These Easter donuts are moist, flavorful and packed with the familiar spices of a classic carrot cake, with the added bonus of a delicious cream cheese frosting. Plus, their festive design makes them perfect for Easter breakfast! They can be made traditionally, whole wheat or gluten-free.

If you’re not familiar with them, baked carrot cake donuts have a soft, moist texture with a slightly dense crumb. They’re nowhere near as light and airy as fried donuts, but rather have a tender bite. The grated carrots add moisture, giving the donuts a bit of chewiness.

They’re easy to make and decorate, making them a fun baking project for both kids and adults alike.

I’m 2 months early with these donuts, but I’m so tired of posting all my holiday recipes last minute because I have a million other things to do. I’m going to try to be better about posting ahead of time – when people are actually planning their holiday menus!

Ingredients

You just need basic carrot cake ingredients for these donuts. Please scroll to the bottom for the full recipe!

For the donuts

• Flour – you’ve got several options! All-purpose flour, whole wheat and white whole wheat all work. I’ve also made these gluten-free. You can read more about that below.


• Baking powder – make sure it’s fresh, as expired baking powder can prevent the donuts from rising properly.


• Cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger – classic spices in carrot cake recipes, adding warmth and sweetness.


• Granulated and brown sugars – you could alternatively use coconut sugar.


• Oil – you can use canola oil, vegetable oil or olive oil. I used Aldi organic extra-virgin olive oil, and nobody could tell. But I wouldn’t recommend a fancy, strong-flavored olive oil.


• Eggs – egg subs don’t work well here.


• Milk – you can use any type you’d like except for canned coconut milk.


• Carrots – please use freshly finely grated carrots, as pre-shredded carrots are thicker and drier, which would affect the texture of the donuts. I usually use this Microplane Medium Ribbon Grater when grating carrots for carrot cake, and it worked great here. The photographer used a box grater for these photos, and I’ve also used a food processor. Anything other than a coarse grater should work well! But you also don’t want to grate the carrots so finely that you have almost a puree.


• Pecans – you can substitute them with walnuts, almonds, or even raisins if you want a fruity twist. Or just omit them.


• Salt and vanilla extract

For the frosting

• Unsalted butter
• Cream cheese
• Powdered sugar
• Milk

For the decorations

• Marshmallows – these are used to make bunny ears and tails. You won’t need them if making the version with piped carrots. Same with the next ingredient.


• Pink sanding sugar or freeze-dried strawberries or freeze-dried strawberry powder – the sanding sugar adds a sweet, sparkly touch to the bunny ears. If you don’t use it, the bunny ears won’t really look like bunny ears.
  
  I’m not wild about the ingredients in sanding sugar, so I use freeze-dried strawberry powder. I also tested crushing freeze-dried strawberries, and that worked well, too.
  
  If going that route, the strawberries need to be crisp. Old, soft strawberries won’t work. There was also quite a bit of powder at the bottom of the freeze-dried strawberry bag, so if your berries have taken on a bit of moisture, that’d still work well for you. If using the berry option, I recommend decorating the ears on the day of serving.


• Orange and green food coloring – this is if you’re piping on the little carrots. I talk about natural food coloring options below.

How to make them

Lightly grease a donut pan and set it aside. Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and nutmeg in a medium bowl.

In a large bowl, mix granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, vanilla, milk, and eggs until smooth. Stir in the grated carrots. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, stirring until a thick batter forms.

Fold in chopped pecans. Fill each cavity of the donut pan about 3/4 full (approximately 1/4 cup or 75 grams of batter per donut).

Bake until donuts spring back when pressed. Remove from pan and transfer to cooling rack.

For the frosting, blend softened butter, cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk, and salt in a large bowl using an electric mixer until smooth. Add more powdered sugar and milk for desired consistency. Add 1/4 cup (58 grams) of frosting to 2 bowls (so you’ll be using 1/2 cup (116 grams total).

Add orange food coloring to one, green to the other, and mix well. Frost slightly warm donuts with white frosting for a glazed look.

Place colored frostings in piping bags. Pipe carrots with orange frosting and a green “V” on each donut.

How to make bunny donuts

Using a sharp knife, cut a marshmallow diagonally. Dip the freshly cut, sticky sides into the sanding sugar or berry powder. If you don’t do it when the cut is fresh, then it won’t stick.

Place the two pieces on top of a frosted donut to form the ears. For the tail, cut another marshmallow in half lengthwise, and place it on the back of the donut. Repeat this process for all donuts.

I think marshmallows and carrot cake + cream cheese frosting is a weird combination, but they are cute. I just picked off the marshmallows to eat later.

How to prepare in advance and store

These are great when made ahead of time, making them an excellent option for Easter. Here are a few tips on how to prep ahead of time.

• Unfrosted donuts – store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 24 hours, or refrigerate for up to 3 days.


• Frosted donuts – refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 days.


• Frosting – the cream cheese frosting can also be prepared in advance and stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. When ready to use, just give it a quick stir to smooth it out before frosting the donuts.

Food coloring

Regular food coloring works, but gel food coloring will give you more vibrant colors.

I like to use natural food coloring like Supernatural Kitchen Food Colors or Color Kitchen. Both are expensive, but frosting always turns out vibrant and beautiful.

I have some examples in my Spiderweb Cake. In the cell phone photo at the bottom, you can see the orange and green came out nicely.

Troubleshooting

• Donuts not rising – if your donuts don’t rise properly, it could be due to expired baking powder. Always check the expiration date on your baking powder to ensure it’s still effective. You can also double-check that you’re measuring the ingredients accurately to avoid affecting the rise.


• Donuts too dry – if your donuts are turning out dry, it’s likely that there wasn’t enough moisture in the batter. Make sure to measure the ingredients properly. Your best option is to use a scale!


• Donuts sticking to the pan – make sure you grease your donut pan well with cooking spray or use silicone donut pans, which will make removal much easier. Although, with silicone pans, I find that the non-stick performance can diminish over time. But loads of other people seem to have good luck with them! If the donuts are still sticking, give them a few minutes to cool before trying to remove them.
  
  Another idea – is your donut pan really scratched up? That can cause issues with sticking. I used this Nordic Ware pan and love it.

Gluten-free version

I used King Arthur Flour Gluten-free Measure for Measure Flour, and they came out great! I think they’re best once they’ve sat for a few hours, though.

So you might want to make them a day or 2 ahead of time.

If you feel like experimenting with other gluten-free flours, make sure to use a blend specifically designed to substitute one-to-one for all-purpose flour. Do not use almond, coconut, oat, or other flours that are not direct substitutes for all-purpose flour.

I hope you’ll enjoy these Easter donuts! If you try them out, I’d love to hear your thoughts below in the comments. Thanks!

Easter Donuts

• Print

• Prep Time: 15 min
• Cook Time: 13 min
• Ready in: 28 min
• Yield: 12

Ingredients

• 2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour, whole wheat, white whole wheat or for gluten-free, King Arthur Flour Gluten-free Measure for Measure Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) brown sugar
• 1/3 cup (66 grams) oil¹
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup (57 grams) milk²
• 2 large (50 grams each, out of shell) eggs, room temp
• 1 1/2 cups (150 grams) finely grated carrots (from about 2 medium, peeled carrots)
• 1/2 cup (55 grams) pecans, optional

Frosting:

• 1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 ounce (56 grams) cream cheese, softened
• 1-2 cups (120-240 grams) powdered sugar
• 2-3 tablespoons milk
• pinch of salt

For optional piped carrots:

• orange and green food coloring

For optional bunnies:

• 18 marshmallows
• pink sanding sugar or freeze-dried strawberries or powder³

Directions

Toast the pecans, if using:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C). Spread the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 3 minutes. Stir, then bake for an additional 3-6 minutes or until they become fragrant. Remove the baking sheet and place it on a cooling rack. Let the pecans cool for about 10 minutes, or until they're cool enough to handle, then chop them into medium-sized pieces.

Make the donuts:

2. Lightly grease a donut pan and set it aside.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, salt and nutmeg until well combined.
4. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, vanilla extract, milk, and eggs until the mixture is smooth and well blended. Stir in the grated carrots.
5. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring until a thick batter forms. Fold in the chopped pecans.
6. Using a spoon or a small scoop, fill each cavity of the donut pan about 3/4 full (approximately 1/4 cup or 75 grams of batter per donut). Bake in the preheated oven for 13 to 15 minutes, or until the donuts spring back when gently pressed with a finger. Carefully remove the donuts from the pan and transfer them to a cooling rack. They can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 24 hours, or refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Make the frosting:

7. Add the softened butter, cream cheese, 1 cup of powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon of milk and salt to a large mixing bowl. Use an electric hand mixer on medium-high speed to blend until the frosting is smooth. Taste and add more powdered sugar, if desired. Add more milk until it's your desire consistency. The frosting should hold its shape and not be runny. This can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
8. If making the piped carrot version, add 1/4 cup (58 grams) of frosting to two separate small bowls (1/2 cup total). Add orange food coloring to one bowl and green food coloring to the other, stirring until the colors are evenly distributed.
9. Frost the ever-so-slightly warm donuts with the white frosting, allowing the frosting to melt slightly for a glazed appearance.

For piped carrots:

10. Place the orange and green frostings into separate piping bags. I used Wilton Tip 5 to pipe carrots with orange frosting onto each donut to and Wilton Tip 3 to pipe a green "V" shape at the top of each carrot.
11. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

For the bunnies:

12. If using berry powder, I recommend doing this step on the day of serving. Using a sharp knife, cut a marshmallow diagonally. Dip the freshly cut, sticky sides into the sanding sugar or berry powder. If you don’t do it when the cut is fresh, then it won’t stick.
13. Place the two pieces on top of a frosted donut to form the ears. For the tail, cut another marshmallow in half lengthwise, and place it on the back of the donut. Repeat this process for all donuts.

Notes

1. You can use canola oil, vegetable oil or olive oil. I used Aldi organic extra-virgin, and the donuts didn't taste of olive oil. But I wouldn't recommend a fancy, strong-flavored olive oil.
2. You can use any milk you'd like except for canned coconut milk, which is too thick and would give the donuts coconut flavor.
3. I use freeze-dried strawberry powder, but I've also tried crushing freeze-dried strawberries, and that worked well too. For this method, ensure the strawberries are crisp; old or soft ones won't work. If your strawberries have absorbed some moisture, the powder at the bottom of the freeze-dried strawberry bag will still be useful.

Permalink: https://www.texanerin.com/easter-donuts/

Recipe by Texanerin Baking | www.texanerin.com

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