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It’s peak berry season, and there’s no better way to use up fresh blueberries than with a batch of baked blueberry donuts. These soft, tender donuts have the texture of a classic cake donut: light, fluffy, and just sweet enough. They’re easy to whip up in a standard donut pan, and thanks to the baked method, you can skip the mess (and oil) of frying.
If you have tons of berries to use, I definitely recommend trying out my Blueberry Cobbler or these Blueberry Oat Muffins as well!
Why You’ll Love These Baked Blueberry Donuts
If you’ve been following along for awhile, then you know I’m a sucker for a good donut. So far on the blog, I’ve made these to-die-for Biscoff donuts and these classic vegan chocolate yeast donuts.
I thought it was time to make a fun, late summer-inspired donut recipe that makes good use of in-season berries. Here are a few reasons why we love these blueberry cake donuts, and you will too!
Emily’s Recipe Notes:
- Flavor: Just sweet enough with bursts of fresh berries in each bite.
- Texture: So soft and tender. They taste even more like classic fried cake donuts the next day!
- Difficulty: Easy and beginner friendly.
- Time: About 35-40 minutes start to finish- only 15 minutes of this is hands on prep time.
Ingredients
Ingredient Highlights & Some Swaps
Fresh Blueberries
Like with my vegan blueberry scones, I recommend using fresh berries over frozen berries in this recipe.
For the donuts, you can use frozen if that’s what you have on hand, but they will bleed a bit into the batter and will require a slightly longer bake time to compensate for the cold batter. Frozen berries can easily be used in the blueberry reduction.
Baking Powder
This creates such a light, fluffy and tender texture. Make sure your baking powder is fresh, and be sure to accurately measure.
Dairy Free Butter
A bit of vegan butter adds richness to the batter. The butter in this recipe is melted, so it can easily be swapped for melted coconut oil (refined), vegetable oil or even dairy butter if you’re not vegan.
Lemon Extract
A drop or two of lemon extract really helps enhance the blueberry flavor without being overpowering. To make these into lemon blueberry donuts, you could double the amount of extract and add about 1 tbsp of lemon zest to the batter.
Dairy Free Yogurt
Vegan or dairy free yogurt acts as an egg substitute in these cake donuts. For 6 donuts, we only need a 1/4 cup, which is equivalent to about 1 whole egg. The yogurt adds moisture and helps bind the batter together.
How to Make Baked Blueberry Cake Donuts
🫐 Exact ingredient quantities are in the recipe card below!
Make the Blueberry Reduction for the Glaze
Add fresh blueberries and sugar to a small pot over low heat. Mash the berries with a fork.
Simmer for 10 minutes to reduce into a thick, jammy consistency. Set aside for the glaze.
Make the Blueberry Donut Batter
Add the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
Whisk the wet ingredients together in a glass measuring cup or add directly to a well in the dry ingredients.
Mix to form a batter, then add the fresh blueberries.
Gently fold the berries into the cake donut batter.
Spoon or pipe the donut batter into a donut pan.
Bake the blueberry cake donuts until golden on top. Remove from the pan and cool completely.
Glaze the Baked Blueberry Donuts
Mix the icing ingredients together with a bit of the blueberry reduction made earlier for flavor and color.
Dip the cooled baked blueberry donuts in the blueberry glaze.
Serving & Storing the Donuts
Once the donuts are glazed, place them on a cooling rack for about 20 minutes for the icing to harden and set up. After it’s set, they’re ready to enjoy!
I recommend eating these on the first day once they’re iced. Unfrosted donuts can be wrapped well or stored in an airtight container for 2-3 days at room temperature. They can also be frozen for up to 2 months.
Tips for the Best Baked Cake Donuts
- Use a High Quality Donut Pan: I used one by the brand Bellemain which is nonstick and creates the perfect sized donuts.
- Try not to overfill the pan: To get that perfect donut shape, be sure to fill the pan just over 3/4 of the way full. The batter will rise quite a bit. If overfilled, the donuts will lose the distinctive hole in the center.
- Bake until golden on top: The donuts should spring back lightly when pressed.
- Make sure the glaze is thick: The icing should be very thick. It should fall off a spoon in thick ribbons. A thick icing is what gives them that donut shop feel!
More Berry Flavored Desserts
Baked Blueberry Cake Donuts with Glaze
Rate this RecipeIngredients
Blueberry Reduction (for Icing)
- ½ cup fresh blueberries, 75g
- 1 tsp granulated sugar, 4g
Cake Donut Batter
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour, 150g – spooned into the measuring cup and leveled off (not scooped from the bag)
- ½ cup granulated sugar, 100g
- 1 ¼ tsp baking powder, 5g
- ¼ tsp fine salt, 1.5g
- 1 pinch ground nutmeg, optional
- ¼ cup melted salted dairy-free butter, 56g
- ¼ cup unsweetened dairy-free yogurt, 60g – I used Forager's Dairy-free Unsweetened Yogurt
- ½ cup almond milk, 113g
- ½ tsp lemon extract, 2g – or 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup fresh blueberries, 75g
Blueberry Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar, 120g
- 1 tbsp melted salted dairy-free butter, 14g
- 1-1 ½ tbsp almond milk, 15g – adjust as needed
- ¼ tsp lemon extract, 1g
- ½ tbsp blueberry reduction, 12g – see above
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and grease a 6-cup donut pan.
- To make the blueberry reduction for the icing, add the blueberries and sugar to a small pot over low heat. Mash with a fork and simmer for 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thickened and reduced. Let cool while you make the donuts.½ cup fresh blueberries, 1 tsp granulated sugar
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg (if using), and salt. Make a well in the center.1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup granulated sugar, 1 ¼ tsp baking powder, ¼ tsp fine salt, 1 pinch ground nutmeg
- Melt the butter in a small bowl or glass measuring cup, then whisk in the yogurt, milk, and lemon extract. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Fold in the blueberries. Transfer the batter to a piping bag and pipe (or spoon) into the pan.¼ cup melted salted dairy-free butter, ¼ cup unsweetened dairy-free yogurt, ½ cup almond milk, ½ tsp lemon extract, ½ cup fresh blueberries
- Bake for 13–16 minutes, or until the donuts are lightly golden and spring back to the touch. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Mix the icing ingredients in a small bowl. Dip the cooled donuts into the icing and let them set on the rack for 15–20 minutes.1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tbsp melted salted dairy-free butter, 1-1 ½ tbsp almond milk, ¼ tsp lemon extract, ½ tbsp blueberry reduction
Recipe notes
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Categories:
Baked Goods, Feel Good Food, Seasonal, Summer, Vegan Comfort Food, Vegan Dessert Recipes, Vegan Donuts, Vegan Recipes,
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