These homemade Maple Doughnuts are busting with cozy fall flavors and sinfully delicious - without all the guilt! Baked not fried, these fluffy cake donuts feature pure maple syrup, warming cinnamon, light brown sugar, toasty pecans and the most amazing sweet maple glaze. Simple to make and always a crowd-favorite, these glazed maple donuts are the perfect addition to any breakfast or brunch.
Preheat oven and Prepare Pan: Preheat your ovento 425-degrees F. Then, spray a donut pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together, flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.
Add Wet Ingredients: To the dry mixture, add the egg, melted butter, sour cream and maple syrup. Fold until almost combined.
Add Nuts: Add the pecans to the donut batter and gently fold until just combined. (Note: The batter should be thick and wet.)
Add Batter to Pan: Transfer the donut batter to the prepared donut pan - you can do this by spooning the batter into the pan OR transfer the batter to a large piping bag or resealable bag with a corner snipped off (wide enough from the nuts to pass through the hole). Spoon or pipe the batter into the donut pan, filling the cavities to be about 3/4 full(Note: The batter will expand and rise during baking, so don't overfill the pan.)
Bake: Transfer the donut batter to the preheated oven and bake for 7-8 minutes, or until the top of donut springs back to touch. Cool: Remove baked donuts from the oven and place on a wire rack. Let the donuts cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Then, remove them from the pan and transfer them to the rack to cool completely before glazing.
While the Donuts are Baking, Make the Glaze: In a small, shallow bowl (you want to be able to dip the donuts) whisk together the confectioner’s sugar, bourbon, maple syrup, milk and vanilla until thoroughly combined. Taste and adjust for flavor and consistency.
Glaze Donuts: Dip the cooled donut tops into the glaze, then transfer back to a wire rack and generously sprinkle the top of the donut with your favorite toppings, such as sprinkles. Repeat with remaining donuts.
Serve Donuts: Allow donut glaze to set completely before enjoying.
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Notes
Flour: Make sure you use cake flour. After all, these are cake donuts. Plus, cake flour gives these a lighter, airy texture.
Adding the Batter to the Donut Pan: Transferring the donut batter into a disposable piping bag or plastic bag isn’t necessary, you can most definitely spoon it into the donut molds. I just found it much easier to use the piping method.
Storage: Donuts are best served fresh, but unglazed donuts will keep, stored in an airtight container on the counter, overnight. Glaze before serving.
Yield: 6 glazed donutsNutritional information is an estimate based upon 6 servings. Exact information will depend upon the brands of ingredients and precise measurements used.