These glazed buttermilk doughnut muffins have that soft, cakey old-fashioned doughnut texture I love ~ no frying required.
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If you love an old-fashioned cake doughnut, these are for you. The buttermilk gives the muffins that soft, tender crumb, and the glaze sets up sweet and slightly crackly on top. You get all the best parts of a glazed doughnut in a much easier muffin.
➡ My doughnut themed bakes are a big deal here in the Great Island kitchen and this little muffins started it all off. If you like this idea you need to try my Glazed Old Fashioned Doughnut Cake too!
What makes a doughnut muffin taste like a doughnut?
➡ Buttermilk does more than add moisture. Its acidity helps create a soft, tender crumb with that slight tang you get in an old-fashioned cake doughnut. It works with the baking soda to give the muffins a nice rise, too.
➡ Nutmeg is one of those background flavors you may not consciously notice, but you’d miss it if it weren’t there. It’s a classic flavor in all doughnuts and gives these muffins that unmistakable doughnut-shop taste. I love to grate mine fresh ~ the aroma is incredible.
Muffin glazing technique
These muffins rise beautifully with high domed tops, which gives you plenty of surface area for the glaze. I dip them twice for a nice thick coating.
- Make sure your muffins are completely cool before glazing.
- Put the glaze into a small deep bowl.
- Dip the muffin top down into the bowl and lift straight up.
- Let the excess glaze drip off and then set on a rack to dry.
- You can give them a second dip for a richer glaze.
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Glazed Buttermilk Doughnut Muffins
Equipment
- muffin pan
- paper muffin liners
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoons ground nutmeg, or more, to taste (I used freshly grated)
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup buttermilk, you can use regular milk
glaze
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups sifted confectioner’s sugar
Instructions
- preheat your oven to 425°F.
- Cream the butter, oil and sugars together. Add in the eggs, one at a time. Then add the vanilla. Beat well.
- Whisk the dry ingredients together, and add them, alternately with the buttermilk, to the butter and eggs. Begin and end with the dry ingredients.
- Grease your muffin tin and fill the cups. They will be full.
- Bake for 15-17 minutes, just until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Don’t over bake.
- Remove the muffins from the pan and cool completely on a rack before glazing.
- Dip the cooled muffins, top down, into the glaze, swirling it around a bit to insure you get a good coating. Set them back on the rack. After you’ve dipped all the muffins, go around and dip them a second time.
- To make the glaze, heat the milk in a small saucepan and then, off the heat, add the extract and sugar, whisking into a smooth glaze.
Nutrition
More doughnut inspired breakfast treats
Apple Cider Doughnut Cake
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Pumpkin Churro Doughnuts with Warm Chocolate Sauce!
Pumpkin churro doughnuts are baked to perfection and dunked in thick warm chocolate dipping sauce ~ who needs a PSL?
Apple Cider Doughnut Muffins
These Apple Cider Doughnut Muffins are here for you when you just can’t wait another second for Fall. They’re soft and tender inside, with that classic cider doughnut cinnamon sugar crust…so good!
Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins
Pumpkin doughnut muffins are pillowy little pumpkin spice muffins coated in a crisp cinnamon sugar crust. This pumpkin doughnut remix is the best thing to happen to Fall since the PSL!
Glazed Chocolate Doughnut Cake
Glazed Chocolate Doughnut Cake is a moist chocolate buttermilk bundt topped with that perfect sweet glaze that crackles when you bite into it!
Wow these really do make a beautiful dome when rising. The minute I saw the glaze on these donut muffins I started salivating. Beautiful muffins. Leave it to King Arthur to come up with this yummy recipe. Thanks for sharing it.
Love the double dipping!
This is the sort of thing that makes me so happy I keep powdered buttermilk on hand. Guess what I’m making tomorrow for breakfast?
Oh my, your post takes me back to trips to Vermont and the local Dunkin Donut store. What a rush to walk in. These look really good and I’d imagine the butter and the oil would make a light muffin….I’m a sucker for glazes. I’ve gotta try these. Thanks!
Mmmm. A doughnut disguised as a muffin. Brilliant! I just saw a travelogue from Sweden and apparently they are yet another culture absolutely religious about their afternoon pastry and coffee break. Your muffins will have to be part of my further education.
This is crazy but I have a carton of buttermilk for another recipe I made for next week. And then I was going to make donuts with the rest. But then thought well lots of people dont have donut pans. And so almost made muffins. But have a carrot cake going. But now I want these muffins. Sue they’re stunning!
And Dunkin’. When I lived in Chicago they were like on every block. I actually have been in CA for 10 years and didnt notice their absence! I do miss Krispy Kreme, but there are a few, very limited ones. But not like the South where they’re everywhere.
Wow, these look amazing!!! I always forget about muffins. I should totally make these soon 🙂
OMG UNFAIR, Sue. That up there is muffin porn. I’m reporting you. 🙂 *drool*
Double-dipping your doughnuts?? Oh, my goodness!! Sounds amazing (;-D)
Oh my gosh, these look amazing. Old-fashioned buttermilk doughnuts are my favorite type of doughnut, and if I had to pick, doughnuts are my favorite type of food. Unfortunately there are things like social norms that make it unacceptable for me to eat one every day but how I wish I could! These look so good, and I love how you baked them–all the doughnut flavor, more acceptable to eat them more often. King Arthur’s website is so great for recipes, aren’t they? Anyway, definitely bookmarking these.
I do love the King Arthur website, and one day I’m going to make a pilgrimage to their store in New Hampshire. Don’t tell anyone, but my favorite food just might be doughnuts, too.