Churros and Donuts!
The bonus: No yeast, no rise time, and no frying
My family loves both churros and donuts so I thought it would be fun to combine the two of them into one. The results were amazing. Just 30 minutes and you have warm fluffy donuts.
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What is a churro donut?
A cross between a churro and a donut, these treats are packed full with delicious cinnamon. “Quick” bread donuts, means there is no yeast involved and they come together easily. Unlike traditional donuts and churros, they are baked instead of fried.
The texture of baked donuts will be more cake-like. Because there is no yeast they will be more dense, but still tender and soft. The best part is you can make these donuts at home quickly.
Ingredients for Baked Churro Donuts
This easy recipe uses common ingredients from the pantry and refrigerator which makes them convenient to make anytime.
The Batter Ingredients:
- Unsalted Butter – it’s okay to substitute salted butter
- Milk – we’ve tested this recipe with both 1% and 2% for this recipe
- Eggs – you’ll need one whole egg and one egg white
- Vanilla Extract – we love to make our own vanilla
- All-purpose Flour – no need for specialty flour
- Sugar – you’ll need some for the batter and some for the topping
- Cinnamon – we like Ceylon or Saigon Cinnamon but any cinnamon will work!
- Baking Powder – this helps the donuts rise
- Salt – salt is a great way to balance the sweet flavor of baked goods
The Topping Ingredients:
- Butter – we used unsalted butter
- Sugar and Cinnamon – the flavors of churros!
Baked Churro Donuts in Cinnamon Sugar
How to make Churro Donuts:
- Preheat the oven to 350˚F
- Oil or butter a non-stick donut pan. Make sure it is extra well coated to prevent any sticking.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl – flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon
- In a larger bowl combine the liquids – melted cooled butter, milk, egg, the additional egg white, and vanilla extract
- Slowly add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix very gently, just to combine. Do not overmix the batter which can overwork the gluten in the flour.
- Fill the cavity of each donut mold about 3/4 full. Do not overfill.
- Bake for about 20-25 minutes on the center rack of the oven. Donuts should have a slight spring if you touch them, or you can test them with a toothpick. It should be clean with no real crumbs attached.
- Cool the donuts for about 5 minutes before removing them from the pan.
- To quickly remove flip the pan over and gently tap on the bottom.
- Let cool for another 15 minutes on a wire cooling rack.
- While the donuts are cooling, melt the butter and let it cool to room temperature.
- In a shallow bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon, and mix well.
- Using a pastry brush coat donuts all over with melted butter and then toss with cinnamon-sugar mixture, flipping to coat all over.
Are baked donuts healthier?
While we wouldn’t say baked donuts are a “healthy” treat they are certainly healthier than their fried counterparts. The average baked donut has 190 calories and 8 grams of fat, whereas the average glazed fried donut has 260 calories and 14 grams of fat.
Using a Donut Pan:
We use a donut pan from Wilton but any brand will work. Here is a link to the one we use: Wilton Donut Pans. These pans work well because they are non-stick and just the right size. The silicone pans also work well.
Much like making a cake, you will still need to coat the pans well with non-stick cooking spray or oil to sure the donuts release easily after baking.
What is the flavor of Churro Donuts?
The baked churro donut is all about the cinnamon! There is cinnamon in the batter and more cinnamon in the coating. So much cinnamon goodness! Our personal preference is Ceylon or Saignon cinnamon because it has a deeper flavor, but any cinnamon will work.
It’s important to use pure vanilla extract. If you haven’t started making your own yet check out our recipe here for making homemade vanilla extract. It’s just 2 ingredients!
Finishing the Churro Donuts:
Once your donuts have cooled you will “paint” them in melted butter. I like to use a pastry brush to coat my donuts with butter rather than dunking them because you can ensure a light coat. You really need just enough butter to make sure the cinnamon sugar coating sticks. Like I said before – it’s all about the cinnamon!
After buttering the baked donuts you will then roll them in a shallow bowl of cinnamon sugar. Make sure you coat the whole donut!
Want to dip your churro donuts in chocolate sauce?
The answer is: Of course you do!
You can make a batch of our decadent warm 10-minute Hot Fudge Sauce or our Easy Salted Caramel Sauce to serve alongside these churro donuts and then save the leftovers for your next bowl of ice cream.
Other great desserts to try:
- Blueberry Lemon Scones
- Dark Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- One Bowl Brownies
- Mexican Wedding Cookies
- Our Easy Apple Crisp is full of cinnamon goodness too!
Baked Churro Donuts with Chocolate Sauce
Equipment
- Donut Pan
Ingredients
Donuts:
- 4 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled to almost room temperature
- ⅔ cups milk
- 1 egg
- 1 egg white
- 1 Tbsp vanilla
- 1 cup flour
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
Cinnamon Topping:
- 4 Tbsp butter, melted and slightly cooled
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 Tbsp cinnamon
Instructions
Donuts:
- Preheat oven to 350°FHeavily oil or butter a non-stick donut pan.
- In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.
- In a medium bowl whisk together melted cooled butter, milk, egg, egg white and vanilla until well combined.
- Slowly add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix gently until combined and no lumps remain. Do not overmix.
- Fill the cavity of each donut mold about 3/4 full.
- Cook about 20-25 minutes. Donuts are done when they have a slight spring to the touch. They will not be tall like yeast donuts. Cool on a wire cooling rack.
- Allow donuts to cool for about 5 minutes in the pan. Loosen around the edges and center and flip the pan to release the donuts. Allow another 5 minutes to cool.
Cinnamon Topping:
- While donuts are cooling, melt butter and let cool to room temperature but not solidify, in a small bowl.
- In a shallow bowl combine sugar and cinnamon.
- With a pastry brush coat all sides of the donuts with butter. Coat all sides in sugar-cinnamon mixture. Repeat with remaining donuts and serve.
- If not serving right away keep covered.
Notes
- Finish with our 10-minute Hot Fudge Sauce
- Here’s the link to Easy Salted Caramel Sauce