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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what is a stick of butter?
Hi Carol, One stick of butter is the equivalent of 8 tablespoons/113 grams. It sounds like maybe you use metric measurements? If so, this recipe has metric conversions — To view them, scroll down to the recipe and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements that will work for you. Hope that helps!
I would love to try making these in a low carb version, using Swerve and almond flour instead of all-purpose flour. Swerve has a 1:1 substitution ratio for sugar. How much almond flour should be used? (A 1:2 ratio? 1 cup flour: 2 cups almond flour?) Thank you!
Hi Kim, I don’t have any experience with almond flour, so I’m not sure how it will impact the muffins, but this guide from King Arthur flour may help. I’d love to hear how they turn out with these changes.
I follow Priscilla Martel’s advice for substituting almond flour. She indicates that almond flour can be substituted 1:1 up to 1/4 of the total flour measurement. But, almond flour absorbs more liquid, so be prepared to add to that. In a very old (150 yr) family recipe for blueberry biscuits, I use 1 c almond flour and 3 c AP flour. Both liquid vegetable shortening and milk are called for in the recipe. I add up to 1/4 c more of milk, not the liquid shortening. Hope this helps.
With respect to substituting the sugar, the various alternative sweetners such as allulose, monk fruit, erythritol etc sweeten to different degrees. I find allulose is 1:1, but it may alter the texture. Good luck.
I substituted 1/4 of the flour with almond flour and added more milk. These are wonderful, period.
Thanks so much for weighing in Hollis — I think this will be helpful to others!
Can I multiply this recipe by 3 or 4 for a large group of people (and an industrial size mixer) without the muffins becoming tough? Thanks! I have doubled it before successfully. Such delicious muffins!
Hi J.G. I would think it would work. I haven’t used an industrial-sized mixer, but as long as you follow the recipe instructions for mixing the batter, it should be fine.
Hi Jen, can I use ground nutmeg instead of grated? thanks.
Sure, Diane. Enjoy!
This were easy to make and delicious. Will definitely make again.
My kids loved these muffins, and my kids are adults! Yummy recipe. Wouldn’t change a thing.
Hi, has anyone used GF flour for these amazing looking muffins?!
Your measurements of ml. and g. Confuse me How do I convert to cups etc?
Hi Doreen, It sounds like your measurements are defaulting to the metric ones. To view traditional measurements, scroll down to the recipe and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “metric” to “cup measures,” you’ll see measurements that will work for you.
Please add the nutritional info.
Thanks
Done- hope you enjoy them!
Can you tell me how much butter in a cup measurement- in Canada our butter usually comes in a 1lb block rather than sticks.
Hi Marina, 1 pound of butter is just shy of 2 cups. (And I’ve added metric conversions to the recipe if that’s helpful to you.) To view them, scroll down to the recipe and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements that will work for you. Hope you enjoy the muffins!
These are the best! I made these for my kids for a special treat and they devoured them. Also they are surprisingly easy to make!