These Strawberry Cake Donuts are a sweet treat anyone can make at home regardless of your skill level. All you need is some fresh strawberries and a donut mold pan! Because we BAKE them, they turn out moist, light and fluffy instead of heavy and greasy. Drizzle your baked donuts with a simple glaze and you will think you should open a bakery.
They would be perfect for a spring gathering brunch, donut party or for breakfast on Mother's Day!
I am happy to share that I partnered with Dairy Council of Florida to bring you this deliciously sweet breakfast treat!
My family owned a donut shop for 36 years so I'd like to think I know my donuts!
My father DID have a strawberry donut he made that was frankly amazing.
Are these strawberry donuts as good as his? Ehhh, no. He fries his cake donuts in oil. Of course his were better! Like my deep fried oreos!
These babies are NOT deep fried in unhealthy oil. Instead, they are baked in the oven. Much healthier, much less greasy and much lighter!
Along with my Pink Chocolate Covered Strawberries, they would be perfect for girl's baby showers, Mother's Day, bridal shower or simply to make with your kids on the weekend!
You may also like these 25 Finger Food Desserts for any party.
Ingredients
- Strawberries: Find the reddest most ripe strawberries possible! The more ripe, the sweeter your donuts will be which is what we all want right?
- Flour: For this recipe, I used a combination of cake AND all purpose flour. The cake flour will give your donuts a much lighter consistency and texture.
- Sugar: I use regular granulated white sugar but you can use any sugar you wish.
- Eggs: Eggs help to hold your donuts together and are a must.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk gives baked sweets a light, fluffy and tangy flavor so definitely grab it if you can! If not, you can add vinegar or lemon juice to regular whole milk to replicate it. Here is a simple recipe.
- Baking Powder/Soda: I used both leavening agents to give my donuts an extra lift! Make sure your ingredients are not expired! That could leave some sad donuts.
- Vanilla: Added flavor that really is a must in any baked goods.
How To Make Strawberry Cake Donuts:
Step 1: Add your strawberries to a food processor and puree until smooth but chunky. Set aside.
Step 2: Add your sugar butter and egg in a mixing bowl until well blended. This should take 3-4 minutes on high speed.
Step 3: Add in your vanilla, buttermilk and strawberries and mix again until blended.
Step 4: Add in your dry ingredients and place your mixer on LOW speed. Mix until everything is JUST incorporated. You do not want to overmix your donut batter!
Step 5: Scoop your mixture into a plastic bag or piping bag. Cut off the corner and squeeze batter into greased donut tins. This allows for a mess free pan!
Step 6: Bake donuts in a 400 degree F oven for 7-8 minutes.
Step 7: Whisk together powdered sugar and milk. Pour over donuts and allow to set before serving.
📃 NOTE: You can print exact quantities with detailed instructions below!
Expert Tips
- Using ingredients like buttermilk and cake flour DO make a difference!
- Grease your donut tins very well and remove them while they are still hot to prevent them from sticking.
- Add more sugar to your batter if you like sweeter donuts.
- Use extra ripe strawberries for the most strawberry flavor.
- Double ice your donuts for a thicker glazed topping.
Substitutions
- If you don't have buttermilk, you can add lemon juice or vinegar to regular whole milk.
- Add other berries like blueberries or raspberries to your batter.
- Use different flavored extracts like almond for a fun twist.
The Donut Glaze
Glaze is made with just confectioners sugar and a liquid! You can use water, juice, or milk like I used here. Either one works and will get the job done. You want the consistency to be thick enough to pour. If it is too thin, it won't create a thick sugary shell like we all love on our donuts!
If you want, you can add pink or red food coloring to your glaze too! This is a fun option for kids' birthday parties!
"How Do I Get My Donuts More Pink?!"
Using strawberries alone won't make your donuts super pink in color. But you CAN up the pink 'ante' if you wish.
Just check out the difference in the photos above! Add a few drops of pink (or red) food coloring to you donut batter and you will be amazed at how much "prettier" they look.
FAQ's
You may not have used enough oil. You can add butter or shortening too for a thicker coating. Another tip* Sometimes I coat the tins with flour as well. This really helps to keep them from sticking.
No but your donuts will be much lighter and fluffier rather than dense.
I recommend using whole milk because the fat will give your donuts a better texture and they will taste better!
Other brunch sweets you might like:
Mini Cinnamon Sugar Brioche French Toast Bites
Hawaiian Sweet Bread French Toast
Mini Egg Custard Tartlets (Using A Muffin Tin!)
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BAKED Strawberry Cake Donuts
Equipment
- 1-2 Donut Pan Baking Molds Get one off of Amazon!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter, unsalted
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 egg
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ¾ cup cake flour
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 12-15 strawberries ((about 1 cup pureed))
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Trim your strawberries and add them to a food processor. Pulse until you have a chunky puree. See photo above. (You don't want to over-pulse so it turns complely to liquid.) Set aside.
- Mix together your butter, sugar and egg in a large mixing bowl on medium-high speed for about 2 minutes.
- Add in your vanilla, buttermilk and strawberry puree and mix again until blended.
- Add in both flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt and mix on low speed until JUST incorporated. You do not want to overmix! Scrape down the sides of the bowl if needed.
- Add donut batter to a large piping bag or freezer bag. Add bag to a large cup or mug and fold it over the sides of the cup. (This makes for a neater fill!)Use a rubber spatula to scoop the batter neatly into the bag. Close bag and snip off the corner of the freezer bag (if using).
- Grease donut tin and squeeze batter into each tin carefully. You want to fill the tin no more than HALFWAY.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes on the middle rack.
- Whisk together your powdered sugar and milk in a bowl and set aside.
- Add donuts to a wire rack and pour glaze over top of each allowing the glaze to drip off. Alternatively, you can dip the top of each donut into the glaze one by one. The glaze will harden after about 20-30 minutes. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Using ingredients like buttermilk and cake flour DO make a difference!
- Grease your donut tins very well and remove them while they are still hot to prevent them from sticking.
- Add more sugar to your batter if you like sweeter donuts.
- Use extra ripe strawberries for the most strawberry flavor.
- Double ice your donuts for a thicker glazed topping.
Tried the recipe? I'd love to hear your thoughts below!