Lemon Blueberry Baked Donuts

I love the combination of lemon and blueberry, but I feel like you usually see this in a muffin, loaf, or coffee cake. Since I've been having so much fun making baked donuts during quarantine, I decided to give this flavor combination a shot and it was awesome. I topped these lemon blueberry baked donuts with a zesty lemon glaze...ooooh buddy. Let’s just say that we’ve made several batches.

This is an easy baked donut recipe without yeast. This recipe uses standard ingredients we always have in our fridge or pantry, making these lemon blueberry donuts an easy treat to whip up on a whim.

One of the reasons I love making baked donuts is that it creates a small batch of treats. This is great for a few reasons: 1) baked donuts are generally best eaten day-of, especially if they are glazed (day two still tastes yummy but the donuts tend to get a bit soggy). 2) having a small batch donut recipe that yields 6-7 donuts is better for our small family size, meaning we aren’t devouring a large quantity of goodies all by ourselves.

Lemon blueberry baked donuts are a perfect breakfast treat for the whole family!

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TELL ME ABOUT: LEMON BLUEBERRY BAKED DONUTS

Level of difficulty: Easy. Mix, scoop into your tins, and bake!

Flavor: Zingy lemon accented by sweet blueberry.

Texture: These lemon blueberry baked donuts are super moist and a little cake like.

Time: Including prep and cook time, plan for about 35 minutes to make lemon blueberry baked donuts. The bake time on these donuts is a little longer than other baked donuts because they’re packed with fresh fruit - but don’t worry, I promise they’re worth the wait.

3 KEY INGREDIENTS FOR THIS LEMON BLUEBERRY BAKED DONUT RECIPE

Lemon: This baked donut recipe uses both lemon juice and lemon zest to create that perfect, lemony tang. To get the juice and zest quantities needed for both the donut base and the lemon glaze, you need the juice and zest of 1 medium lemon.

Blueberries: Since we’re not in peak berry season here in the upper Midwest, I’ve been using frozen wild blueberries (also known as high-bush blueberries) when making this lemon blueberry baked donut recipe. I like using the wild blueberries because they’re smaller in size and generally have a more intense blueberry flavor.

Greek Yogurt: I love baking with Greek yogurt because we always have it in our fridge, and it adds more protein to my baked goods. This donut recipe can be made with plain or vanilla Greek yogurt!

OVERVIEW: HOW TO MAKE LEMON BLUEBERRY BAKED DONUTS

1. Preheat oven & prep your pan: Preheat to 350°F, then spray your donut pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside
2. Prep your ingredients: Whisk together your dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together the butter, yogurt, and egg until well combined. Stir the lemon juice and zest into your wet ingredients. Gently fold in your wet ingredients into your dry ingredients (note: dough will be very thick). Once just combined, gently fold in your blueberries.
3. Spoon dough into donut pan: While I generally like to pipe my donut batter into the donut pans, I recommend spooning this batter into your pans to avoid squishing the blueberries! If desired, gently smooth out the tops after all batter has been placed.
4. Bake: Bake approximately 22-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean
5. Cool: Cool in the pan for a few minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
6. Glaze your donuts: while the donuts finish cooling, make your glaze in a small bowl. When cooled, dip the top half of each donut into the glaze and set up-right on your cooling rack to set. Note: if I have additional glaze left, I often double-dip my donuts!
7. Store leftovers: this recipe is recommended to be eaten the same day, however, if you have leftovers, store cooled remaining donuts in an air-tight container in the fridge for a day or two.

TIPS & TRICKS FOR MAKING THIS LEMON BLUEBERRY BAKED DONUT RECIPE

Do not overmix your batter: Doing so can create tough baked donuts (and you don’t want that!). Gently fold your wet and dry ingredients together until just combined.

Is the dough supposed to be this thick? Yes, baked donut batter is much thicker than you think it will be! If you are having issues getting all of your dry ingredients incorporated into your wet ingredients, you could add more lemon juice (more zing!), a dab of yogurt, or even a little water. Do so in 1 teaspoon increments so you don’t make your dough too moist or runny.

What blueberries should I use in this recipe, fresh or frozen? You can use either! I have been using frozen wild blueberries because it is not currently peak-berry season where I live. To defrost frozen berries, measure out the amount needed for the recipe and soak them in room temperature water while you get the rest of your ingredients together. When ready to fold into the batter, drain the blueberries and gently fold them into your batter.

What if I don’t have Greek yogurt, can I use something else? You can replace the Greek yogurt with full-fat sour cream if you would like to.

EQUIPMENT FOR MAKING LEMON BLUEBERRY BAKED DONUTS

Donut Pan: Homemade baked donuts are one of those treats that do need a special piece of equipment to get that classic donut shape: a donut pan. You can either get metal donut pans or silicone donut pans, selection is based on personal preference.

• I love and use this 2-Pack of Non-Stick Metal Donut Pans
• I have friends who love and use this 2-Pack of Silicone Donut Pans

LOVE THIS RECIPE? YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY:

• Baked Maple Donuts with Maple Glaze
• Banana Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake with Chocolate Glaze
• Blueberry Slab Pie (aka Blueberry Pie Bars)

*Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means at no additional cost to you I may receive a small commission for purchases made through these links. However, please know that I only provide links to products that I actually use and wholeheartedly recommend!