Baked Raspberry Glazed Lemon Donuts

I might be holding onto the warm weather a little bit… these raspberry glazed lemon donuts definitely make me think of spring/summer! Savor the last little bit of the warm months before the fall truly sets in, and enjoy these easy peasy baked donuts! This recipe is perfect for a treat yourself kind of breakfast, an addition to brunch, or maybe a mid-afternoon snack.

The donuts themselves are light and lemony. Adding the raspberry glaze really pulls together the flavors of summer! I garnished my donuts with some crushed freeze dried raspberries and lemon zest to give a little more texture (but mostly just because it looks really fancy).

While donuts are typically deep fried, these raspberry glazed lemon donuts are baked. I won’t go as far as saying they’re healthy (though they have fruit in them?? so they are, right??) but they are a little lighter than a traditional donut fried in grease. This baked raspberry glazed lemon donut recipe actually doesn’t call for any oil, and very little butter! The most oil/grease/fat you’ll get is from coating the pan so the donuts don’t get stuck.

Don’t worry though, this recipe still yields a delicious donut that your family and friends will ask for again and again (at least mine do)! I made 2 pans of donuts while recipe testing a photographing them, and they didn’t last long after I got my photos done!

If you make a batch, I’d love to see how they turn out! Send me a quick snap or tag me on instagram @theautumnleann 🙂

Baked Raspberry Glazed Lemon Donuts

Light lemon donuts with a sweet raspberry glaze, garnished with freeze dried raspberry pieces and lemon zest.

Print Recipe

Servings 12 donuts

Ingredients

Lemon Donuts

1 1/3 Cup Cake Flour
3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
1 Pinch Salt
1 tsp Baking Soda
3 Tbsp Lemon Zest
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 Egg
1/2 Cup Whole Milk
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 Tbsp Unsalted Butter melted

Raspberry Glaze

1 Cup Powdered Sugar
3 Tbsp Raspberry Puree

Garnish

Lemon Zest as desired
Freeze Dried Raspberries crushed, as desired

Instructions

Lemon Donuts

Preheat your oven to 375°F and grease your donut pan. I like to use shortening or butter to grease my pan.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or a regular mixing bowl - this recipe can be made either way!) mix the cake flour, salt, baking powder, and lemon zest together.
In a separate bowl, combine the whole milk, sugar, lemon juice, egg, vanilla extract, and melted butter. Whisk until smooth.
With the stand mixer on low, slowly pour the wet ingredient mixture into the dry ingredient mixture. Mix until just combined.
Transfer the donut batter into a piping bag and pipe each section of the donut pan 2/3-3/4 the way full.
Place in the oven and bake at 375°F for 15-20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. While your donuts are baking, let's make the raspberry glaze!

Raspberry Glaze

Add the powdered sugar and raspberry puree to a bowl and mix until smooth. If it is too thick (which can happen depending on the consistency of your raspberry puree!), add a teaspoon of water at a time until you get your desired consistency

Assembly

Once the donuts have cooled enough to pick up without burning your fingers, remove them from the donut pan.
Dip one side of each donut in the glaze until evenly coated. Repeat until all donuts are glazed.
Sprinkle the glazed side of each donut with freeze dried raspberries and lemon zest as desired. It adds a little texture, and makes them look extra beautiful!