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
One reader, Kayla, commented: “These were easy, quick, and so delicious! I’d never made doughnuts before, but these were a huge hit. ★★★★★“
Another reader, Allen, commented: “I’ve had donut pans for a decade and haven’t used them much after a couple less-than-ideal attempts. I decided today to give this recipe a try—and wow—they turned out delicious! Even without the final butter/sugar coating, they are excellent straight from the pan. They taste exactly like my mother’s brown sugar cookies (without all the work of rolling out cookies). Thank you for the recipe! ★★★★★“
Another reader, Yasmine, commented: “Now this was the first time I have ever made baked donuts. I thought they wouldn’t be as good as fried. I was so wrong! These are the best donuts I have had in a long time! They were finished in a single day! Thank you so much. ★★★★★“
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, a whisk, 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 zip-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 it 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 a donut pan with nonstick spray. This recipe makes 8 donuts, so grease 2 cavities of a second donut pan or bake in batches. Set aside.
- Make the donuts: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, brown sugar, milk, and sour cream/yogurt until smooth. Add the melted butter and vanilla, whisking until fully combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Do not overmix. The batter will be thick.
- Transfer the donut batter to a gallon-size zip-top plastic bag and use scissors to snip off the tip of one bottom corner. Pipe the batter into the donut pan cavities, filling each about 1/2–2/3 full.
- Bake for 9–10 minutes or until the donuts spring back when lightly pressed. Cool the donuts in the pan set on a cooling rack for 2 minutes, then remove them from the pan and place on the rack to slightly cool before coating. Re-grease the pan and bake the remaining donut batter.
- Coat the donuts: Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Dip the donuts in the melted butter, then dunk in 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):Â 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 nondairy. 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
looks delicious! just wondering if they will turn out as well if i bake them in a silicone donut mold vs a metal mold.
Hi Monika, we don’t have a silicone mold to test it, but imagine it should work just as well! Let us know if you try.
Sally! Good grief, these are excellent. Made just as recipe stated. Doubled the recipe. The first tray in the oven I overfilled the pans just a little. Only looked like doughnuts on one side. These I did not dunk in butter before rolling in cinnamon and sugar. They coated just fine and tastes amazing. The second batch my husband filled the pan perfectly. They looked just like doughnuts. The pan was warmer and the second batch got a nice crust on the bottom. This batch we did dunk in butter before tossing in cinnamon and sugar. Y’all. Y’all. Ridiculously good. Both ways are good but the butter definitely took this to the next level, well several levels above. Great recipe! Thanks!
First, this is the absolute best recipe for cake donuts that I have ever tried!
I had a yen to make some doughnuts, something that I have always struggled to get right. I also didn’t want to deal with frying. So my search brought me to this recipe. And it was so simple to put together. I have passed this recipe on to two friends already. That first delectable bite had me hooked. Thank you for an awesome recipe!
These were just absolutely delicious. I’ve been craving something cinnamon sugary and these donuts hit the mark. Very flavorful, and I even got away with half the butter and cinnamon sugar for topping; they still had plenty of coating and everyone loved them. Made them the night before and had them at breakfast the following morning — still wonderful and soft. Mine were baked at 8 minutes.
I quadrupled the recipe for an EMS conference. You made 30 EMS professionals extremely happy. They were begging for more! Lol, it made me very popular too.
I used full fat vanilla greek yogurt.
Really easy and so far the best baked donuts I’ve made!! My husband was even pleased. Didn’t change a thing and the taste was just like a donut is supposed to be-puffy, good texture and tastey. Will make again!
I live at 3000 feet elevation and sometimes it impacts my baking. Plus I don’t have a donut pan so I used a muffin tin. I made the cinnamon sugar donuts and the crumble top donuts. Both came out soft and fluffy and delicious, but not the texture of a cake doughnut. It’s like eating coffee cake in a muffin form.
These were so easy and quick to make not to mention amazingly delicious. Thanks for making snacking a quick fun experience with a great outcome
Hi there! Can I refrigerate this batter over night or does it need to be baked right away?
Thank you!
Hi Kendra! The batter should be baked right away.
These got rave reviews. Of course, who doesn’t like a doughnut that’s dipped in butter and sugar.?!?
Made a sugar free version with gluten free flour. Came out amazing!!! Thanks for the great post.
Thank you for a great recipe. I have tried baked donuts in the past and never been happy with the outcome……until today. These were wonderful. They are light and perfectly balanced on flavor. I decided to try a few with a cinnamon flavored glaze and they were also great.
Thanks for such an easy and delicious recipe.
Is it possible with this recipe to make Six Jumbo muffins? If so, how long is the baking time? Thank you
Hi Sandra, we haven’t tried making these donuts as jumbo muffins, so are unsure of the bake time or the results. You might have better luck using this recipe for cinnamon sugar Nutella muffins, and follow the baking instructions for jumbo muffins from this recipe for jumbo blueberry muffins.
Delicious! I’ll be trying the other baked doughnut recipes soon!
They tasted wonderful! Thanks for the recipe!
These baked donuts are delicious. Better than store bought for sure. Easy to make.
Thank you.
Simple to make. Absolutely delicious!
Can I use powdered sugar instead of cinnamon sugar?
Hi Carola, that should work just fine! You can use powdered sugar instead like we do for these powdered sugar donut muffins.
Hi, I enjoy your recipes but I have had issues with your applesauce muffins. They rise at first but the always fall and are mushy in the middle. I have tried cooking them 15 min longer but the middle is still mushy and the outside gets hard.
I have to make them in a mini muffin tin to get them to cook properly.
What am I doing wrong?
Hi Christine, We are sorry that recipe was giving you trouble. Did you change the recipe or make any ingredient substitutions? What type of heat are you using for your oven (all of our recipes are written for conventional heat – not convection/fan forced heat)?
Hi Sally. I love your recipes. I am now dairy free and wondering if you have tried dairy free sour cream and dairy free butter (im ok with the egg).
I going to give it a try.
Hi Michele, We have not tested this recipe with diary free substitutes but let us know if you try anything.
Yes! Baked donuts are actually really easy to make dairy-free. Here’s what I’d swap:
– **Dairy-free butter**: Earth Balance Buttery Sticks or Miyoko’s — 1:1 swap, same amount
– **Dairy-free sour cream**: Kite Hill almond milk sour cream or Forager Project cashew-based sour cream work well in baked goods. They keep donuts moist and tender — same amount as regular
– Everything else in a basic baked donut recipe is usually already dairy-free!
The texture with dairy-free sour cream can be very slightly less rich, but honestly baked donuts coated in cinnamon sugar are quite forgiving — the coating hides any minor differences. Kite Hill sour cream is probably the closest in texture and fat content to regular sour cream for baking.
For myself I need GF flour. If I use a measure for measure do you think the recipe will work?
Hi Kathy, we haven’t tested these with gluten free flour, but let us know if you do.
If I use my mini donut pans, how long should I bake these???
Hi Kim, You can use a mini muffin pan and bake for about 9-10 minutes. That’s how long it takes the spiced apple cider donut holes and the recipes are somewhat similar.