Birthday Cake Donuts
Servings 20 donuts
These Happy Birthday Donuts combine pantry staple ingredients with rainbow sprinkles and cotton candy flavoring to create light and fluffy glazed donuts! Serve up just under two dozen homemade donuts in only 25 minutes!
Ingredients
Donuts
- 1½ cup all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ⅓ cup rainbow sprinkles
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ⅓ cup whole milk room temperature
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon cotton candy flavoring optional, see notes
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup salted butter melted
Icing
- 2 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- Pink food coloring
- Sprinkles optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease donut pans with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, light brown sugar, granulated white sugar, baking powder, and the rainbow sprinkles until combined.1½ cup all-purpose flour, ⅓ cup light brown sugar, ¼ cup granulated sugar, 1½ teaspoons baking powder, ⅓ cup rainbow sprinkles
- In a separate bowl beat together the eggs, whole milk, lemon juice, cotton candy flavoring, and vanilla. Whisk them together until combined.2 large eggs, ⅓ cup whole milk, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, ½ teaspoon cotton candy flavoring, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Whisk in the melted butter and then add the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix it all together until completely combined.¼ cup salted butter
- Use a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner cut off to pipe the donut batter into the prepared donut pan(s). You want to fill them just over 75% full but not much more than that, or they could overflow while baking
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a donut comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and allow the donuts to cool for 3 to 5 minutes and then gently twist them out of the pan and place them on a wire rack.
- While the donuts are baking, use a stand or hand mixer and a medium-sized mixing bowl to blend together the cream cheese and powdered sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. You will want to start the mixer on the lowest setting so that the powdered sugar doesn’t fly out of the bowl.2 ounces cream cheese, 2 cups powdered sugar
- Slowly add in the whole milk, continuing to beat, until completely combined. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and mix again for a minute or two until the glaze is completely smooth. You should have a thick glaze at this point.2 tablespoons whole milk
- Mix in the pink food coloring until you reach your desired shade of pink.Pink food coloring
- Dip the donuts in the glaze, or pour it over the top of the donuts while they are on the wire rack, and garnish with party sprinkles, optional.Sprinkles
Notes
- Cotton Candy Flavor: I recommend using Amoretti cotton candy flavoring, I find that LorAnn has a very unpleasant flavor and don't recommend using it in this recipe. You can also use cotton candy sugar in place of the granulated sugar in this recipe. If you can't find or don't have time to order cotton candy extract, you can use almond flavoring or more vanilla flavoring.
- What's The Best Way To Store These Birthday Cake Doughnuts? You can store them uncovered at room temperature for up to 24 hours. For longer storage, place them in an airtight container and store them at room temperature for up to 3 days. The donuts can also be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
- Why Did My Glaze Turn Out Lumpy? I'd say the cream cheese wasn't brought up to room temperature before using it. If the cream cheese is too cold, it will lump up instead of cream perfectly into the sugar.
- How Do I Know If My Donut Batter Is Mixed Together Enough? The batter should be completely combined without any lumps but not stiff. You want it to be thicker than cake batter but softer than cookie batter. Be careful not to overmix, though, or the donuts will turn out dense and thick!
- Do I Have To Whisk The Dry Ingredients Together? I highly recommend completing this simple step! Doing so ensures the baking powder is evenly distributed throughout the batter. It also ensures that the powders aren't lumpy, preventing you from having to over-mix the batter to get them out later while mixing.
- Can I Fill The Donut Cavities To The Top With Batter? You don't want to overfill the cavities! These donuts do rise a bit, so if they're overfilled, they'll rise up and connect. This will cause the hole in the middle of the donuts to close up!
- Do I Have To Use Lemon Juice In This Recipe? It is necessary for the donut batter, so yes.
- Can I Use Unsalted Butter Instead? Yes! I would just suggest adding a pinch of salt to the dry ingredients if you choose to use unsalted butter.
- What If I Don't Have A Piping Bag For The Batter? Easy! Just simply add the batter to a Ziploc bag and then cut one of the corners off. You could also just carefully spoon the batter into the donut pan.
- Can I Substitute Half and Half For The Whole Milk? You can, or you could also use lower-fat milk. Just keep in mind you may end up with a slightly less tender and rich donut as well as a thinner and less rich glaze.
Nutrition
Calories: 157kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 26mg | Sodium: 37mg | Potassium: 66mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 145IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 1mg
Find it online: www.sugarandsoul.co/happy-birthday-donuts/