Treats to Share with Loved Ones

Nothing Says “I Love You” like homemade.

Words by Kayla & Justin Butts,   Photos by Rachel Benavides 

Donuts don’t have to be a guilty pleasure, reserved only for an occasional Sunday or binge in the office break room. These cake donuts are significantly lower in fat and calories by being baked instead of fried. Despite being slightly healthier, these donuts don’t sacrifice on flavor. You can indulge in your favorite breakfast treat without the guilt and mistimed gall bladder attack. 

While testing cake donut recipe variations, we searched for the product that would offer a moist sponge, one that wasn’t too dense but could hold its own against flavorful mix-ins. Buttermilk adds a slight acidity to contrast sweet glazes and helps leaven the donuts but can easily be substituted for regular milk. Cake flour, in lieu of all-purpose flour, made for lighter donuts that resembled a cupcake texture. Choosing only granulated sugar lacked a depth of flavor, while using all brown sugar caused the dough to toughen. 

We used three classic desserts with locally grown ingredients as inspiration for our donut variations: bananas foster, carrot cake, and lemon rosemary. Using cream cheese in the glaze mimics the vanilla ice cream with a splash of rum. The caramelization in the spun sugar has the same flavor profile as the flambeed rum. Our favorite carrot cake recipe easily translates into a lovely, portable donut without being saccharine-y sweet. We’ve always loved the contrasting earthy flavor of rosemary balancing with the acidity of lemon in rosemary lemon shortbread.  

Master Cake Donut Recipe

Makes 1 dozen donuts

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

Non-stick baking spray

1/2 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

2 c. all-purpose flour

2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. cinnamon

1/8 t. freshly grated nutmeg

¾ t. salt 

½ c. granulated sugar

¼ c. light brown sugar

2 eggs, room temperature

2 t. vanilla extract

1/2 c. buttermilk, room temperature

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prep two standard donut pans with non-stick baking spray. In a large bowl, whisk all of the dry ingredients and set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugars on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce mixer speed to medium; add eggs and vanilla, beating until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with milk, and beat just until combined.
3. Spoon batter into donut pans, filling about ¾ full. 
4. Bake until tops of donuts spring back when lightly pressed, about 10 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool. 

Carrot Cake: Complete steps 1 and 2 as above, increasing cinnamon to 1 teaspoon and omitting the nutmeg. Add ½ cup grated carrots, 8 oz crushed pineapple that has been strained, and 1/3 cup shredded sweetened coconut to the prepared batter and stir to mix. Spoon mixture into prepared pans and bake as instructed in step 4. In a separate bowl, beat 4 ounces softened cream cheese, ¼ cup softened butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 cup powdered sugar until no lumps remains. Top cooled donuts with cream cheese glaze, shredded coconut, and roasted, chopped walnuts. 

Rosemary Lemon: Substituting spices for 2 tablespoon lemon zest and 1 tablespoon minced rosemary, complete steps 1-4 as above. While donuts are baking, prepare rosemary lemon glaze as follows: heat ¼ cup lemon juice, ¼ cup water, and 1 sprig large rosemary over medium heat. Remove from heat as soon as mixture starts to boil. Add 2 tablespoon unsalted butter and let cool to room temperature. Stir in 2 cups powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon lemon zest and drizzle over donuts. Garnish with candied lemon rind. 

Bananas Foster: Complete step 1 as above. Add 2 over-ripened bananas to butter and proceed with step 2-4 as above. In a medium sized bowl, combine 3 ounces cream cheese, 1 cup confectioners sugar, 1 tablespoon softened butter, 1 tablespoon milk and 1 tablespoon rum (or rum extract). Drizzle donuts with rum glaze and top with roasted pecans and spun sugar.