Chocolate Fudge Cake Donuts

Miss your favorite donut shop? Looking for some cakey delicious fudgy donut goodness in your life? Of course you are. No special skills – and no frying – needed! All you need is an oven and a donut pan, and these decadent chocolate fudge cake donuts can be yours!

One of our favorite things to do on brisk spring mornings like we’ve had lately, prior to quarantine, was to get up early, bundle up, and swing by our donut shop for breakfast before heading over to Mason Neck State Park for a hike and hopefully a chance to see the bald eagles who roost there.

I don’t remember the last time we hit the donut shop, but I do know its been 60 days or so now since we started this lockdown business, and during that whole time, we’ve been donutless.

I’ve been avoiding making them just because I don’t have a fryer and I hate splattering oil all over my stove. But then, the more research I did, I realized that there were plenty of ways to make a good, soft, delicious baked donut.

Scott’s favorite donuts are chocolate glazed, so I started experimenting there.

The more I experimented, the more chocolate got thrown into these things. Dutch pressed cocoa powder. Chocolate chips. Then chocolate frosting.

I would say it started to get out of hand, but we tried them and they were just so soft and fudgy and sinfully good. It was like having chocolate cake for breakfast! Not that we would, you know, be doing that for any reason.

Hey, we’re all doing what we need to get through this thing. You do you, and let me eat cake. Or at least some delicious fudgy chocolatey cakey donuts.

Let’s start with those and add some ganache. Maybe with some mini chocolate chips.

Better.

Now let’s make some variations in here for those who don’t just want chocolate overload.

Vanilla glaze.

Best.

I didn’t just have fun making these, I also had a lot of fun photographing them. I think it’s the first time I can actually say that my heart raced a little when I was taking these shots. I just knew they were going to be good!

Almost as good as this fudgy baked donut recipe. Try them out for yourselves!

[lt_recipe name=”Chocolate Fudge Cake Donuts” summary=”Miss your favorite donut shop? Looking for some cakey delicious fudgy donut goodness in your life? Of course you are. No special skills – and no frying – needed! All you need is an oven and a donut pan, and these decadent chocolate fudge cake donuts can be yours!” servings=”12″ total_time=”35″ print=”yes” image=”https://homefrontcooking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Chocolate-Fudge-Cake-Donuts-0750-1024×683.jpg” ingredients=”For the donuts:;2/3 cup Dutch-process cocoa;1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour;1 1/4 cups light brown sugar;1 tsp baking powder;1 tsp baking soda;3/4 tsp salt;1 cup chocolate chips;2 large eggs, room temperature;3/4 cup milk, room temperature;2 tsp vanilla extract;2 tsp cider vinegar;8 tbsp butter, melted;For the chocolate icing:;1 cup chocolate chips;3 tbsp milk;For the vanilla icing:;3 tbsp milk;1 tsp vanilla extract;1 1/2 cups powdered sugar” ]Preheat your oven to 350F. Lightly spray or grease the wells of a donut pan (you will need to bake this in two batches if you only have one pan).;In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips. Set it aside.;In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla, and cider vinegar. Melt the butter in a third bowl.;Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring until just mixed. Add in the butter and fold until well combined. Don’t beat the batter – you don’t want to overmix it!;Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, filling them about 3/4 full. These guys will puff!;Bake the donuts 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.;Remove from oven and turn the pan upside on a rack (let cool for a minute in the pan first). Let cool while you make the icing.;To make the chocolate icing, combine the chocolate chips and milk in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat until the milk is steaming and starting to bubble (about 30-45 seconds). Remove from microwave and stir until the icing is smooth.;To make the vanilla icing, mix the vanilla and milk into the powdered sugar in a small bowl. You want the glaze thick, but if it’s too thick, add a tsp of milk until it’s at the desired consistency.;Dip the top of each donut in the icing or spread on the donuts.[/lt_recipe]

You can also give these donuts a nice coating of sugar by shaking out granulated sugar over them when you just turn them out on the rack to cool. Add a little more chocolate {because you always can add more chocolate!} by mixing some cocoa powder to the sugar.

Just yum. The perfect thing to start off a chilly spring day with a nice cup of coffee.

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