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Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts

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Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts have a soft, tender inside and a crunchy, sugary crust!Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts - a delicious and easy breakfast!

Happy National Donut Day, friends! 

And, the nerd and editor in me feels compelled to point out that yes, doughnut is the appropriate spelling. But, looks like we can’t be bothered with proper or full spellings these days – oh where did our attention spans go?! – so we’ve got a nice little nickname all picked out. Going with it.

To celebrate this lovely little holiday, I’m bringing you some whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts!

Cinnamon-sugar toast was one of my favorites growing up. We had a toaster oven that we used for this toast – as well as for those Pillsbury cinnamon roll biscuits with the frosting. You know the ones – where by the time they were cooked, you hardly had any frosting left to put on them. Or was that just me?

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts - a delicious and easy breakfast!

Anyway, I would butter up some toast, add a healthy coating of cinnamon-sugar — we even had a spice jar of it already mixed and ready to go — and chow down. The simple joys, right?

These donuts bring those same flavors back but in an even better package! 

I had asked for donut pans for Christmas several years ago – and got two from my lovely sister-in-law. Somehow, amidst J being a baby and our moving houses the following year, they never got used. #serioustragedy

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts

Well, I’ve been making up for lost time. We’ve been on a baked donuts kick (as well as our waffle kick and never-ending muffin craze – seriously good breakfast eats here, if you ever want to stop by) and I’ve been trying out all kinds.

The husband and kiddos are happy for me to experiment. 🙂

These cinnamon-sugar baked donuts are a definite favorite and such a classic combination for me. The sugar coating on top creates a fabulous crust for the donut, which is amazingly tender and soft on the inside. Perfect contrast.

And let me assure you, baked donuts are every bit as delicious as their fried counterparts. I actually prefer them!

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts

A few quick notes for you:

  • I suggest you buy two donut pans (I have these) so you have enough to make for guests. This recipe yields 6, which is perfect for just our family, but you will want to double up if you are serving people – these will be devoured!
  • I use a plastic Ziploc bag to pipe these into the donut pans. Just put your batter into a sandwich or small storage bag, use some scissors to snip off one of the bottom corners of the bag and you can squeeze the batter out into your prepared donut pans. You can also just spoon it in, but I think this helps keep them neat and well-shaped.
  • I always turn out my baked donuts as soon as they are finished. I find this helps to prevent them from getting soggy from the steam. I just use my oven mitt to turn the pan upside down on top of a paper towel or kitchen towel, then use my other hand, also in a mitt, to tap the bottom of the donut pan. They should fall right out. Just turn them every couple of minutes so the donuts cool on both sides (if you leave them sitting down, the bottoms will sit in that extra steam and moisture and get soggy).
  • Give them just a minute or two to cool down – and to prevent sogginess – and then dip in your melted butter and then in your cinnamon-sugar mixture. Try not to drool.
  • We have kept extras of these in the refrigerator for up to two days and they didn’t get soggy.

So whether it’s today, over the weekend, for Father’s Day, or just for a fun breakfast this summer, I hope you’ll join me on the baked donuts team.

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts

(M is telling me photo shoot is over, snack time is on. I’m with her!)

Enjoy!

Yield: 6 donuts

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts - a delicious and easy breakfast!

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts have a soft, tender inside and a crunchy, sugary crust!

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

For the donuts:

  • 1 cup white whole wheat flour
  • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup milk (regular, soy or almond is fine)
  • 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt (I use non-fat)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the topping:

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350. Spray donut pan with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and egg until light and fluffy. Add milk, Greek yogurt and vanilla and whisk until smooth. (You want to break up all the yogurt clumps.)
  4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine, but don’t overmix.
  5. You can spoon the mixture into the prepared donut pans, but I prefer to add the batter to a plastic bag, snip a corner and pipe it in.
  6. Bake donuts at 350 for 8-10 minutes, until done.
  7. Meanwhile, melt butter in a small, shallow bowl. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a separate small, shallow bowl.
  8. Remove donuts from oven and turn out onto a kitchen towel or paper towels to prevent them from getting soggy in the pan. Let cool for a minute or two, turning the donuts over once.
  9. Dunk each donut in butter then in cinnamon sugar, pressing down and twisting the donut to get it to adhere all over.
  10. Serve warm and enjoy!

Notes

You can keep extra donuts, even ones that have been buttered and sugared, in the fridge and they don’t get soggy. Ours were still great two days later.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 199Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 42mgSodium: 214mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 2gSugar: 19gProtein: 5g
© Kathryn Doherty
Cuisine: American / Category: Breakfast & Brunch

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product through an affiliate link, your cost will be the same but I receive a small commission. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Whole wheat cinnamon sugar baked donuts - a delicious and easy breakfast!

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Comments

  1. Dawn @ Girl Heart Food says

    Interesting – doughnut being the correct spelling….good to know 😉 I love a good donut (or doughnut), but don’t eat them often ’cause they are loaded with sugar, fat and calories. They are more of a treat every once in a while. These, however, seem almost guilt free! Woo hoo! I would have no problem eating these every day or devouring the entire batch myself! So, yes, I would definitely need the second pan. Pinned, of course. Have a lovely weekend!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      Thanks Dawn! I definitely only make them when I know my family will be here to help polish them off. So addictive! But yes, much healthier so it’s OK to sneak an extra donut or two 😉 Happy weekend to you!

      Reply

  4. Rachelle @ Beer Girl Cooks says

    Happy National Donut Day! The English major in me usually goes for the doughnut spelling too, but I’m embracing your care-free attitude and rolling with donut. Either way, I love cinnamon sugar and these donuts sound absolutely delicious! I had a compulsion to buy a donut pan a few months ago and immediately whished I had bought 2. I totally need to remedy that and whip up some of these cinnamon donuts!

    Reply

  5. Jessica @ Citrus Blossom Bliss says

    I just bought a donut pan this month – oh my goodness am I sad I only bought one! These donuts look like absolute perfection. Cinnamon and sugar is one of my favorite combos, too. We used to eat it on buttered toast and my mom would call it “snack”. Happy National Donut Day!!

    Reply

  7. Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says

    I’m cringing everytime I use the hashtag #nationaldonutday and not doughnut….I hate that that one’s the trending one! AHH! But yea, we can’t be bothered I guess 😉 And I literally had NO clue when I posted my doughnut recipe this week that today was THE doughnut day!

    Reply

  8. Lisa @ Chocolate Meets Strawberry says

    Oh my gosh Kathryn, I absolutely must try these!! I have been trying to get my hands on a donut pan for the longest time but every time I go to the shops to get one they are sold out. I guess baked donuts are just really popular so those pans are selling like hotcakes! 😛 I would never believe these are actually healthier and low in fat, and I bet they taste decadent rather than like ‘health food’. We’re going to the shops today so I will have another look for a donut pan. Fingers crossed!!

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      I’m so with you Anne – I don’t do fried foods. I hope you give these a try – baked is every bit as good when it comes to donuts!

      Reply

  11. Kate @ Framed Cooks says

    I am JUST finding out (two days late!) about National Donut Day – I think I definitely deserve a raincheck, don’t you? Or I can just catch up by making these delectable looking ones!

    Reply

  13. Brie says

    Haha we had a little cinnamon sugar shaker at my house too 🙂 These donuts look perfectly delicious Kathryn and I love that they are made with whole wheat flour and yogurt = so wholesome! Somehow I actually have 4 donut pans so of course I’ve pinned to make this weekend… if I can wait that long 🙂

    Reply

  15. Terry Walker says

    These look absolutely amazing! I’m throwing a baby shower this week and was trying to find another snack I wanted to add to the table and these will be perfect! Thank you for sharing 🙂

    Reply

  17. Kelly says

    I made these yesterday and they were amazing! I swapped out the sugar on the inside for stevia and everyone in my house couldn’t stop saying how good they were.

    Reply

  18. Marisa says

    Thanks for the delicious recipe! I made these today and they were fantastic! So fluffy! I followed instructions exactly. I’ll have to make them again. My daughter is sick with a fever but these made her day. My husband loved them too!

    Reply

    • Kathryn Doherty says

      Hi, thanks so much for taking the time to bring that to my attention; I appreciate it. Unfortunately, I don’t think there’s much I can do about it. I guess I’ll just hope even more people get some donut deliciousness out of it. 😊

      Reply

  20. Stacey Bell says

    Made these donuts for my family..the donuts were delicious! I love sweets but I’m diabetic so these did the trick. The only downside is I only made one tray of six and they’re gone. It’s okay, making more donuts real soon. Thank you for sharing this recipe.

    Reply

  21. Viby says

    Omg finally found a healthy version of a 🍩!!! So glad.

    Can’t wait to try it out!:)

    Thank you! Recipe saved:)

    Reply

  22. Susan says

    Hi!
    I’m going to make this today for national doughnut day and I was wondering if I can substitute coconut sugar for brown sugar?

    Reply

    • Kathryn Doherty says

      Yay for doughnut day! I haven’t used coconut sugar so I’m not sure of any adjustments that might be needed to the rest of the recipe. Would love to hear if you try it though!

      Reply

  23. Pooja says

    Hi,

    I made these gorgeousness today, but they are a little too dense. How to get the fluffy light consistency?

    Reply

    • Kathryn Doherty says

      Hi there! So, here’s a few pointers that might help: Be sure to measure the flour carefully; if you use too much, that can weigh down the batter. Also, I use white whole wheat flour. If you’re using whole wheat flour, which is more dense, you’ll want to use a little less than what’s called for. Also, be sure not to overmix the batter, which can develop the gluten too much and make the doughnuts a little more tough. Finally, be sure to pop these straight in the oven once they are mixed and ready to go. If they sit out, that can affect how they rise and the texture. I hope that helps!

      Reply

      • Priyam says

        Hi! I tried the recipe with flax eggs and whole-wheat flour, they were soft and nice however little dense. I added more milk as well since I used whole-wheat flour. Just wanted to check what should be the consistency of the batter.

        Reply

        • Kathryn Doherty says

          They donuts should definitely be light and fluffy after they’ve baked. The batter is pretty thick though. I pipe it in using a bag and we get a large snake-like tube around each donut cup in the pan. If you’re using whole wheat flour instead of white whole wheat flour – or instead of whole wheat and all-purpose mixed together – it does help to use a little less, maybe about 3/4 cup or just over that, since that flour is more dense. Hope that helps!

          Reply

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