Easy 2 Ingredient Baked Donuts

Start the day with these delicious, fluffy Homer Simpson inspired baked donuts! Baked Donuts are made with only 2 ingredients and come out perfect every time.

pink baked donut on a plate

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The weekends this winter have become full on baking sessions in our house. My toddler loves “helping” me bake – and even more tasting the recipes!

Last year we started a tradition of having donuts on her half birthday, so this year we decided to try to make them together.

After a few tests, we came up with this easy and delicious donut recipe! We added on a little frosting and sprinkles and we had the perfect baked donuts.

We made some chocolate ones, vanilla with pink frosting (these reminded me of Homer Simpson LOL), and Funfetti with vanilla frosting.

Ingredients

Box of Cake Mix (Any flavor)

Unsweetened Applesauce

Equipment

To make this recipe you’ll need:

Mixing Bowl

Whisk

12-count Donut Pan (or 2 6-count donut pans)

How to Make Baked Donuts

Preheat an oven to 425 degrees and spray a donut pan with non stick spray.

In a medium bowl, combine the cake mix and unsweetened apple sauce until it makes a batter.

Pour the batter evenly into the donut mold until each mold is about 1/2 way full. You may have a little extra batter.

Bake the donuts for 12 minutes, or until golden browned. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before decorating.

To decorate, put a few scoops of frosting into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for about 20 seconds, or until the frosting becomes liquid.

Spoon the frosting over the donuts until completely coated and then top with sprinkles

close up of chocolate baked donut on a wire rack

Calories and Nutrition

Serving Size 1 donut

Number of Servings 12

 Calories 196 – Total Fat 2 grams – Saturated Fat 1 grams – Trans Fat 0 grams – Unsaturated Fat 1 grams – Cholesterol 0 milligrams – Sodium 325 milligrams – Carbohydrates 43 grams – Fiber 1 grams – Sugar 25 grams – Protein 2 grams

Nutritional information will vary depending on the ingredient brands you use. To get the most accurate nutritional information, I recommend using a free nutritional calculator like MyFitnessPal.com

How to Store Leftovers

Leftovers (if there are any 🙂 can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

I don’t recommend freezing leftovers.

Recipe Tips and Variations

This recipe can be made with any flavor cake mix! A few of my favorites to use are chocolate, funfetti and vanilla!

When frosting the donuts, I recommend using a spoon to pour the frosting over the donuts. When I tried dipping the donuts I found they fell apart and the frosting just didn’t come out as pretty.

I don’t recommend using any cake mix that is “extra moist”. When testing these out I found the extra moist cake mixes generally made the donuts a little too crumbly and they didn’t hold together after being frosted.

overhead of baked donuts on a cooling rack

Frequently Asked Questions

What Type of Cake Mix Should I Use?

I’ve found that most store bought cake mixes will work perfectly for this recipe except any that are labeled “Extra Moist”. I noticed that donuts made with “Extra Moist” cake mix tend to come out more crumbly and don’t really hold up well with frosting on them.

What Can I Use If I Don’t Have a Donut Pan?

If you don’t have a donut pan, you could also make these in a muffin tin and put a little piece of alluminum foil in the middle of each muffin to create the “donut hole”.

What’s the Difference Between Cake Donuts and Regular Donuts?

Cake donuts are a little heavier and more cake-y than regular donuts. Regular donuts are made with yeast and fried, and typically come out a little lighter and more airy. Both versions are delicious!

What Can I Use Instead of Applesauce?

If you don’t have applesauce on hand, you could swap it out for a can of pumpkin pie puree (this would be a great way to make a pumpkin spice donut!)

More Breakfast Recipes

Breakfast Banana Split

Banana Bread Cinnamon Rolls

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Blueberry Baked Oatmeal

Banana Bread

Instant Pot Cinnamon Rolls

Homemade Bagels

Yogurt Parfait Granola Cups

Baked Donuts

close up of chocolate baked donut on a wire rack
Start the day with these delicious, fluffy Homer Simpson inspired baked donuts! Baked Donuts are made with only 2 ingredients and come out perfect every time.
Ali
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 17 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 box cake mix any flavor
  • 2 cups unsweetened apple sauce
  • Frosting
  • Sprinkles

Instructions

  • Preheat an oven to 425 degrees and spray a donut pan with non stick spray.
  • In a medium bowl, combine the cake mix and unsweetened apple sauce until it makes a batter.
  • Pour the batter evenly into the donut mold until each mold is about 1/2 way full. You may have a little extra batter.
  • Bake the donuts for 12 minutes, or until golden browned. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before decorating.
  • To decorate, put a few scoops of frosting into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for about 20 seconds, or until the frosting becomes liquid.
  • Spoon the frosting over the donuts until completely coated and then top with sprinkles

Notes

  • The best type of cake mix to use for this recipe is any type that is not a "super moist" variety. Super moist cake mix makes the donuts extremely crumbly and I find they don’t hold together too well after frosting.

Pin for Later

two ingredient baked donut pinterest pin

Author

  • Ali Van Straten

    Ali Van Straten is the founder and journalist of Champagne and Coffee Stains. She is a Peloton expert, certified running coach and certified nutrition coach. Champagne and Coffee Stains provides information and resources on Peloton Interactive, running and recipes.

    View all posts https://www.champagneandcoffeestains.com

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2 Comments

  1. could you use 2 cups sour cream for sour cream f
    donuts?

    1. You might be able to! I haven’t tried that yet

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