Donut Muffins
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Sweet, cake-like and scented with cinnamon and nutmeg, these muffins taste remarkably like donuts.
Sweet, cake-like, and scented with cinnamon and nutmeg, these muffins taste remarkably like donuts. Kids love them because they’re deliciously plain, and adults love them because they’re just plain delicious. Unlike donuts, they’re baked not deep-fried so you can feel more virtuous eating them. They’re a perfect accompaniment to coffee, tea, or milk and if you need one more reason to try them, they’re easy to make with ingredients you probably have on hand. If these are a hit with your family and you want to mix things up a bit, give this powdered donut cake a try. It’s sure to vanish in no time.
Table of Contents
“These muffins were perfect! Loved how easy they were to make and that they taste like a doughnut and a muffin at the same time!”
What You’ll Need To Make Donut Muffins
- Milk: Provides moisture and richness to the muffins’ batter. Low-fat milk is fine.
- Lemon Juice: Adds acidity to react with the baking soda, helping the muffins rise.
- All-Purpose Flour: Forms the base of the muffin batter, providing structure.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda: Leavens the muffins, causing them to rise and become light and fluffy.
- Nutmeg: Infuses the batter with warm, aromatic flavor reminiscent of classic donuts.
- Butter: Incorporates richness and flavor into both the batter and the topping.
- Sugar: Sweetens the muffin batter and creates a delicate, slightly crisp topping.
- Eggs: Act as a binding agent, holding the muffin batter together and providing structure.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the overall flavor profile with its aromatic sweetness.
- Cinnamon: Adds a warm, spicy flavor to the muffin topping, reminiscent of cinnamon-sugar donuts.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by combining the milk and lemon juice. This is essentially making your own buttermilk (since you only need 1 cup), which reacts with the baking soda in this recipe to give these muffins a nice, open crumb.
Next, combine all of the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. All that nutmeg is what makes these muffins taste like donuts.
Whisk to combine and then set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, a few minutes.
Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined.
Mix in the vanilla extract.
Add a third of the dry ingredients.
Mix well, then add half of the milk mixture.
Continue alternating the dry and wet ingredients until the batter is well combined. It will be quite thick.
Scoop the batter into a greased muffin pan, filling the tins to the rim.
Bake until firm to the touch, 25 to 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the toppings: melt the butter and whisk the cinnamon and sugar together.
When cool enough to handle, brush the muffins with melted butter and roll in the cinnamon-sugar.
Serve warm out of the oven or reheated in the microwave. I especially love them slathered with jam.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure, these would be great as minis! The baking temperature will remain the same, but the baking time shorter. Start checking them for doneness at about 12 minutes. All ovens are different though, so keep a close eye on them.
Definitely! The donut muffins will work with any kind of non-dairy milk like soy, almond, or oat milk.
For sure — the muffins can be frozen in an airtight container or sealable plastic bag for up to 3 months. Thaw for 3 to 4 hours on the countertop before serving. To reheat, wrap individual muffins in aluminum foil and place in a preheated 350°F oven until warm.
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Donut Muffins
Sweet, cake-like and scented with cinnamon and nutmeg, these muffins taste remarkably like donuts.
Ingredients
For Muffin Batter
- 1 cup milk (low-fat is fine)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 2½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
For Muffin Topping
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2¼ teaspoons cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Spray a standard muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Combine the milk and lemon juice in a measuring cup or bowl and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Mix in the vanilla.
- Add a third of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix on low speed to combine. Add half of the milk mixture and mix well. Mix in another third of the flour mixture, followed by the remaining milk mixture, and finally the remaining flour mixture. Mix until evenly combined but don't over-mix. The batter will be very thick.
- Scoop the batter evenly into the prepared muffin pan, filling each cup to the rim. (I like to use an ice cream scoop with a wire scraper for this.) Bake the muffins until firm to the touch, 25-30 minutes. Let the muffins cool in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool.
- In the meantime, prepare the toppings: Melt the butter in a small bowl. In another small bowl, whisk the cinnamon and sugar together.
- When the muffins are cool enough to handle, working one by one, use a pastry brush to paint the top of each muffin with butter, then roll in the cinnamon-sugar. If you have cinnamon-sugar left over, sprinkle muffins again. Serve warm, or cool on a rack and wrap airtight. Store at room temperature. Reheat muffins briefly in microwave for that fresh out of the oven taste.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: the muffins can be frozen in an airtight container or sealable plastic bag for up to 3 months. Thaw for 3 to 4 hours on the countertop before serving. To reheat, wrap individual muffins in aluminum foil and place in a preheated 350°F oven until warm.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (12 servings)
- Serving size: 1 muffin
- Calories: 342
- Fat: 16 g
- Saturated fat: 10 g
- Carbohydrates: 46 g
- Sugar: 21 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Sodium: 234 mg
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I don’t think these taste like donuts that much, but they are wonderful all the same. The nutmeg gives it a holiday feel, and they are a welcome change from the standard muffin selections. Absolutely yummy!
I made these today and I am beside myself with how good they came out.
I had whole nutmeg that I had to grate so instead of two teaspoons I had a pinch of nutmeg in the batter. Together with the cinnamon topping they were THE BOMB. I love this recipe. Thanks for sharing 🙏
I made this recipe today, with a few changes. I did not use the milk or lemon juice. I used buttermilk, and added 2T of oil to the recipe.. and I piped a tiny amount of blueberry marmalade inside the batter.
I also submerged each donut muffin, instead of brushing the melted butter on top. They were well received.. I’ve made this recipe, before dividing the liquid with an equal amount of apple cider. Thank you for sharing it.
Hi! Could this be converted into mini muffins? 😊
Sure!
Not sure what happened, I followed the recipe exactly and although they look delish, they just came out so so in taste.
Hi Jenn,
Could this recipe be made in a 8×8 square cake pan instead of muffins as I don’t have access to a muffin tin, unfortunately!
Thanks in advance for your opinion…..love your website; it’s my go-to for ideas, recipes and I tell anyone who is looking for a fresh take on recipes to check out your “Once Upon a Chef” !!
Cheers,
Mary
Hi Mary, Thanks for your nice words about the recipes and for spreading the word about the blog! You could make this in an 8-inch square pan, but instead, I’d recommend using this recipe. 🙂
Made these several times for playdates. Kids love these and they disappear fast. Personally, I prefer “healthier” muffins with nuts, oats, cranberries, etc, however, kids don’t wanna touch those, so this is my go-to / please everyone recipe for playdates.
And of course, the recipe is foolproof and always work like everything else from this blog.