Baked cinnamon sugar donuts are soft, cake-style donuts made in a donut pan instead of deep frying. They’re quick and easy to make, and coated in melted butter and cinnamon sugar for classic bakery-style flavor. Ready in about 45 minutes, this simple from-scratch recipe yields perfectly spiced and ultra moist donuts.
I originally published this recipe in 2015, and I’ve since updated it with new photos and extra success tips for consistently excellent results.
Who doesn’t love fresh, warm, homemade donuts—especially when they’re coated in buttery cinnamon sugar? These baked cinnamon sugar donuts are soft, cakey, and packed with cozy spice flavor. They’re baked instead of fried, so they’re quick, easy, and perfect for beginner bakers.
You can mix the batter by hand, bake them in about 10 minutes, and finish them with a dunk in melted butter and cinnamon sugar. If you love classic cake donuts from a bakery, you’ll adore this homemade version.
We’ve been making them this way for years!
Why You’ll Love These Baked Cinnamon Sugar Donuts:
- No mixer needed—just a couple bowls and a whisk
- Baked, not fried—no standing over the stove or hot oil required
- Soft, cakey texture—like a classic cake donut
- Warm cinnamon and nutmeg flavor in every bite
- Ready in about 45 minutes
- Coated in buttery, crunchy cinnamon sugar for that irresistible finish
Why Bake Donuts Instead of Frying?
Baked donuts are easier to make at home because they don’t require hot oil or special equipment. Instead of frying, the batter is baked in a donut pan, which creates a soft cake-style donut with a lighter texture. Baked donuts are also wonderful if you have young bakers helping in the kitchen because they’re quicker and less fussy than traditional fried donuts!
Most of my donut recipes are baked, not fried, so you have many delicious ways to use your donut pan. Think chocolate frosted donuts… maple glazed donuts… pumpkin donuts… apple cider donuts… you get the idea!
That said, if you’d like to try making traditional yeasted and fried donuts, I have a recipe for homemade glazed doughnuts that’s a great place to start.
Don’t have a donut pan? You can use a muffin pan instead. See the Notes section beneath the recipe below for instructions.
Ingredients You Need for Baked Donuts & Why
We’re using my standard baked donut recipe as the base. It’s what I use for my chocolate frosted donuts, lemon poppy seed donuts, chai spice donuts, and banana donuts.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is best for baked donuts.
- Baking Powder + Baking Soda: Lifts up the donuts as they bake.
- Salt: Key for flavor balance.
- Cinnamon + Nutmeg: Truly gives these donuts that special bakery taste and aroma; don’t skip!
- Egg: To bind the ingredients together.
- Brown Sugar: Sweetened and adds moisture.
- Milk: Thins out the thick batter *just* right.
- Yogurt or Sour Cream: Adds flavorless moisture that won’t weigh the crumb down.
- Butter: For texture as well as that irresistible buttery flavor.
- Vanilla: Another key flavor for cinnamon sugar donuts.
The Process is Super Simple
You only need a couple bowls and a silicone spatula—no mixer required!
Make the donut batter: Whisk together the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another, then combine until just mixed. So easy! The batter is thicker than most cake batters—that’s exactly what you want for structured, tender, cakey donuts.
Fill the donut cavities: Because the batter is thick, it’s easiest to transfer it to the pan using a piping bag or a large zip-top bag with the corner snipped. Just spoon the batter into the bag, trim off a bottom corner, and squeeze the batter into the donut cavities.
Just like this:
The donuts bake up VERY quickly. Let them cool in the pan for a couple minutes, then an additional few minutes on a cooling rack.
The Best Cinnamon Sugar Coating for Donuts
This finishing touch is what really makes these freshly baked donuts shine. Each warm donut gets:
- A quick dip in melted butter
- A generous roll in cinnamon sugar
The butter helps the coating stick and gives the donuts that irresistible old-fashioned donut shop flavor. Every bite is soft inside with a lightly crunchy, sweet exterior.
Prefer icing on your donuts instead? Try my strawberry, chocolate, and vanilla donut frostings instead.
Baked Donuts Success Tips
- Don’t overmix the batter. For soft and springy donuts, mix just until the ingredients are combined.
- Pipe the batter into the pan. For the neatest donut shape, pipe the batter into the donut pan using a zipped-top bag with the corner snipped (or use a piping bag). Because the batter is thick, spooning it into the pan can be messy.
- Enjoy them fresh. These donuts are best enjoyed the same day, but leftovers keep well for about 2 days, or you can freeze them.
These baked cinnamon sugar donuts are one of those recipes that feels special but couldn’t be easier to make. They’re soft, buttery, warmly spiced, and coated in just the right amount of cinnamon sugar. Serve them warm with coffee, add them to a weekend brunch spread, or bake a batch just because you’re craving donuts!
And if you’re baking for a crowd, go ahead and double the recipe—they disappear fast!
P.S. Looking for a baked chocolate cake-style donut recipe? You can find one on page 205 of my NYT best-selling cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101!
Baked Cinnamon Sugar Donuts
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 donuts
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These baked cinnamon sugar donuts are soft, moist cake-style donuts made in a donut pan instead of fried. Ready in about 45 minutes, this easy homemade donut recipe is coated in melted butter and cinnamon sugar for classic bakery-style flavor. The recipe yields just 8 donuts, so be sure to double the recipe if you’re feeding a crowd.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (65g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (60g/ml) milk, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60g) sour cream or plain yogurt, at room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Topping
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease donut pan(s) with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- Make the donuts: In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the egg, brown sugar, milk, and sour cream together until smooth. Whisk in the melted butter and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Do not overmix. The batter will be very thick.
- Spoon the batter into the donut cavities or, for ease, I recommend transferring the batter into a large zip-top bag. Cut a corner off the bottom of the bag and pipe the batter into each donut cavity, filling each about halfway.
- Bake for 10 minutes, or until the edges are lightly browned. To test, lightly press the top of a donut. If it springs back, they’re done.
- Cool donuts in the pan for 2 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Re-grease the pan and bake the remaining donut batter.
- Top the donuts: Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Dip the donuts in the melted butter, then dunk into the cinnamon sugar mixture, coating all sides.
- These donuts taste best served shortly after coating. Cover leftover donuts tightly and store at room temperature for 1–2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: You can freeze the baked donuts for up to 2–3 months. For best results, freeze them before adding the butter and cinnamon sugar coating. Let the donuts cool completely, then place them in a freezer-friendly container or zip-top bag with parchment between layers to prevent sticking. Thaw the donuts overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature for a couple hours. Warm them briefly in the microwave for about 10–15 seconds, if desired. Once thawed and slightly warm, dip each donut in melted butter and roll in the cinnamon sugar coating before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Donut Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula | Cooling Rack
- Muffins: You can bake this batter in a standard 12-count muffin pan instead of a donut pan. The recipe yields around 8 muffins. Fill each muffin cup about 2/3 full and bake at the same temperature for about 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the muffins cool for a few minutes, then dip the tops and sides in melted butter and coat in the cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Milk: For the donut batter, any milk works, dairy or non-dairy. I’ve tested with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, whole milk, and skim milk.
- Can I Double This Recipe? Yes, absolutely. The recipe yields just 8 donuts. To double for 16 donuts, simply double all of the ingredients.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Wow these were excellent! I am a terrible baker but my kids said these were the best donuts ever!
Will this work using a mini donut pan? How long should I bake them?
They will! The bake time will be shorter but I’m unsure of the exact time.
Made these last weekend…SOOOO easy and yummy!! Thank you so much!!
Thank you, these turned out perfect & you’re right about the nutmeg!
Hello,
Curious if these could be made me 1/2 cup of buttermilk vs both milk and yogurt?
Thank you!
Yes that should work, Jill. Enjoy!
Is it okay to not use yogurt for this?
You can use sour cream instead. OR replace BOTH the milk and yogurt with a 1/2 cup buttermilk.
Easy and delicious! I didn’t bother dipping in melted butter. Instead, I simply dipped both sides of the donuts in the cinnamon/sugar.
They were a nice “tea time” pick-me-up for the sheltering workers and college students here.
Thank you!
Made them today as 9 muffins. Used all required ingredients. Skim milk. They are light and non greasy. So good. Inside quarantined, so needed something yummy to make and these were perfect! Thank you.
Quick, easy, and delicious. I made them after dinner tonight, and my family loved them!
Great recipe! Easy to follow. Quick and most importantly delicious!
Can these be made without the donut pan?
You can use a muffin pan. See my recipe note.
How deep should we fill if we use a muffin pan?
Hi Alicia, If you divide this batter between 8-10 muffins they will be about 2/3 full. Enjoy!
I can’t wait to make these but I don’t have yogurt on hand. How do I adjust the recipe? More milk?
Hi Teresa, You can use sour cream in place of the yogurt.
This is the first baked donut recipe that’s actually worked for me in my little donut baking tin!
Thank you so much for sharing this one – it’s excellent! 🙂 I did half of the batch coated in cinnamon sugar, and the other half with a maple glaze.
The BEST and most simple donut recipe we have tried! We made them today for “Foodie Friday” at “school” and they were sooooo good!! Thank you!
These were so easy to make and absolutely delicious. Highly recommend <3
Can these be reheated a day later?
Hi Calvin, These donuts are best served immediately. However you can keep them well covered tightly at room temperature for up to 2 days and reheat to your liking.
Hi Sally,
I have already commented previously, but I LOVE these donuts. They are so incredibly soft and moist….but that is also my dilemma as well! I wanted to make these for a donut wall (varieties of it including your glazed ones) but because they are so soft, they fall apart easily enough that I don’t think they could be hung on a peg for a donut wall. Do you have any recommendations on how to make them slightly ‘harder’ but not stale! I was wondering if I removed the yogurt, would that work. Thanks!
Hi Jane! Sounds so fun!! So happy to help. The best way to make a firmer donut would be to replace the milk with more yogurt/sour cream. They’ll be a bit more dense and sturdier that way. Same bake time.
Hi Sally,
My mother loves donuts! We are celebrating her 80th birthday and I’m going to make her a giant donut cake – when I stumbed across your recipe I starting thinking hmmmm hmmm do you think this would would baked up in a giant silicone donut shaped cake pan — or too dense? I can always go with cake but how much fun would it be for the actual cake to be a baked donut or 2 sandwiched together? Thanks Diana
I think that would be great– what a fun birthday cake! I’m unsure how many batches of this batter you would need to fill a donut shaped cake pan, though. The bake time will obviously be a little longer. Let me know if you try anything out!
Diana, how many batches did you end up using for the giant donut cake? I am planning on doing something similar for my daughter’s birthday. Thanks for any help!
Hi Danica you can get away with a single batch. Slice through the middle and fill. I ended up doubling the recipe. It was a hit with the older crowd, but the little boys next door who are my taste testers loved it too. It’s a really good recipe. Good luck. I don’t know how to post a picture.
Also I used a silicone giant donut form from Amazon. It released beautifully.
I just tried these and are delicious. However when I dunked them in butter before adding the cinnamon sugar they absorbed a ton of it and didn’t taste that great. Any suggestions?
Hi Mari! Try dunking them, while they’re still warm, directly into the cinnamon-sugar. Skip the butter. That should help!
Worked great!! thanks!
Any non-dairy? My son is allergic to dairy thats why I cant use yogurt.. Thank you!
Try applesauce. That worked great for me
what is the best method for storing them if I make them the day before my party ? How should I heat up if at all?? Obviously not enough time to freeze but I want them tasting fresh!
They keep well covered tightly at room temperature for up to 2 days. You can serve at room temperature but if you want to warm them up I usually just put them in the microwave for a few seconds!
So good and so delicious!! I will be definitely be making these again and again!!
I didn’t have any yogurt so I subbed in sour cream. It worked well and tastes delicious. Thanks for this recipe, I’ll be making it again soon.
Can I substitute whole wheat flour in place of all purpose? Thanks! Can’t wait to try them:)
Absolutely! But the baked donuts may taste a little dense and dry as a result. Keep that in mind! Maybe half WW and half all-purpose?!
Just made these and they were a big hit! No donut pan so I used a mini muffin pan. Worked out great! Also used the ziplock bag method – so easy! I am thinking there will be no leftovers tomorrow as my husband just came over a popped another one in his mouth as I was writing this! Another fabulous recipe, Sally! Thank you.
I’d like to make a double batch and freeze some. Do you freeze these donuts plain before dipping in cinnamon sugar or after? Thanks! Can’t wait to make these for my kids!
Usually after they are dipped. Enjoy!
I made these the day after you posted this recipe and they are fabulous! And so easy! Love how quick and simple all your recipe’s are.