Baked Cinnamon Sugar Doughnuts

I'm literally obsessed with donuts. OBSESSED! I love the soft, chewy goodness of a perfect doughnut and I'm always looking for the chance to try a new doughnut place. Lucky for me (well I'm not too sure if it's lucky if I start going there every other evening) there is a place called California Donuts that is literally 2 blocks walking distance from my house AND open 24/7 - help me Lord. I had no idea it was so popular, but apparently on any given day, the line can be wrapped around the block. The other night, I had a terrible craving, so I took myself over there and picked up some of this yummy goodness. They make really cool designs and themes, so be sure you check it out! 

This brought on a crazy doughnut binge, which inspired me to bake (yes, bake!!) my own last night. I picked up a nice bottle of wine, turned on the Erykah Badu and got into my zone. I got this recipe from Baker Bettie and loved the simplicity of it and how light and fluffy the doughnuts turned out, almost like a cake. My favorite part about these is that they are BAKED, and not fried... no oil involved which makes them at least a little, tiny bit healthier than the other versions out there. I opted for a cinnamon sugar topping mainly because I'm not a big chocolate person. But, I can picture these dipped in a nice milk chocolate, topped with strawberry compote and whipped cream or dusted in powdered sugar. 

These are perfect alongside coffee for breakfast or for an afternoon treat on one of these chilly LA afternoons when the temp drops from 75 to 70 -- haha. No really, try them out and enjoy with friends and fam. They are best when eaten directly after baking.

DISCLAIMER: I will not be responsible or liable for any weight gained if you eat the whole batch :)

Baked Mini Doughnuts

For the donuts: 

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons baking powder

pinch salt

1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

For the topping:

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Doughnut directions: Preheat oven to 325ºF. Lightly oil mini donut pan and set aside (alternatively you can use mini muffin pans). In a medium bowl with a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the egg, milk, and vanilla and mix until just combined (mixture will look curdled). Add in the baking powder and the salt and mix until just incorporated. Mix in the flour just until combined. You don't want to overmix this batter. If using mini donut pan, transfer mixture into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip or into a ziplock baggie with the tip cut off. Pipe into the pan only filling ½ of the way fill. If using the mini muffin pan, fill each well ½ full. Bake at 325ºF for 8-10 minutes. *If using a mini donut maker, bake for 4-5 minutes. Allow to cool just slightly before dipping in topping.

Topping directions: Melt the butter for the topping and combine the cinnamon and sugar. Dip each donut lightly in butter then roll in cinnamon and sugar.

*I used a mini muffin pan because I was eager to make this recipe and did not have time to purchase a doughnut pan first. However, I wanted them to also have holes like doughnuts, so I got creative and used a straw to punch holes through each. I wanted until about 5 minutes after I removed them from the oven and did this and it worked just fine :)