Cooking Project: Homemade Doughnuts

Doughnuts are among a handful of morning pastries that consistently taste better if you make them at home—even if you’re a novice in the kitchen! Fresh from the frying pan, they are featherlight, tender, and ready for your own choice of toppings. In fact, once you have the basic technique down, it’s easy to vary the final embellishments according to taste and whim. Dip the doughnuts in chocolate or vanilla glaze, then sprinkle with your favorite toppings. Try tiny nonpareils sprinkles (above), crumbled cookies, crushed dehydrated fruit, or even edible blossoms.

The best strategy is to let creativity reign: Set out bowls with a few glaze options and any toppings found in your pantry, then let everyone decorate their own. For easy variations on the basic recipe, check out Lemon Doughnuts with Pistachios (above), Salted Caramel Doughnuts, or forego the glazes altogether and coat the warm doughnuts in sugar—either granulated, powdered, or mixed with cinnamon (below).

Cake Doughnuts

Ingredients

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 1/2 cups (7 1/2 oz./235 g) all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/3 cup (3 fl. oz./80 ml) buttermilk
• 1/3 cup (3 fl. oz./80 ml) whole milk
• 6 Tbs. (3/4 stick) (3 oz./90 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup (4 oz./125 g) sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the vanilla glaze:

• 2 cups (8 oz./250 g) confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup (4 fl. oz./125 ml) whole milk
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the chocolate glaze:

• 1/4 cup (2 fl. oz./60 ml) hot water
• 1/4 lb. (125 g) semisweet chocolate
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 cups (8 oz./250 g) confectioners’ sugar
• 5 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 1/4 tsp. salt

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 375°F (190°C). Coat the wells of a doughnut pan with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a measuring cup, stir together the buttermilk and whole milk. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg and vanilla; beat on medium speed until combined, about 1 minute. On low speed, add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the milk mixture and beginning and ending with the flour. Beat each addition until just blended.

4. Pour 2 Tbs. batter into each prepared well. Bake, rotating the pan 180 degrees halfway through baking, until a toothpick inserted into the doughnuts comes out clean, about 10 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 5 minutes, then invert the doughnuts onto the rack and let cool completely.

5. Meanwhile, wash and dry the pan and repeat to bake the remaining batter.

6. If making the vanilla glaze, in a bowl, stir together the confectioners’ sugar, salt, milk and vanilla until smooth and well blended. (Reduce the amount of milk if you want a thicker glaze.) Stir gently before glazing the doughnuts. Use the glaze within an hour or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

7. If making the chocolate glaze, fill a small saucepan with 2 inches (5 cm) of water and bring to a gentle simmer over low heat. Place a medium bowl over but not touching the water. In the bowl, combine the hot water, chocolate, vanilla, confectioners’ sugar, butter and salt. (Reduce the amount of water for a thicker glaze.) Cook, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are melted, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir until smooth and well blended. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap to keep warm until the doughnuts are ready to glaze, or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Gently reheat in the bowl over the saucepan or in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave for 20 to 30 seconds before using.

8. To finish the doughnuts, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Dip the doughnuts, top side down, into the glaze. Place, glazed side up, on the prepared baking sheet, decorate as desired and serve. Makes about sixteen 3-inch (7.5-cm) doughnuts.

Learn how easy and satisfying it is to make doughnuts at home with our inspiring guide The Doughnut Cookbook by Amanda Haas, Amanda Frederickson, and Emily McFarren.