Easy Banana Baked Donuts

These Banana Baked Donuts begin with an easy donut batter flavored with brown sugar and mashed ripe bananas. Enjoy these donuts topped with a simple cream cheese glaze. Made with basic ingredients and using a couple of mixing bowls, your busy schedule will love this easy breakfast.

I love a good banana bread recipe, but for a quick and easy breakfast treat, banana baked donuts hit the spot. They are made with brown sugar for a slightly caramelized flavor and finished with a cream cheese glaze for a classic combination like my banana bread cookies.

As a busy mom with a family that loves donuts, making homemade baked donuts is as easy as it gets. You’ll have this yummy sweet treat ready in no time.

Banana donuts are the perfect menu addition for hosting a brunch, an everyday comfort breakfast, or an afternoon treat. Let’s get baking!

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• Baked donuts. No need to make a mess in the kitchen with frying donuts. These easy banana donuts are baked in the oven for a healthier and tastier alternative!
• Ready in less than 45 minutes. These baked donuts can become a part of your daily breakfast rotation. They’re easy to make and don’t require a lot of time. It’s a great activity for kids to help!
• Easily doubles for a big batch. Hosting a brunch? This recipe is perfect for doubling to accommodate a large family and gathering of friends. If you have a lot of ripe bananas, you can add banana muffins to the menu too!

Ingredients You'll Need

• All-purpose flour. Gives the right amount of tenderness to the donuts (not too dense and not too cakey).
• Baking powder and baking soda. Leavening agents that contribute to the batter rising for a light and fluffy texture.
• Salt. Enhances the flavors of the other ingredients.
• Light brown sugar. Sweetens the donuts. Brown sugar has a higher moisture content than granulated sugar and adds a richer flavor and that is why, I prefer it over regular sugar. You can also use dark brown sugar.
• Butter. Adds a rich flavor to the donuts. Melting the butter creates a tender and chewy donut.
• Egg. Acts as a binder between the dry and wet ingredients, which adds structure to the donuts.
• Vanilla. Always use pure vanilla extract for the best flavor.
• Milk. Moistens the batter and adds color and flavor to the donuts. Bring to room temperature. Set aside a bit of milk to thin the cream cheese glaze to your preferred consistency. Whole milk is best, but you can also use lower fat or nondairy if that’s what you have on hand (the donuts will be less moist and rich).
• Bananas. The key ingredient to creating banana flavored donuts. Use very ripe bananas. They are sweeter and easier to mash into a smooth consistency.
• Cream cheese. Use block cream cheese, preferably. It has a dense, firm texture that is perfect for making frostings and glazes. Bring your cream cheese to room temperature to create a smooth and creamy glaze.
• Powdered sugar. Adds sweetness to the cream cheese glaze. It's fine texture creates a smooth and creamy frosting consistency.

How to Quickly Ripen Banana

You might be ready to make banana baked donuts, but your bananas aren’t super ripe. No need to try to mash firm bananas. Instead, here are some tips to quickly ripen bananas.

• Oven method: Place unpeeled bananas on a baking sheet in a preheated 300°F/150°C oven. Bake them for 15-20 minutes until the skins are black.
• Microwave method: Using a fork or knife, poke holes all over unpeeled bananas. Place them on a microwave-safe dish and microwave for 30 second intervals until softened.

Note: The microwave method will not produce super ripe bananas like the oven will, however, they will become soft enough to mash easily into the ideal consistency.

Equipment & Tools

• Donut pan. You can use a 6-cavity standard-size donut pan and bake the donuts in two batches.
• Digital kitchen scale or measuring cups. Using a scale will give you the most accurate measurements.
• Measuring spoons.
• Whisk. Easily combines the dry and wet ingredients separately.
• Rubber spatula. Used to gently fold together the dry and wet ingredients.
• Large bowl. Container for mixing the dry ingredients.
• Medium bowl. Used for mixing the wet ingredients.
• Disposable pastry bag. Makes it easier to pipe the donut batter into the baking pan. This is optional, but you can easily use a resealable plastic bag and cut the edge or spoon instead.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Before you begin: Bring the milk, cream cheese, and the butter for the glaze to room temperature. Read the recipe from start to finish. Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C and lightly grease a donut pan.

Instructions for the Banana Donuts

Note: You can prepare the banana baked donut batter ahead of time. Once it’s mixed, cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake, but not longer than overnight.

Instructions for the Cream Cheese Glaze

Note: I add just enough milk until the cream cheese glaze is a thick pourable consistency similar to honey. You can either drizzle the glaze over the donuts or dip the tops of each donut in one at a time.

Recipe Tips & Tricks

• Weigh your ingredients. It is more accurate to weigh your ingredients for consistent results.
• Don’t overmix the batter. Mix the batter just until the ingredients are combined. Overmixing will result in dense donuts.
• Don’t overfill the donut cavities. Only fill each one ⅔ full.
• Cool in the pan. Allow the donuts to cool for 5 minutes in the hot pan before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. This helps prevent the donuts from losing moisture.

Recipe Variations

• Mix-ins. Walnuts and pecans pair deliciously with bananas and would make a great addition to these baked donuts. As would mini chocolate chips. Add up to ¼ cup of either mix-in into the batter and sprinkle extra over the glaze.
• Chocolate glaze. Love chocolate? Dip these donuts into a chocolate glaze like the one from my pumpkin s’mores pop tarts.
• Sugar-coated. Skip the cream cheese glaze and dip each donut into melted butter and then generously dip into a spiced sugar mixture similar to these apple cider donuts.

Storage & Freezing Tips

• Room temperature. Store glazed banana donuts covered at room temperature for up to 1 day.
• Refrigerator. Store glazed donuts covered for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Extra glaze can be stored in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
• Freezer. Wrap completely cooled glazed or unglazed donuts with plastic wrap and store them in a freezer-safe container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow them to thaw in the refrigerator overnight before glazing (if you froze them unglazed) and serve.

Note: If you prefer to stack your donuts in a freezer-safe container to store in the freezer, place a layer of parchment or wax paper between each donut so they don’t stick together.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Easy Breakfast Recipes to Try

Please leave a starred rating and comment below if you make these Banana Baked Donuts. I love reading your feedback! And if you’d like to make this recipe later, don’t forget to pin it on Pinterest! Happy Baking!

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