It’s spring break and my kids are at home with me this week. It’s a welcome break in the routine and I’ve especially enjoyed the slow mornings. No alarm clocks, no last-minute lunch packing, no one frazzled running around trying to be on time for the bus. Instead the kids have been enjoying some extra playtime while I work on special breakfast treats and fill the house with enticing scents of fresh-baked goodness. For the longest time it seemed like mealtimes with small ones were always tiring, challenging, and frustrating. If I wasn’t cleaning up a mess, I was up and down every five minutes getting something for someone. I’ve recently realized that we’ve moved on from that phase of life and mealtimes with the kids are much more conversational, pleasant, and relaxing. (Although we still have our fair share of sibling bickering at the table which is not at all pleasant and relaxing.) For the most part, leisurely breakfasts are now a possibility. And along with that comes so many more possibilities for what to make for breakfast. I was fairly late to join the baked donuts fan club, but better late than never. We are big fans of baked donuts now. These Chocolate Amaretto Donuts have a classy rich grown-up flavor with the amaretto and a hint of espresso, but they are still chocolate-y and sweet enough for the kids to enjoy. Like most breakfast items I make, I prefer them not to be overly sweet, but feel free to increase the coconut sugar by a tablespoon or two if so desired.
- ¾ cup white whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup dutch-process cocoa powder
- ⅓ cup coconut sugar (add 1-2 extra tablespoons for a sweeter donut)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅓ cup buttermilk
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons amaretto
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- powdered sugar or additional cocoa powder for dusting, optional
- Preheat the oven to 400.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, espresso powder, and salt.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, olive oil, egg, amaretto, and vanilla.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix together until just combined. Do not over mix.
- Pipe the mixture evenly into the donut pan. (I use a small ziploc bag and cut the tip off one corner for piping.)
- Bake for 8-9 minutes, until donuts tops appear dry. Let cool in pan for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Donuts are best served slightly warm. Dust with powdered sugar or additional cocoa powder just before serving, if desired.
Lu | Super Nummy Yo! says
You are on a ROLL! These are so yummy and the photographs are absolutely stunning. Thumbs up all the way.
Sarah @ SnixyKitchen says
I really need to get better at having a leisurely breakfast time with homemade treats like these! These photos are so insanely pretty, Emily! I’ve never seen homemade donuts look so beautiful – all the shadows and different toppings. Stunning!
Emily says
Thanks so much, Sarah! I appreciate you stopping by. 🙂
Sabrina says
These look and sound amazing! Love your blog!
Eden Passante says
Baked donuts are the best! Wish I had one of these right now!
Emily says
Thanks for stopping by, Eden!
Aysegul says
You and I must be in some sort of a cosmic synch, because I just made some baked banana bread donuts topped with chocolate drizzle and salted peanuts. Seriously.. I just came to your site and see this. How in the world?!?!
Though I was just testing a recipe and mine looks no where pretty as yours are. You set the bar pretty high my friend. :))
And a BIG YES to leisure breakfasts..
XOXO