When I think of guilty pleasures one of the top things on my list is always chocolate glazed donuts dipped in hot coffee. The glaze gets warm and melty, the cake soaks up the coffee...and they are SO easy to make at home. This recipe is extra tender because of two important things - using buttermilk in the ingredients and letting the dough chill before cutting.
Let's take a look!
Shopping list
Cake donuts are pretty simple to make. There's no yeast so no need to let them rise. These are fried not baked so they have all of the old fashioned flavor and perfect texture you miss in the baked kind.
- Eggs
- Sugar
- Buttermilk
- Vanilla
- Butter
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Nutmeg
- Peanut oil, or any light oil for frying
- Confectioner's sugar
- Cocoa powder
Instructions
Y'all, the dough is going to be sticky.
It's supposed to be because it keeps the donuts from being tough. Follow the instructions carefully and read the tips so yours will be perfect first try..
- Combine the eggs, sugar, buttermilk, vanilla, and butter in a bowl.
- Whisk until smooth.
- Mix the dry ingredients.
- Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture, stirring until a soft dough forms.
- Cover and chill for at least three hours or up to 4 days.
- Preheat oil to 365F.
- Turn chilled dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently roll the dough to ½ inch thickness.
- Cut with a floured donut cutter or juice glass.
- Remove centers if you need to.
- Fry about four at a time in the hot oil until they are golden brown.
- Drain.
- Dip in the chocolate glaze while they are still hot.
- Sprinkle with cookie crumbs, chopped nuts, or sprinkles and let set.
Tips
Follow these expert tips for perfect chocolate glazed cake donuts! You may also like these baked banana donuts.
- Keep the dough as sticky as possible. Adding too much flour will make them tough.
- Cut the donuts straight down without twisting the cutter. Twisting seals the sides and the donuts won't rise well.
- Use clean oil. Change the oil in your fryer frequently depending on how often you fry.
- I like peanut oil the best.
- Never overload the fryer. You can do four or five at a time depending on the size of the fryer.
- Flip the donuts as they float to the top.
- Cake donuts are best eaten within a few hours of being made.
- Freeze, unglazed, for longest storage (about 6 months)
- I like the chocolate glaze made with hot coffee but try Earl Grey tea or plain hot water.
- You can also let them cool some and shake in a bag of sugar, cinnamon sugar, or powdered sugar if you prefer to leave them unglazed.
Kaffeeklatch
The weird thing is that there are lots of flavors that I like better but there's something about one of these chocolate glazed donuts and a cup of hot coffee that's addictive.
I think it has as much to do with memory associations as it does with flavor.
I grew up in the 1960s - a time when life was so much easier in so many ways. One of my favorite things about Saturdays was that it was my day to run errands with my dad.
We'd eat cereal for breakfast (me Cap'n Crunch - him cornflakes with bananas always) and then head out to the hardware store, the plant store, and even sometimes his downtown office that was so high up he teased me that he could see our house from his window.
Once in awhile we'd forgo the cereal and stop at a diner.
It was all chrome, twirly stools with red tops, and tired looking waitresses that cracked gum and flirted with my dad. Best of all, there were stacks of fresh donuts sheltered under glass domes on the counter.
We'd get some and I had the privilege of dipping mine into his coffee. Back then kids didn't drink coffee - it was in the realm of adults-only. Getting to ingest a few coffee molecules with my chocolate donut was nothing short of an adrenalin rush from the pure edginess of it.
This is my favorite recipe for chocolate glazed donuts. The buttermilk adds a lot of flavor but also keeps them tender.
Make some memories with your kids this weekend - chocolate donuts and coffee. It's not just about the food. 🙂
Give these quick air fryer donuts a try, too.
Chocolate Glazed Cake Donuts
Print Pin Recipe SaveEquipment Needed
- Deep Fryer
Ingredients
Donuts
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ cup butter, melted and cooled
- 5 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
- peanut oil, or your favorite light oil for frying - you'll need enough to fill your fryer according to manufacturer's instructions or a deep pan with about 6 inches of oil.
Glaze
- 3 cups Confectioner's sugar
- ½ cup dark cocoa powder, I use Hershey's Special Dark
- ⅓ cup water, or strong coffee - hot
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla
Instructions
Donuts
- Combine the eggs, sugar, buttermilk, vanilla, and butter in a bowl.
- Whisk until smooth.
- Mix the dry ingredients.
- Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture, stirring until a soft dough forms.
- Cover and chill for at least 3 hours or up to 4 days.
- Turn chilled dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
- Preheat oil to 365F.
- Gently roll the dough to ½ inch thickness.
- Cut with a floured donut cutter.
- Fry about four at a time in the hot oil until they are golden brown - don't crowd the fryer.
- Drain on absorbent paper towels or brown paper sacks.
- Dip in the chocolate glaze while they are still hot.
Glaze
- Mix the Confectioners' and cocoa powder.
- Add the hot coffee (or water) and vanilla and stir until smooth.
- Add more coffee as needed to get the right consistency.
Notes
- Keep the dough as sticky as possible. Adding too much flour will make them tough.
- Cut the donuts straight down without twisting the cutter. Twisting seals the sides and the donuts won't rise well.
- Use clean oil. Change the oil in your fryer frequently depending on how often you fry.
- I like peanut oil the best.
- Never overload the fryer. You can do four or five at a time depending on the size of the fryer.
- Flip the donuts as they float to the top.
- Cake donuts are best eaten within a few hours of being made.
- Freeze, unglazed, for longest storage (about 6 months)
- I like the chocolate glaze made with hot coffee but try Earl Grey tea or plain hot water.
- You can also let them cool some and shake in a bag of sugar, cinnamon sugar, or powdered sugar if you prefer to leave them unglazed.
Nutrition Facts
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We'll never share your email or send you spam. Pinkie swear.First published April 4, 2014. Last updated April 14, 2020 for better readability, faster loading, and better images.
Judy Pennington
I would love to know the name of that old cook book! It looks just like mine, but the recipes aren't the same. The name of mine is America Cooks, the General Federation of Women's Clubs Cook Book.
Judy P
Oh, it's copyrighted in 1967.
Marye
Judy - I can't find it at the moment but it was from the late `1940s.
allie @ Through Her Looking Glass
I loved all these donut making tips Marye ,and hearing about your Saturday a.m. adventures with your dad. Cheers to donuts and coffee! My kids will so love if I make these yummy chocolate ones.
Mandy
Yum! Such a good choice for D! You had me at donuts! Now to try that recipe… 🙂
Nancy Mock
Ooh, what a great choice for D! I have never tried making donuts but you are right that freshly-made are a world away from boxed or chain store versions. The cider donuts that the orchards around here make daily in the Fall are exquisite. I'llplan to try your recipe after the April A-Z madness is done. Thank you!
Nancy at Hungry Enough To Eat Six
2014 A to Z Challenge Participant
Marye Audet
They are much easier than you think! If you don't have an electric fryer getting one will help a lot! thanks for reading.
Margaret Almon
I love all the details in your post. I remember going for donuts with my father. I grew up in Canada, and we would go to Sir Donut. The shop was thick with smoke, and I wondered why the donuts didn't have a smoky taste.