Gingerbread Donuts

‘Tis the season for all things gingerbread including these Baked Gingerbread Donuts! These donuts are topped with a Cream Cheese Frosting and festive sprinkles that will make any holiday morning even better!

This post may contain affiliate links. This means that if you click a link and make a purchase, I may receive an affiliate commission at no cost to you. Please see the full disclosure for further information and thank you for your support!

These Baked Gingerbread Donuts are the perfect holiday breakfast or a sweet treat. They are festive, easy to make, and delicious. Who could ask for more? Add some holiday-colored sprinkles and Christmas morning is done. Did I mention these are also delicious with coffee?

Ingredients For Easy Gingerbread Donuts

• all-purpose flour
• baking soda
• sugar
• cinnamon
• ground ginger
• ground cloves
• fresh ground nutmeg 
• molasses
• vanilla extract
• sour cream
• milk
• vegetable oil
• egg

How to Make Baked Gingerbread Donuts

1. Preheat the oven to 350° and prepare the donut pan with non-stick spray.
2. Put the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and whisk together.
3. In another mixing bowl, add the wet ingredinets and whisk together.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined.
5. Spoon the batter into the prepared donut pan. Bake for 14 minutes and then remove to cool on a rack.
6. In a medium mixing bowl, add the frosting ingredients and whisk until fully combined and smooth. Decorate and enjoy!

Other Ways to Top These Donuts

If you don’t want or like cream cheese frosting, here are some other ideas for finishing these Gingerbread Donuts.

• Roll each cooled donut in melted butter and then in a mixture of cinnamon and sugar.
• Make a simple glaze with 1 cup of confectioners powdered sugar, 1 tbsp milk, and 1/2 tsp vanilla.
• Add Candied Ginger to the batter or on top!

Tools for Baking Donuts

It’s always a good idea to have the right tools for the job. Below are a few of my favorite things when it comes to making donuts.

Donut Baking Pans

I personally have a silicone donut pan and I like it a lot. It’s easy to remove baked donuts and it’s easy to clean. The only downside is the silicone starts to change color over time. Another option is a non-stick metal pan. The one below is nice because it has 12 slots.

Mixing Bowls

You can never have enough mixing bowls in my opinion. Here are a few sets that make baking so much easier when you have a clean bowl ready instead of searching and cleaning the only one you have (you know who you are 😉).

Whisks

Yes, there is such thing as a bad whisk. If you have an inexpensive whisk, it will probably lose shape over time or bend while whisking (been there done that). A metal whisk is a must-have in any kitchen. I also love a silicone whisk because it scrapes the side of the bowl as it mixes.

More Fun and Easy Desserts to Try

• Easy Cake Bites
• Instant Pot Strawberry Cheesecake
• Easy Passion Fruit Bars
• Apple Cinnamon Swirl Bread with Caramel Apple Glaze
• Easy Cherry Crumble Bars

Baked Gingerbread Donuts

Baked Gingerbread Donuts are topped with a cream cheese frosting and festive sprinkles that will make any holiday morning even better!

5 from 14 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 14 minutes

Cooling Time: 6 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 12 donuts

Author: EmilyFabulous

Equipment

• 3 medium/large mixing bowls
• whisk
• donut baking pan
• non-stick spray

Ingredients

Gingerbread Donuts

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 2 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
• ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg (I used freshly grated or you can use pre-made)
• 3 tablespoon molasses
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ cup sour cream
• ¼ cup milk
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 1 large egg

Cream Cheese Frosting

• ⅓ cup cream cheese
• ½ cup confectioners powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon milk
• festive sprinkles

Instructions

Gingerbread Donut Batter

• Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare the donut pan with non-stick spray.
  
• Add the flour, baking soda, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg to a large mixing bowl and whisk to fully combine. Set aside.
  
• In another mixing bowl, add the molasses, vanilla, sour cream, milk, vegetable oil, and egg and whisk together.
  
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Don't overmix or your donuts will be dense and tough. The batter may be a little lumpy and that's ok.
  
• Spoon the batter into the prepared donut pan. Bake for 14 minutes and then remove to cool on a rack.
  

Cream Cheese Frosting

• In a medium mixing bowl, add the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and milk and whisk until fully combined and smooth.
  
• Spread on top of each cooled donut, add some sprinkles and enjoy!
  

Notes

• Baked donuts don’t always end up with a traditional hole in the middle based on your pan, how the batter rises, etc. Don’t worry, they still taste amazing and the only one who will really notice is you!

Any nutrition calculations are only estimates using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.

Did you make these Baked Gingerbread Doughnuts?

If you make this recipe, don’t forget to leave a comment below. You can also snap a pic and tag me on Instagram or Facebook!

Want more fun and easy recipes? Follow me on Pinterest and sign up for my email list so you never miss a recipe!