Baked, not fried! Top these buttery dense crumb cake donuts with cinnamon brown sugar crumbs and a dusting of confectioners’ sugar. We use Greek yogurt, melted butter, cinnamon, and nutmeg for mega flavor and texture. These baked donuts can easily be adapted into muffins if you don’t have a donut pan. See my recipe notes.
If you love a good slice of coffee cake or New York-style crumb cake, this recipe is for you. It’s sweet and kid-friendly, perfect for any celebratory brunch, and piled high with crumb cake topping. They are just as easy to make as powdered sugar donut muffins and crumb cake muffins, and kids and adults alike SWARM to these!!
These Crumb Cake Donuts Are:
- Like crumb cake in donut form
- Buttery and moist
- Soft, dense, and cakey
- Spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg
- Sweetened with brown sugar
- Piled high with crumb topping (like my crumb coffee cake)
- A delicious breakfast, snack, or dessert
- Comfort food at its finest
Three Parts to Crumb Cake Donuts
- Donuts: We use my standard baked donut recipe as the base of these crumb cake donuts. It’s a very thick batter that produces tight-crumbed, cakey donuts. Light and airy? These are not. The recipe uses all very basic ingredients. I like to add a little Greek yogurt to the donut batter for a moisture punch (sour cream works too) and prefer sweetening them with brown sugar. Even plain, these donuts are fantastic. But plain isn’t in our vocabulary, so let’s talk flavor. Add cinnamon to the batter as well as a pinch of nutmeg. Nutmeg leaves the donuts with a familiar bakery-donut flavor. After you mix this donut batter together, the aroma alone will remind you of a donut shop—it’s the nutmeg!
- Crumb Cake Topping: The crumbs are made with some of the same ingredients from the donut batter. (Plus some granulated sugar.) After baking, the crumbs take on a wild array of textures. These little guys have lots of personality! Some crumbs are super soft and melty; other crumbs—the ones at the tippy top of the donut—are slightly crunchy and crisp. All this on top of a warm, soft, cinnamon-spiced donut is breakfast perfection right at home.
- Powdered Sugar: A flurry of confectioners’ sugar finishes off each crumb cake donut. You can totally leave it off because there’s sugar in the crumb topping, too.
How to Make Crumb Cake Donuts
Our mixers can take the morning off for this recipe—you don’t need one here!
- Make the crumb topping.
- Make the donut batter.
- Fill the donut cavities. Transferring donut batter into the donut pan can be tricky, so I always suggest using a zipped-top bag to pipe the batter. (You can see me doing this in my pumpkin donuts post.) Just spoon the batter into a large zipped-top bag, trim off a bottom corner, and squeeze the batter into the pan. The donut batter is thicker than you’d expect, so it pipes pretty neatly.
- Top with crumbs. The key is to really press the crumbs down into the donut batter. And add them with wild abandon, please. Squeeze as many crumbs as you can on top because while the donuts themselves are great, extra crumb topping is never a bad idea (looking at you, apple crumb cake)!!
- Bake.
- Dust with confectioners’ sugar. After baking, sprinkle the tops with a light coating of confectioners’ sugar.
- Serve & enjoy! Donuts are best served immediately, though they freeze wonderfully (see my recipe notes).
Don’t Overfill
Avoid over-filling the donut pan. You need less donut batter than you think for each donut because we’re adding a crumb topping. If you fill the donut pan too high, the donuts will overflow and all the crumb topping will spill off. Just fill about 1/2 – 2/3 full with batter.
If baked donuts, layers of crumb topping, and a snowfall of confectioners’ sugar doesn’t convince you to get baking, I’m not sure what will.
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Crumb Cake Donuts
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 15 donuts
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Baked and layered crumb cake donuts are a special treat to make for breakfast. Buttery and moist, these cake donuts are comfort food at its finest!
Ingredients
Crumb Topping
- 1/3 cup (67g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 cup + 2 Tablespoons (140g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
Donuts
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp; 56g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup (135g) packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (120ml) milk, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120g) plain yogurt or sour cream, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- optional: confectioners’ sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray donut pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.
- Make the crumb topping: Mix the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Stir in the melted butter using a fork, then add the flour. Mix and crumble with a fork. Set aside.
- Make the donuts: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a large bowl. Set aside. Whisk the melted butter, eggs, brown sugar, milk, yogurt, and vanilla together until completely combined. 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—I highly recommend using a large zipped-top bag for ease. Cut a corner off the bottom of the bag and pipe the batter into each donut cup, filling about halfway. Grab a handful of crumb topping and press down onto the batter of each donut. Pressing it snug into the batter helps prevent the crumb coating from falling off the donuts. (If you only have 1 donut pan, keep the remaining batter in the bowl at room temperature until you can bake the next batch.)
- Bake for 10-11 minutes or until the edges and tops are lightly browned. Allow to cool for about two minutes then transfer to a wire rack set on a large piece of parchment paper. Bake the remaining donut batter and once baked, transfer to the wire rack. Dust the tops of each with a light coating of confectioners’ sugar, if desired.
- Donuts are best served immediately. Leftovers keep well covered tightly at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 2 days.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Freeze the baked and cooled donuts for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then warm up to your liking in the microwave.
- Special Tool (affiliate links): Donut Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Zipped-Top Bag | Cooling Rack
- No Donut Pan? Make donut muffins in your standard 12-cup muffin pan. Line with cupcake liners or grease with nonstick spray. Fill each 2/3 full with donut batter. Top with crumb topping. Bake at 350°F (177°C) for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Half Recipe: I tested this recipe for a larger crowd just in case you need it for holiday entertaining. But if you don’t need 15 donuts laying around, halve the recipe to yield around 7-8 donuts instead. That’s the amount I usually bake.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Easy and tasty- very autumnal! I used a milk + icing sugar glaze instead of powdered sugar and think it went really nicely with the crumb.
Made as my October challenge recipe – it was a huge hit with the whole family!
VERY GOOD. i made a few changes, i wanted to use sourdough discard so i did not waste it. i use a 100% hydration starters so i used 260grams of starter to replace 130g each of the liquid and flour. i also used ricotta instead of yogurt since i had some in the house and it is less moist than yogurt is so the extra 10g of liquid was perfect. i followed everything else in the recipe and ended up adding a tablespoon of flour to keep the consistency shown in the pictures. i used a mini muffin pan and baked for 18 minutes. perfect. great flavor!
This was my first time making donuts. The recipe was easy to follow and the piping bag trick made it easy to fill the donut pan. Super tasty and will be making more donuts in the future!
No issues except a double portion made only 18 donuts for us… pan size may differ. The spots were 1/3 cup each according to the package. Also we had way too much topping… we poured it over the finished donuts in a cascade at the end. Probably related to the first issue.
Delicious! I made this recipe into mini-muffins (doughnut holes?) and they were all gone in two days (between two people)!
So tasty! My daughters and I made these and they were so easy and delicious!
May be the best recipe I’ve made from this site! Made these as the alt recipe for the monthly baking challenge. Absolutely delicious, perfectly balanced sweetness, challenged to stop them from getting gobbled up. Going to make for a potluck next week.
This recipe is delicious! Using a piping bag to put the batter in the pans made it quick and easy. Donuts are great for portion control for those of us with little willpower. Will be sharing these with friends tomorrow so I don’t eat them all!
These crumb cake donuts are THE BEST! I love crumb cake, but these pack a lot of flavor in little bites! I tried these as an alternate to the October Baking Challenge and am so glad I tried them. Another family favorite from Sally <3
I made these donuts three days ago as the alternate recipe in this month’s baking challenge. (Somehow my review went into the pumpkin oatmeal cream pies recipe.) They are easy to make and very tasty. I originally stated that they are more cake-y in texture but, three days later, somehow, we had one left and when I ate it today it was more like a donut shop donut texture. It was awesome! I just made another batch! Very good today and they will be fantastic tomorrow! Thank you for all the great recipes! I really enjoy your website, Sally and team!
Good to hear they past the 3rd day test as I was planning on giving them to someone tomorrow!
These donuts are delicious! They are really simple to make. The crumble topping is to die for! My family is crazy for them.
I made these for this month’s baking challenge- what a treat! They were gobbled up in no time. In case anyone was wondering about an egg-free version, I actually replaced the eggs with 1/4 c pumpkin purée per egg. The donuts threatened to fall apart when taking them out of the pan as the pumpkin wasn’t as good for binding as an egg would have been, but they all came out fine in the end! They were SO moist!
Hi Rya, I used ground flax seed as an egg substitute. One tablespoon ground flax seed and three tablespoons water per egg. The texture is great and doesn’t fall apart.
Delicious buttery donuts, topped with a sweet crumb topping. Fast and easy. Will be making these again!
Delicious buttery donuts, packed with a sweet crumb topping. Will be making these again!
These donuts were easy and delicious. My family gobbled them up. Only negative feedback was that they were a bit dry and you definitely needed some milk or coffee to go with them.
Very Tasty
I made these for the alternative recipe for the month. My kids absolutely loved them (and my husband too!) Perfect combination of spice, sweetness and tartness from the yogurt.
What an easy and fun recipe! I used a disposable piping bag to fill the donut pan nd it was very clean and easy. They taste best fresh from the oven. Next time, I’ll only make a half recipe, which Sally talks about in the comments. This was my first time making donuts and I look forward to trying more! Great recipe, Sally team!
I made these as this month’s challenge. So glad I did. Nothing but compliments.
One lady said it reminded her of something her Grandma would make.
Huge hit with the family…especially the crumb topping!!
It’s a very straightforward, easy recipe. Doesn’t pack a punch of flavor which is surprising and disappointing. Taste a lot better with a drizzle of creamcheese icing and sprinkle of cinnamon. Needs more flavor. The only thing I can taste is the nutmeg with a hint of cinnamon. Texture is nice. I got more than 20 donuts out of the batch. I wouldn’t remake, but it was fun making.
Big hit with the family. Will definitely make again.
These are delicious! Easy and came together quickly for a special Sunday morning treat. Loved the powdered sugar dusting, but I had some leftover maple glaze from the cookies – so I made some with that drizzled on instead. These donuts were a hit!
I’ve made the apple cobbler recipe 2x.. my husband and family loved it!
I told them it’s was Sally’s recipe and they said keep baking with her!
We typically do not have whole milk at home. Can evaporated milk be substituted? I’ve never gotten a straight answer! thanks
Hi Roberta, you can use a lower fat or non-dairy milk here in a pinch, but we do not recommend evaporated milk.
These are so yummy! The crumb topping is amazing. My toddler enjoyed helping make them too! I’m bringing them to work for a fall treat! I had to bake them for a few minutes longer though
Would this recipe be okay to double? Or would it be better to do two separate batches?
Hi Danielle, for best results, we recommend making separate batches rather than doubling. Enjoy!
I’m definitely making these, it sounds delicious. As a bonus remark I made the lemon/blueberry tart recipe of yours and got first place in the community bake-off.
Would it be okay to use almond milk as a substitute?
Hi Amanda, that will work in a pinch,