold donuts), dip each one in butter, let the excess drip off, then roll generously in cinnamon sugar, covering all sides. Serve warm for maximum happiness.
Tips & Variations
- Room-temperature dairy and eggs mix into a smoother batter and bake up fluffier. Cold ingredients = lumpy batter and uneven rise.
- Don’t overfill the pan. ¾ full gives you the classic donut shape; fuller, and the batter overflows into sad donut-muffins.
- No donut pan? A muffin tin works — you’ll get donut holes/muffin hybrids. Reduce bake time to 8–10 minutes.
- Chocolate glaze: skip the cinnamon sugar; dip cooled donuts in a simple ganache (½ cup/85g chocolate chips + ¼ cup/60ml hot cream).
- Maple version: replace the vanilla with maple extract and roll in ¾ cup sugar + 2 teaspoons cinnamon + a pinch of salt.
- Round out your brunch spread with our fluffy blueberry buttermilk pancakes, or browse the full desserts collection for more sweet inspiration.
Storage
These are best the day they’re baked, warm from the coating station. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days — the cinnamon sugar will soften slightly but the flavor holds. To revive, warm in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 5 minutes. Freeze uncoated donuts for up to 2 months; thaw, warm, then dip and roll in fresh cinnamon sugar.
FAQ
Can I fry this batter instead?
No — this is a baked-donut batter, formulated for the oven. Fried cake donuts need a stiffer, pipeable dough with different leavening. Stick to baking for this recipe.
Why are my donuts dry?
Overbaking is the culprit, or overmixing the batter. Pull them at 10–12 minutes when a toothpick comes out clean — carryover heat finishes the job. And stir the batter only until the flour disappears.
Can I make these dairy-free?
Yes. Swap the milk for oat or almond milk, use melted coconut oil or vegan butter in place of the butter, and use a flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flax + 3 tablespoons water per egg, rested 5 minutes).
How are these different from the apple cider donuts on the site?
Our apple cider donuts use reduced apple cider in the batter for a tangy apple flavor. These are the classic version — pure cinnamon-sugar comfort with a simple vanilla-butter crumb. Different recipes, both worth making.
Recipe Card
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 11 minutes
- Total time: 26 minutes
- Servings: 12 donuts
- Calories: ~210 kcal per donut
Soft, warm, and rolled in cinnamon sugar — the classic donut, no fryer required.
