Glazed Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts are delicious mini donuts that are speckled with poppy seeds and covered in a tangy lemon glaze. These homemade baked donuts are so easy to make in a mini donut maker, and they’re perfect for a sweet breakfast!
If you love mini donuts as much as I do, be sure to also try these Confetti Cake Mini Donuts and these Mini Powdered Sugar Doughnuts.
Easy Baked Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts
I already have a huge love for everything lemon, but when you add in those darling blue poppy seeds too, my cravings go crazy. Now, there are a lot of lemon poppy seed dessert/breakfast recipes in existence. (Cakes, breads, muffins, etc.) And those are all great, but I have been looking for an opportunity to use my mini donut maker again… so prepare yourself for some Glazed Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts!
These easy donuts are baked – not fried! – and while they’re not anyone’s definition of healthy, they’re at least healthier than your average donut. In my (and my sweet tooth’s) book, that’s a win.
These mini poppy seed donuts are also perfectly fluffy and cakey, filled with tangy lemon flavor, and they make the best quick breakfast on busy mornings!
Lastly, before I forget, you can also use a mini donut pan to make these in the oven, or even a large donut pan, instead of a donut maker. Just make sure to double dip your donuts in the lemon glaze, and it won’t matter what size/format you choose in the end!
What You’ll Need
Is your homemade donut obsession developing yet? Good, join the party!
Here are the ingredients we’ll need to round up to make these lemon poppy seed donuts happen:
- Whole Milk: Using whole milk ensures that your donuts are super moist, but you can also use 1 or 2% milk in this recipe.
- Sour Cream: This also helps with creating moist, cake-like donuts.
- Flour: I typically just use all purpose flour.
- Baking Powder: To help your donuts rise while baking.
- Salt: To balance the flavors and enhance the sweetness.
- Unsalted Butter: Make sure this reaches room temperature before starting.
- Sugar: Regular granulated sugar is the main source of sweetness for these donuts.
- Egg: To bind your donut batter together.
- Lemon: You’ll need zest for the donut batter and juice for the glaze.
- Poppy Seeds: You can adjust the amount to find your preferred ratio, but I find that 1 tbsp is perfect.
- Powdered Sugar: This will be the other component to your lemon-y icing.
How to Make Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts
Making your own donuts from scratch probably sounds like a lot of work, but it actually doesn’t take much longer than baking a simple batch of cookies! It takes me just over 25 minutes to bake and glaze these lemon poppy seed donuts.
Here’s how I do it:
Preheat: Preheat your electric donut maker.
Mix Milk and Sour Cream: In a small bowl, whisk together milk and sour cream. Set aside.
Mix Dry Ingredients: In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl, or stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar, until light and fluffy – about 1 minute. Add egg, lemon zest, and poppy seeds. Beat for 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl as needed.
Mix All Ingredients Together: Then alternating flour mixture and milk mixture, combine all ingredients until just combined. Do not over mix. Transfer batter into a piping bag, or a ziplock bag with the tip cut off.
Bake the Donuts in Your Electric Donut Maker: Fill each donut indentation 3/4 full. Bake according to the manufacturer’s instructions, or until the donuts are slightly browned and spring back when touched. Remove from the oven, transfer to a cooling rack, and cool completely.
Tips for Success
Pretty quick and simple, no? I mentioned that these donuts are great for busy morning breakfasts, but they’re also a big hit at weekend brunches if you ever find yourself wondering what to bring to one!
Check out these brief tips and tricks before you get started for the best results with your mini poppy seed donuts:
- If Using Mini Donut Pans: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, grease the donut pans, and mix the batter together as described. Then, fill each donut indentation 1/2 full. Bake for 6-8 minutes, or until the donuts are slightly browned and spring back when touched. Remove from the oven, transfer to a cooling rack, and cool completely. Then proceed with the icing!
- Use Fresh Lemon Juice: This might seem obvious because you need lemon zest for the batter, but I just want to emphasize that the tangiest, best flavor comes from super fresh lemons/lemon juice!
- Do I Have to Pipe the Batter? No, you could also spoon it into the donut indentations/pans. I like to use a piping bag, though, because the batter can be thick and thus a little tricky to work with.
- If the Glaze is Too Thick: If you find the glaze to be too thick for your liking, add a tbsp of milk at a time until it thins out a little.
How to Glaze a Donut
Okay, now that you’ve got your baked lemon poppy seed donuts ready, it’s time to add another delicious layer of lemon flavor – the glaze! Adding glaze to your donuts is ridiculously easy:
- Place wax paper under a wire rack to collect drippings for an easy clean up.
- Then, in a medium bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and powdered sugar until smooth. Dip the top of each donut into the glaze and transfer to a wire rack to dry. Let them set for 10 minutes, then serve!
I actually like to dip my donuts in the glaze twice to make sure they’re good and lemon-y, but that extra step is totally up to you!
How to Store Homemade Donuts
These lemon poppy seed donuts will keep for a day or two in an airtight container at room temperature, but they are at their best when fresh! If you want to save them for a longer period of time, you could try freezing them for up to a month in an airtight container.
Glazed Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts
Glazed Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts are delicious mini donuts that are speckled with poppy seeds and covered in a tangy lemon glaze. These homemade baked donuts are so easy to make in a mini donut maker, and they're perfect for a sweet breakfast!
Ingredients
Donuts
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon whole milk
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
Icing
- juice of 1 lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
If using electric donut maker, preheat. If using donut pans, preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease donut pans.
In a small bowl, whisk together milk and sour cream. Set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In large bowl, or stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar, until light and fluffy - about 1 minute. Add egg, lemon zest, and poppy seeds. Beat for 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl as needed.
Then alternating flour mixture and milk mixture, combine all ingredients until just combined. Do not over mix.
Transfer batter into a piping bag, or a ziplock bag with the tip cut off.
If using mini donut pans: Fill each donut indentation 1/2 full. Bake for 6-8 minutes, or until the donuts are slightly browned and spring back when touched. Remove from oven, transfer to a cooling rack, and cool completely.
If using the electric donut maker: Fill each donut indentation 3/4 full. Bake according to manufactures instructions, or until the donuts are slightly browned and spring back when touched. Remove from oven, transfer to a cooling rack, and cool completely.
For the icing: Place wax paper under a wire rack to collect drippings for an easy clean up.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and powdered sugar until smooth. Dip the top of each donut into the glaze and transfer to a wire rack to dry. Let set for 10 minutes and serve!
Will keep for a day or two in an airtight container, but are better fresh!
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
2Amount Per Serving: Calories: 212Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 158mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 1gSugar: 22gProtein: 3g
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