Cake donuts are a simple, quick, and delicious treat you can make in 30 minutes with simple pantry staples.
You can expect a firm donut with a soft cake-like crumb and a delicious cinnamon sugar, lemon, or chocolate topping.
Table of Contents
This recipe is for oven-baked cake donuts raised with baking powder, without yeast.
Whether you are a deep-fried cake donut or a yeast donut person, you cannot deny this oven-baked cake donut recipe’s simplicity, taste, and versatility.
You can whip up the batter in 2 minutes, plus our recipe is without eggs and easy to adapt for vegetarians and vegans.
Cake donuts bake in 20 minutes, so you can make them last minute in less than half an hour, which is fantastic!
They hold up perfectly and have a firm and tender cake-like texture. They are excellent for dunking in milk or latte, lasting several days, and are fulfilling and delicious.
Louise loves cake donuts, while I prefer a light, airy yeast donut. Here are a couple of quotes from an entertaining article from the Huffington Post on cake vs. yeast/raised donuts:
“Cake donuts are just alternatively shaped cupcakes or muffins. They live an existence of lies.”
“Cake donuts 4 life. <― also going to be my new tattoo”.
Thompson, J. R. (2017, June 2). Which Is The Superior Donut: A Cake Donut Or A Yeast Donut? Huffington Post.
So which one’s your favorite?
Ingredients & Substitutions
Flour
All-purpose flour is all you need.
For gluten-free, use a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour mixture.
Sugar
You can use white or brown sugar.
Milk
Any milk will do. We use almond milk. Other plant milks work equally well, including soy milk, oat milk, and rice milk.
Vegetable oil
You can use any vegetable oil that doesn’t have a strong flavor. We like to use a mild olive oil or avocado oil.
More refined oils, such as canola oil, sunflower oil, and others, also work.
Vanilla Extract
Vanilla extract helps infuse the batter with a cozy warm vanilla flavor. You can substitute the seeds of a real vanilla pod for vanilla extract.
Salt
A pinch of salt helps tie together the other flavors and make the cake donuts more delicious.
Baking powder
Baking powder is the raising agent in this recipe and is essential.
If unsure if your baking powder is still active, you can test it by pouring one cup of boiling water onto one teaspoon of baking powder in a small bowl. If the powder foams, it means it’s active, and you can use it.
This recipe does not require baking soda or vinegar.
Aromas
You can experiment with your favorite aromas. Our favorites are:
Cinnamon: add it to the batter and the topping. If you make a winter edition donut close to the holidays, you can add other spices such as grated nutmeg, all-spice, and ginger.
Lemon: combine lemon zest and lemon extract. You can use both in the batter and for the topping.
Chocolate: check out our chocolate glazed donuts recipe.
Topping
Cinnamon sugar: you’ll need a little milk to wet the top of the donuts, sugar, and cinnamon.
Lemon glaze: make it with powdered sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract.
Chocolate glaze: check out our chocolate glazed donuts recipe.
Equipment
You’ll need a 12-donut baking pan.
How to make cake donuts
Make the donut batter
Preheat the oven to 340°F or 170°C. Brush your donut baking pan with unsalted butter, vegetable shortening, or vegan butter.
To a large mixing bowl, add flour, sugar, cinnamon (or lemon zest), salt, and baking powder. Whisk to combine.
Add milk, oil, and vanilla extract and whisk the donut batter until combined, without overmixing.
Tip: overmixing will make the donuts heavy and tough. Mix for just a few seconds. Some lumps are ok.
With the help of a spoon, pour the mixture into the donut pan, filling the molds a little over half full.
Tip: fill the mold less than you think, and never more than 3/4 to the top, or your cake doughnuts will turn out without holes.
Bake the donuts
Bake at 340°F or 170°C for 20 minutes. Let them cool down for 10 minutes in the pan, then take them out and serve or coat them in cinnamon sugar.
Apply cinnamon sugar
Fill one bowl with milk and the other with cinnamon stirred in sugar.
Dip the top of the donuts in the milk, then dip it in the cinnamon sugar and arrange them on a cooling rack to cool.
You can serve them immediately with tea, coffee, milk, or a latte.
Variations
Chocolate glazed donuts
If you like chocolate and chocolate glaze, try these 30-minute chocolate glazed donuts that are easy to make and perfect for a lazy Sunday.
Homemade Yeast Donuts
Soft, light, and airy, our easy vegan yeast donut recipe will produce the best donuts ever. It’s excellent for baking in the oven or deep-frying.
Check out our vegan donuts recipe.
Carrot and orange cake donuts
These are original, moist, delicious cake donuts made with our orange and carrot cake batter. These are perfect for you if you want to try a new donut flavor.
Check out our carrot and orange cake recipe.
Lemon cake donuts
Dip the donuts in a lemon glaze made by whisking together 1 cup (120 g) of powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Top with lemon sprinkles or grated lemon zest.
Questions
A cake donut is made with a cake batter, placed in a donut pan, and baked in the oven. The result is a donut with a cake-like texture and with a dense yet tender crumb.
Cake donuts are very easy to make as they don’t require yeast and proofing.
Regular donuts, or yeast donuts, are soft, light, and airy. To make them, you need to make a dough with yeast, by hand or with a stand mixer.
The dough must proof until it doubles in volume; then, you can roll it out on a floured surface and cut it with a doughnut cutter or cookie cutters.
Once cut, you can either oven-bake the donuts on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
Or you can deep fry them in a deep-fryer or in a pot with hot oil. The oil should ideally have a high smoke point (like peanut oil), and you should check the oil temperature with a kitchen thermometer.
They only take a couple of minutes to fry, after which you should take them out of the oil with a slotted spoon and let them drain on a plate with paper towels before applying toppings.
For the full recipe, check out our yeast donut recipe.
They are called cake donuts because they are made with a cake batter.
Storage
Make Ahead: this recipe is excellent for making ahead because the donuts keep very well for several days.
Room temperature: store donuts in a food-grade plastic bag or an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 – 5 days. If they get a little dry on the last day, warm them in the microwave for 1 minute to bring out the moisture in the dough.
Freezer: cake donuts are great for freezing. Let them cool down completely, arrange them in a freezer-friendly bag, and freeze them for up to 6 months.
Thaw: defrost in the microwave for a few minutes or fridge for several hours.
More Easy Baking Ideas
If you love no-fuss baking, get inspiration from these easy and tasty baking ideas:
- Easy vanilla cake with vegan cream cheese frosting and a light and airy crumb.
- 1-bowl banana bread with just 7 ingredients, a super easy sweet treat.
- 30-minute apple muffins: with tender pieces of apple, a wholesome snack, and a dessert idea.
- Favorite apple cake: a reader’s favorite easy cake with apple, cinnamon, and a moist and light cake crumb.
- Cinnamon-sugar-covered pear cake: an Italian-inspired sweet and pear-tender cake.
More Breakfast Ideas
- Potato frittata with chickpea flour and leek, perfect for meal prep and a healthy breakfast.
- Oatmeal pancakes with apple compote, an easy 20-minute recipe.
- 5-minute tofu scramble: pairs perfectly with toasted bread and sliced avocado.
- Banana pancakes: ready in 20 minutes, with an airy and light pancake consistency.
This cake donut recipe is…
Vegetarian, vegan (use non-dairy milk), and easy to make gluten-free.
Cake Donuts
Equipment
- 12-donut baking pan
Ingredients
DRY INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon or grated lemon zest
WET INGREDIENTS
- ⅔ cup milk any, we use almond milk
- 1 tablespoon olive oil sub avocado oil or canola oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
CINNAMON SUGAR TOPPING
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup milk any, we use almond milk
LEMON GLAZE TOPPING
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
MAKE DONUT BATTER
- Preheat the oven to 340°F or 170°C. Brush your donut baking pan with butter or dairy-free butter.In a large bowl, whisk 1 cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup sugar, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.
- Add ⅔ cup milk, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Whisk to combine without overmixing.
BAKE THE DONUTS
- With the help of a spoon, pour the mixture into the donut pan, filling the molds a little over half full.
- Bake at 340°F or 170°C for 20 minutes. Let them cool down for 10 minutes in the pan, then take them out and serve with your favorite topping.
CINNAMON SUGAR TOPPING
- In a small bowl, add ¼ cup milk. In another small bowl, add 1½ teaspoon cinnamon stirred in ¼ cup sugar.Dip the top half of each donut in milk first and in cinnamon sugar later, and arrange on a wire rack to cool.
LEMON GLAZE TOPPING
- In a small bowl, whisk 1 cup powdered sugar with 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract until creamy. Dip the donuts in the glaze, then top with grated lemon zest or sprinkles.
- You can serve the donuts right away, with milk, coffee, or a latte.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
If you liked these easy cake donuts, you might also like:
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”OieLkGtl” upload-date=”2023-07-03T05:28:18.000Z” name=”Easy Cake Donuts” description=”Cake donuts are a simple, quick, and delicious treat you can make in 30 minutes with simple pantry staples.
You can expect a firm donut with a soft cake-like crumb and a delicious cinnamon sugar, lemon, or chocolate topping.” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]
