Baked Lemon Donuts

What Jessica Baked Next

10 years ago

Light and fluffy baked lemon donuts. Drizzled with a sweet and tangy lemon glaze and decorated with freeze dried raspberries.

I’ve never met (or eaten!) a donut/doughnut I haven’t liked. I love the traditional jam doughnuts sold at bakeries, what I enjoy most is the sugary sweet coating and then the oozy jam centre as I take a ginormous bite.

My love affair with doughnuts started a few years ago when I had a job working at a local bakery. My first job every morning as soon as I arrived was to fill each freshly fried doughnut with jam and then roll in sugar. I don’t know how I resisted eating the entire batch of doughnuts… 😉

Anyway, as much as I enjoy indulging in fried doughnuts, they’re not the easiest bake to make at home. I purchased a donut pan some time ago and I’ve baked a few donuts since then and shared one baked donut recipe previously on the blog. So I figured it was about time to share another with you all!

These baked donuts are 100x easier and believe or not they really are just as delicious as the traditional fried kind. They’re made using a simple cake batter with the addition of yoghurt, which aids the fluffy texture and adds a delicious tangy flavour.

The sticky lemon glaze is totally optional – I really think it’s a delicious finishing touch. Plus, who can say no to a lush sugary glaze?! I could and would eat it by the ~~spoonful~~ bowlful… 🙂

Drizzle the icing liberally over each donut and then leave to set. If you’re feeling decorative you can scatter over sprinkles or freeze dried raspberries like I did. I think the pink raspberries are the perfect touch to celebrate Cate’s baby girl!

A gorgeous treat that would be lovely served with a cup of coffee or tea but these really are perfect for any occasion! And if you’re a fan of donuts, be sure to check out some of Cate’s amazing donut creations from her blog!

Here are just a few of my favourites:

Ingredients:

Donut Batter:

180g (1 and 1/2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour

100g (1/2 cup) caster or granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 large free-range egg

170g (6 ounces) lemon yoghurt

80ml (1/3 cup) milk

80ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil

Zest from 1 large lemon

Lemon Icing:

100g (1 cup) icing (confectioners’/powdered) sugar

Juice from 1 lemon (3-4 tablespoons)

Method:

Preheat oven to 150 Fan / 170°C / 325°F. Lightly grease two 6-hole donut pans with butter or oil spray. Set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt until combined.
In a separate bowl or jug whisk together the egg, yoghurt, milk, oil and lemon zest.
Add the wet mixture to dry and mix until just combined.
Divide the batter between the donut pans and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean when inserted into the centre of the donut. Allow to cool in the pan for a few minutes, then carefully remove and then transport to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
Once the donuts are cooled, make the glaze. Combine the icing sugar and lemon juice until you have a runny icing that can be drizzled. Drizzle the icing over each donut and then decorate with freeze dried raspberries or sprinkles before the icing sets.

Recipe Notes:

I wouldn’t recommend using a low-fat lemon yoghurt, full-fat works a lot better with this recipe.
If you cannot get lemon yoghurt, you can use plain or any other flavoured yogurt.
Once iced these donuts are best eaten on the day of making, as if stored in an airtight container, the icing will go soft and sticky. But they are still delicious even on the next day!

Recipe adapted from Barbara Bakes