Cinnamon Sugar Mini Donut Muffins – Part cinnamon-sugar donut hole, part mini-muffin, no matter what you call them, they’re fast and easy to make, and so tasty and pop-able. Because they’re baked rather than fried, I don’t feel guilty when I pop more than a couple.
I grew up eating fried mini donuts at fairs and carnivals and loved every greasy, cinnamon-sugary second.
These mini donut muffins are the next best thing.
I couldn’t decide if they were more like a donut hole or a mini muffin, so I’m calling them donut muffins.
They come together from start to finish in under 30 minutes. Having warm, fresh donut muffins for breakfast sure beats a bowl of cold cereal.
And yes, plan to eat muffins, plural. They’re tiny, but oh so pop-able. But because they’re baked rather than fried, I don’t feel too guilty when I’m popping away.
Four of these mini muffins are still smaller than 1 bakery-style coffee shop muffin. I’ve noticed that bakery and coffee shop muffins keep getting bigger and bigger, and they’re now about the size of a softball. These are about half the size of a golf ball.
If you don’t have mini muffin pans <–I love that pan, you can bake them in a standard-sized muffin pan
, or bake them as donuts
or mini donuts
and adjust baking times accordingly.
Buttermilk keeps them soft, light, tender, and fluffy. It also serves to add moisture, which is important because I find that mini muffins and baked donuts are prone to dryness, but the buttermilk protects against it.
No buttermilk? Cheat and make some with regular milk.
A hefty dose of cinnamon in the batter as well as in the cinnamon-sugar coating, makes for well-spiced muffins. The cinnamon is noticeable and distinct, but not overpowering. If you’re a cinnamon fiend and prefer to be over-powered, it’s easy to add more to taste.
I also added ground nutmeg because I find it rounds out flavors, especially cinnamon. It gives depth in a can’t-quite-put-your-finger-on-it kind of way.
They bake quickly, in just about 10 minutes. Because they’re small, they can go from raw to dried out and crisp in the span of about 90 seconds, so watch them closely.
Ten minutes with my two mini muffins pans was the magic number, but due to variance in pan size, oven, and climate, watch your muffins not the clock. If you’re baking them as full-size muffins, I’d estimate 17 to 20 minutes, but haven’t tested it.
After they bake, dip the tops in melted butter and then in cinnamon-sugar. The cinnamon-sugar coating is key. It adds so much extra cinnamony flavor and the sugar granules add donut hole authenticity.
I almost put them in a gallon-sized ziplock, and wanted to pour butter into the bag, then douse with cinnamon-sugar, and shake. But I used restraint and simply dipped the tops. Next time I’ll live dangerously and use the bag, butter, and shake method because it’s faster, and why say no to more butter and more cinnamon-sugar.
The flavor and the speed in which these little puffballs went from idea to reality to half a dozen in my belly makes them a total win.
Once you pop, you can’t stop.
This is my second mini food recipe this week.
It’s cute, it’s fun, and it clearly tastes better.
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Cinnamon Sugar Mini Donut Muffins
Ingredients
Muffins
- 1 large egg
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- pinch salt, optional and to taste
Coating
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 to 2 teaspoons cinnamon
Instructions
- For the Muffins – Preheat oven to 350F. Spray two 12-count mini muffin pans with floured cooking spray; set aside. (You can make as full-size muffins and will likely yield about 1 dozen; or make as donuts or mini donuts; adjusting baking times accordingly)
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large bowl and hand mixer), combine egg, butter, sugars, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed to cream ingredients until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the buttermilk. Beat momentarily to incorporate.
- Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just incorporated; don’t overmix. Batter will be fairly thick.
- Using a spoon sprayed with cooking spray so the batter slides off easily, drop rounded tablespoons into prepared pans. Fill each cavity about 3/4-full. (I made 28 mini muffins and some were on the skimpy side. In order to keep the yield at an even 24 muffins, I recommend dividing batter equally among 24 wells)
- Bake for 9 to 11 minutes (mine took 10 minutes exactly), or until muffins are domed with set centers, are springy to the touch, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Because they’re small, they cook quickly and 1 minute can drastically effect taste; don’t overbake and watch them closely. Allow muffins to cool in the pans on top of a wire rack for about 10 minutes before removing. While the muffins cool, prepare the coating.
- For the Coating – In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power; set aside.
- In a separate small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon; set aside.
- After the muffins have cooled, dip each muffin top briefly in melted butter, then in cinnamon-sugar, and repeat until all muffins have been coated. Optionally, the entire muffin could be buttered and coated similar to traditional cinnamon-sugar donut holes, and in doing so, you’d need to melt more butter and use more cinnamon-sugar. Serve immediately. Donut Muffins are best fresh, but will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 4 days (noting that the cinnamon-sugar coating may liquify a bit), or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Thanks for the entries in the Peanut Butter Comfort and KitchenAid Handheld Blender Giveaway
What’s your favorite donut or muffin recipe? Mini food fan?
I keep wanting to make doughnut muffins. These are so cute being mini! The addition of nutmeg is great.
These are so cute and I love that they are baked rather than fried. Poppable indeed! Buttermilk is an interesting idea for mini doughnuts, I’ve never thought of that before but I bet it pairs very nicely with the cinnamon sugar.
I only will make donuts with buttermilk. Every single recipe for them I have uses buttermilk and with muffins, quickbreads, donuts, it’s just a savior!
I can almost smell the cinnamon. I always liked cinnamon donuts as a kid – something about that crunchy texture.
It has that slightly crunchy texture I just loved on these!
Mini food totally tastes better! :) These are so cute and yummy looking, Averie!
Beautiful! Cinnamon is one of my favorite ingredients to sprinkle into *anything*, and cinnamon sugar desserts? Forget it! What a perfect treat to have on my birthday today :)
Happy Birthday!!!!!! Go out and celebrate and enjoy your day!
So pretty! Your photos are gorgeous! I love the cinnamon-sugar on top, it sparkles! I also love that you baked these cause I HATE frying, although I have a fried treat coming up tomorrow. I hate it, but yet I still do it. LOL
Anyway, I can actually make these because I HAVE a mini muffin pan! YAY! I do not have a doughnut pan, so obviously I am very happy these are mini muffins!
As I just wrote to someone else
“And not to mention, fry oil stinks up your house for days! Even if it is a good smell at the time like fresh donuts, 18-36 hrs later it just STILL smells like grease. Not an issue here :)”
I just cannot do it. Very small urban condo and it just seeps into the walls and lingers forever!
Thanks for the photo compliments. Things clicked for this one :)
Cinnamon sugar donut holes were my Sunday treat in college ( justified by riding my bike in warm weather to get them), and I have always preferred cake donuts over yeast. This looks like another yummy batter, and baked wins out over fried for me any day–so much easier and less messy (a big pot of bubbling oil in my kitchen scares me a little). Mini versions of anything (from petite fours to little sandwiches) are always so cute!
And not to mention, fry oil stinks up your house for days! Even if it is a good smell at the time like fresh donuts, 18-36 hrs later it just STILL smells like grease. Not an issue here :)
Donut muffins are the perfect name for these little guys! I can NEVER have enough cinnamon sugar in my life!! :)
Your other photos there are reminding me I need to get my donut pan out of the cupboard and put it to good use…
It had been awhile since I made anything donut-ish and about a month or so ago, I dusted off my pans and have been having so much fun with them again!
I made the regular-sized version of these not so long ago and they were super! I bet the minis are even more fun…because you get to eat more than one!
Something about the mini size is just…so good :)
Beautiful, Averie! These “Donut Muffins” went viral at AllRecipes.com 3 years ago last May. Made them right away and I, too, reached for the buttermilk instead of milk for a more tender crumb. But, I like how you developed your recipe to use part granulated sugar and part brown sugar. Love that! Sally is right about the nutmeg. It is what really gives these sweet little muffins that donut taste…in addition to the butter and cinnamon-sugar coating. These are a favorite in our house! xo
Glad you like them, too!
I love them, Averie! These are the best muffins and guess what? I made them again before I left for St. Lucia (not as mini muffins but as regular sized) and filled them with BISCOFF!! So good. But they are just as tasty without a filling. I love the nutmeg – I think the nutmeg is what gives them that donut-y feel to them. The photos are gorgeous! They muffins look like they are glowing. Must have been a bright sunny day. :) I need to try these as mini muffins. The perfect excuse to eat 3 or 4 right in a row. I need to use my donut pan again soon. It’s been about a year!
It had been awhile since I made anything donut-ish and recently, I dusted off my pans and have been having so much fun with them again! And your muffins with biscoff sound insanely good! That’s something for full-size muffins, though. Not mini – unless one has VERY steady hands and lots of patience for filling mini pans :)
Adorable and they look delicious!
These look amazing and your photographs are fabulous too. I try to avoid doughnuts but as you say these are baked not fried and so small….. !
I keep hemming and hawing over whether or not to get a donut pan, but this will definitely suffice in the meantime! Love how simple and delightful these are with that sugary topping. Can’t wait to try these, Averie!
Don’t hem and haw over 8 or 9 bucks :) Totally worth it! Get one! Since I bought my first one, I have bought mini donut pan, micro donut pan (so small but so cute), donut hole pan, and another full size donut pan so i can make 12 at once, rather than 6 and then wait. Seriously, cheap thrills and you will love playing around! And I have a TINY urban condo kitchen, it’s so small I get claustrophobic and have no storage but it’s worth it to me to have the pans!
This looks absolutely amazing! I need to try this ASAP. I love donuts and I know they’re unhealthy, but how can I resist all the delicious goodness? I love how this is is in a smaller, compact form and can be made in 30 minutes. How awesome is that! My favorite donut are blueberry donuts from a place near Disneyland. I don’t think I’ve ever had any other donut that even competes with that one. There is only one guy making the donuts, which makes the line about 1 hour long as the least, but it’s definitely worth the wait.
Thanks for the nice comment! And a blueberry donut sounds great – and given all the great food in SoCal, if someone is willing to stand in line for at least an hour, it’s gotta be good! Ive been thinking of making BB donuts. Maybe I will :)
There’s a nearby bakery whose specialty is a donut muffin. I was super excited to go, but it was really disappointing with a dry, dense texture. Even with my previous terrible experience, I’ll give this recipe a chance since every one I’ve tried of yours has been a hit!
As for your questions, my favorite muffin recipe might be your carrot loaf recipe that I converted into muffins/cupcakes. :) I haven’t baked a donut that I loved yet, but the last time I used the pan was ages ago (before I found your blog). It’s too bad because I looove blueberry donuts. Remember that I conducted that taste test a while back? And I’m a HUGE mini food fan, even if I end up eating twice as much as normal!
If you try this one, don’t overbake and make sure to use buttermilk! And of course, the melted butter/cinn-sugar coating doesn’t hurt. Also they actually get softer on the 2nd day so if you have dried them out accidentally by overbaking, putting in a big ziplock overnight will likely re-moisten them up!
And did you ever blog about the carrot cake muffin/cupcakes? Did you do anything special to them to make them cupcakes? I know that sometimes people want more rise/lift out of their cupcakes and just curious how that batter worked for that. For me, I don’t mind dense. It means it won’t be dry :)