Baked Vanilla Bean Donuts with Chocolate Glaze

What had happened was...I ordered a donut pan on Amazon.  So, I made these baked donuts, dipped them in chocolate, and sprinkled them with goodness. And a Sunday morning was made.

Donuts were always a weekend treat growing up, and they still are. I am partial to the chocolate glazed with walnuts, and as you can see in the picture, I made sure to make my favorite.  I especially love vanilla bean anything because of the tiny flecks of vanilla beans that show up through anything it is used in, like vanilla bean ice cream, vanilla bean frosting, vanilla bean cupcakes, and these vanilla bean donuts!  Vanilla bean just adds a gourmet sweetness and touch to everything.  

Obviously baked donuts are not the same as their fried, yeasty counterparts, so I can't even compare. These baked donuts are great on their own merit.  They were pretty much tiny vanilla bean cakes with holes in the middle with chocolate drizzled on top.  Maybe we can call these a little healthy.  Maybe.  I mean, are they still considered healthy when you eat 3 (aka 4)?

I see myself making these pretty often, maybe taking turns with Sunday morning pancakes.  I really want to try some lemon poppyseed donuts with a lemon zest glaze. Or maybe lemon poppyseed pancakes with a lemon zest syrup! Or, dare I, both!

Definitely make these if you own a nifty donut pan!

Vanilla Bean Baked Donuts

1 cup all purpose flour, unbleached
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup milk (any)
1/4 cup plain greek yogurt
1 large egg
2 tbs unsalted butter, melted
1 vanilla bean pod, scraped (use a sharp knife to cut down the middle of the pod and scrape seeds out with a spoon or butter knife)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Glaze:

1/4 cup milk (any)
1 1/2 cups powdered/confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla
Assorted donut toppings, optional

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Spray a donut pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.

For the donuts: whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and granulated sugar together in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Whisk the milk, yogurt, and egg together until smooth. Add the melted butter, vanilla beans, 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 very thick. 

Spoon the batter into the donut pan.  Or you can do what I did, take a ziplock bag, pour the batter into the bag, and cut a corner off the bottom of the bag and pipe the batter into each donut cup, filling 2 ∕ 3 –3 ∕ 4 of the way full.  This way was much easier!

Bake for 9–10 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Allow the donuts to slightly cool before glazing on a cooling rack. Once the donuts are cooled a bit, they're easier to dunk in the glaze. Mmmmmm, glaze.

For the glaze: combine the glaze ingredients in a medium saucepan over  low heat. Whisk until the glaze is smooth. Remove from heat, and begin dunking the donuts, one by one, into the glaze.  Transfer each donut to a wire rack over a baking sheet to catch the glaze drippings.  If you have extra glaze, you can dunk each donut again to make it EXTRA glaze-y...

Sprinkle with any toppings you wish, or devour them plain jane!  Either way, they are fantastic little donuts to be relished on a Sunday morning with your coffee.  

Enjoy!!