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Baked Sourdough Donuts - Feature Recipe Image

Baked Sourdough Donuts

These easy baked sourdough donuts are a lovely way to use sourdough starter in something a little different! They have the texture of a traditional donut, without the greasy, fried exterior. Sourdough starter creates a depth of flavor not found in yeasted donuts.
4.45 from 60 votes
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Fermentation Time 12 hours
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 12 Donuts
Calories 308 kcal

Equipment

  • Stand Mixer
  • 2 6 Hole Donut Tins

Ingredients
  

  • 100 g Sourdough Starter
  • 500 g Bread Flour
  • 200 g Milk Whole & Room Temp (not straight from fridge)
  • 1 Egg room temp
  • 50 g Butter melted, plus extra for brushing prior to baking
  • 60 g Sugar
  • 10 g Salt
  • 5 g Vanilla Extract

For Glaze

  • 250 g Powdered Sugar Icing Sugar
  • 60 g Milk Whole
  • pinch Salt

Instructions
 

  • This recipe has been developed in a stand mixer - you can knead by hand if you prefer.
    Add milk, sugar and vanilla to the stand mixer bowl and mix until the sugar is dissolved.
  • Now add the sourdough starter, flour, egg, melted butter and salt. Use the dough hook on your stand mixer and run at the lowest setting until the dough has come together.
    It should be stretchy and elastic and pull away from the sides of the bowl (see notes below).
  • Transfer the dough to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow it to bulk ferment until the dough doubles. Depending on the temperature of your home this could take up to 12 hours or so.
  • Once the dough has doubled you need to shape the donuts.
    Divide the dough into 12 equally weighted pieces. Somewhere between 60 to 80g is perfect (the ones photographed are 80g).
    baked sourdough donut dough
  • Roll the dough into balls and then poke your finger through each ball. Gently stretch the dough out so there is a hole in the middle of each one.
    Portion the dough into equally weighted balls.
  • Place the shaped donuts onto the donut tray. Cover with a cloth and allow them to proof until they are lovely and puffy.
    2 x 6 hole donut trays filled with shaped sourdough donuts
  • Preheat the oven to 180C/356F.
  • Brush the donuts with melted butter and bake in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes. They will be golden when done (you can take them out a little earlier if you want a softer donut or leave them until their golden for a more chewy texture.
    Brushing shaped donuts with melted butter.
  • Once baked, allow them to cool slightly before adding toppings.
    For the glaze, use tongs to dip one side of the donut into the glaze and then allow them to cool on a wire rack. The excess glaze will drip off.
    For cinnamon sugar donuts, dip one side of the donut into melted butter and then into a bowl of cinnamon sugar.
    Dip baked donuts into powdered sugar glaze.

Notes

Kneading: This recipe has been developed using a Thermomix because it makes kneading the dough much faster and easier. It is suitable for kneading using a stand mixer on the lowest setting (using a dough hook). You can of course knead by hand but it will take some might! If you feel the dough isn't coming together in your stand mixer, slightly increase the speed.
What should the dough feel like?: This sourdough donut dough is an enriched dough, made with milk and eggs. Once kneaded sufficiently, it should be stretchy and elastic (much like a regular bread dough). It's not a cake batter so it should pull together in a ball and slap the sides of the bowl.
Sourdough Donut Toppings: The glaze listed in this recipe is very runny and is made this way so you can dip the donuts into it. If you want it to be a thicker "icing", just reduce the liquid a little.
Other Toppings:
  • Milk Sugar Glaze - add 250g of powdered sugar, a pinch of salt and 60g of milk and whisk until it's runny.
  • Strawberry Glaze - add 250g of powdered sugar, a pinch of salt, 60g of milk and a tablespoon of strawberry jam (add a little pink coloring if you want it really pink).
  • Chocolate Glaze - add 250g of powdered sugar, a pinch of salt, 60g of milk and a tablespoon of cocoa powder.
  • Cinnamon Sugar - Melt 100g of butter in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, add 150g of granulated sugar and 2 tsp of cinnamon and mix until well combined. Dunk the donuts into the melted butter and then into the cinnamon sugar.
Freezing: They are suitable for freezing. I suggest freezing them un iced. Defrost and then warm slightly in the oven before dipping into the glaze or melted butter and cinnamon sugar.

Nutrition

Calories: 308kcalCarbohydrates: 59gProtein: 6gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 25mgSodium: 369mgPotassium: 78mgFiber: 1gSugar: 27gVitamin A: 160IUCalcium: 34mgIron: 1mg
Keyword Sourdough Recipes
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