Ingredients

Donuts:

• 2 cups cake flour (see Chef’s Note below)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk, at room temperature
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Vanilla Glaze:

• 2 cups  confectioners’ sugar
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 3–4 tbsp heavy cream
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• pinch salt
• 1–2 drops red food coloring
• for garnish: rainbow sprinkles*

Instructions

Donuts:

Preheat oven to 425°F and spray a standard doughnut pan with nonstick spray.

Whisk together cake flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Combine buttermilk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl; add to flour mixture and fold in just until incorporated.

Spoon batter into a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip and fill each doughnut cup 3/4 full. Bake about 8 minutes, until the tops spring back when touched. Turn doughnuts out on a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining batter, allowing pan to cool completely and spraying with nonstick spray in between batches.  If making mini donuts, cut the baking time back to 6 minutes.

Make the Glaze:

Make the glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk the glaze ingredients together until completely smooth. Add more cream to thin or more confectioners’ sugar to thicken, if desired. I always add a little salt to offset the sweetness.  

Set rack with cooled doughnuts over a piece of waxed paper or inside a sheet pan.   Dip each donut into the glaze, then place back on the rack. Top with sprinkles.  To make multiple colors, I dipped 1/3 of the donuts in the white glaze.  Then, I added a few drops of pink food coloring to get the desired color.  I dipped another third of the donuts in the pink glaze.  Finally, I added some red and more pink food coloring to get a deeper tone (if you want red, don’t add any more pink) and dipped the last third in this glaze.

Donuts taste best the first day – store leftover donuts at room temperature or wrap well and freeze up to 2 months.

Chef’s Notes:

To make your own cake flour, place 2 tablespoons cornstarch in an empty 1-cup measure, then top up with flour. Sift the mixture several times to evenly distribute the cornstarch (for each cup of flour called for, you will need 2 tbsp cornstarch).

Freezing Instructions: You can freeze the glazed or plain donuts for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and warm up to your liking in the microwave. I usually just zap ’em for a couple seconds– even with the glaze on. Very tasty.

Double Batch: Instead of doubling the recipe, make two batches. I find it’s easy to over-mix when working with a double batch in 1 bowl. Over-mixing may lead to too-dense donuts.

Recipe from Tutti-Dolci and Sally’s Baking Addiction