Baked Strawberry Cake Donuts

Brighten up your day with these tasty baked donuts! These donuts have a soft, cake-like texture and are topped with a sweet strawberry sugar. Freeze dried strawberries give these donuts their perfect flavor and pretty colored topping. Since these donuts are baked and not deep fried, they are easy to make and hassle-free, enjoy!

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Baked Strawberry Cake Donuts

by Maci M. | Lovely Baking Co.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Bake Time: 18 minutes

Total Time: 33 minutes

Makes: 18 small donuts

Ingredients:

 7 TB butter, melted and divided

1 1/4 cup sugar, divided

1 large egg, at room temperature

½ TB vanilla extract

¾ cup full fat sour cream

1 ¼ cups flour

1 ¼ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

3/4 cup freeze dried strawberries, ground and divided

Step 1:

Grease the donut baking pans well and set aside. Preheat oven to 350* F. First, melt 6 TB of butter in a microwave safe container and set aside to cool. Next, use a food processor to grind the freeze dried strawberries into a powder and set aside.

Step 2:

 In a large bowl, add 1 cup of sugar, egg, vanilla, the cooled melted butter and sour cream and beat with an electric hand mixer until fully combined.

Step 3: 

 In a small bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and 1/2 cup of the ground freeze dried strawberries. Next, add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients in the large bowl and slowly mix them together until just combined; do not over-mix.

Step 4:

Fill a piping bag with batter and pipe the batter into the greased donut pan, filling each donut cavity about 3/4 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes at 350* F on the middle oven rack. While the donuts are baking, combine the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup of ground freeze dried strawberries in a small bowl. In a small microwaveable container, melt 1 TB of butter and set aside.

Step 5:

Once the donuts are baked, carefully remove them from the baking pan and use a pastry brush to brush the tops of the donuts with melted butter. Next, dip the buttered donut tops into the sugar and strawberry mixture while they are still warm. Place the donuts on a cooling rack to cool. Store the donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for several days. Enjoy!

(Alternative baking option: If you don't have a donut pan, you can easily make this recipe using a mini muffin pan. Follow the recipe as written and adjust the baking time to 9-11 minutes instead. Makes approximately 32 mini muffins.)

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