Baked Donuts

This baked donut recipe is one I've had for a long time, but never actually tried. I can't even remember where I got it. I didn't really ever want to try it b/c I make simple fried donuts out of refrigerated biscuits that I love. I know, kind of disgusting, right?....tons of preservatives, fat and yuckiness, but oh, they taste so darn good! I've been making them since college and they really are good.

Anyhoo...I decided that it was time to try these baked donuts. I have kids, and I'm more careful about what goes into their bodies than what goes into mine. Not exactly sure why, but I'm just more motivated when I look at them to come up with fun healthier treats.


One reason why I love my job as a Shelf Reliance consultant is that I can easily involve my children in it. They helped me make these baked donuts and we had a blast. They each got a ball of dough to play with / shape anyway they wanted. It was fun to see the things they created / imagined in their creations: everything from ghosts, to the moon, to carrot sticks to Nanna (my mom)!

The donuts turned out great. They didn't taste exactly like fried donuts; They were heavier and had a slightly different texture: delicious in a different way. We will definitely be adding these to our list of health (ish), yummy treats.

One tip: they were great fresh out of the oven, but not so great the next day. I would recommend only making what you will eat immediately. The recipe below made about 18 donuts and holes.

Baked Donuts:

• 1 2/3 cups warm water, 95 to 105 degrees (divided)
• 2 T. Instant Milk
• 2 1/4 t. Active Dry Yeast (1 packet)
• 1/4 cup Butter Powder
• 2/3 cup Sugar
  2 T. Egg Powder
  2 1/2 cups All-purpose Flour
• 2 1/2 cups Whole White Wheat Flour
  1 tsp. Nutmeg
• 1 tsp. Salt

Place 1/3 cup of the warm water in a large bowl. Stir in yeast and set aside for about five minutes.

Add the butter and sugar to the remaining water and then add that mixture to the yeast mixture. Use a fork to stir in the the rest of the ingredients - until the flour is just incorporated.

If you have one, use the dough hook attachment of your mixer to beat the dough for a few minutes at medium speed. If you don't, just mix well with a wooden spoon more 5 minutes or so. You want the dough to be smooth and supple and pull away from the sides of the bowl - not overly sticky. If it seems too sticky, add a tablespoon or two of flour. Too dry? Add a bit more water. Once it is just right, knead it a a few times on a floured counter top, and shape into a ball.

Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with saran wrap or a wet towel, and put it somewhere warm. It needs to rise for about an hour or until it has doubled in size.

Once the dough has doubled, punch it down the dough and roll it out 1/2-inch thick on a floured counter top. Use a circular cutter (cookie cutter) to cut out large circle from the dough and transfer them to a parchment-lined baking sheet. THEN, cut out the smaller inner circles using a smaller cutter. Don't do this before you've got them on the baking sheet or you will distort them when you try to move them. Cover again and let them rise for another 45 minutes.


Once they've risen, bake in a 375 degree oven until the bottoms just start to brown, or about 8 to 10 minutes

Remove the doughnuts from the oven and let cool for just a minute or two, then dip each one in the melted butter and quickly toss in a bowl of sugar. You could even try these flavored sugars!

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