Baked Cinnamon-Sugar Banana Donuts, tastes just like banana bread!
I love any excuse to use my Wilton Donuts Pans, I actually own 4 pans now! Lately I’ve been trying to think of a new donut recipe to try. I was thinking about my favorite banana bread recipe & how I really wanted to make it soon then the idea came to me to try making banana donuts. Oh boy, I am so glad I did! This recipe is very similar to my favorite banana bread recipe because they both have sour cream (which keeps them super moist) & they are both coated in cinnamon & sugar! The one big advantage to making banana donuts vs bread…they bake super quick! 12 min. your done! No waiting around for 1+ hour for the bread to bake.
These are quick & easy to whip up for breakfast in the morning or you can easily make them the night before. I actually freeze mine & take them out when I want one. They freeze really well & thaw quickly. My niece was over & wanted one right away so I just popped it in the microwave for 20 seconds.
I like to use a small spoon to scoop the batter into the donut pan but you can also use a piping bag or make your own using a ziploc bag & cutting a bottom corner to pour the batter into the pan.
The tops will be a very light golden brown when they are done and they will be springy to the touch. If you have trouble removing them from the pan try using a rubber spatula. The bottom side of the donuts will be a nice dark golden brown color (as shown above on cooling rack).
This recipe makes anywhere from 6-9 donuts depending on how high you fill the donut pan. I’ve made it a few times filling all 6 donut cavities to the top & it makes 6 big donuts but the hole in the middle kind of closes up so now I usually make 8-9 smaller donuts. If you don’t own a donut pan you can make your own using a muffin pan instead if you roll up aluminum foil into balls and place them in the middle of each muffin hole. To create the hole just pour the batter around the aluminum foil balls.
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup vegetable oil (I used soybean oil)
- 1 banana (peeled & mashed)
- ½ cup sugar
- 1¼ cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- -For Coating-
- 3 tablespoons melted butter, for brushing
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease donut pan with oil or cooking spray.
- Whisk together the sour cream, egg, vanilla, oil, & sugar in a bowl. Add in mashed banana & whisk again.
- Add flour, soda, salt, & cinnamon (optional) & stir together until well combined.
- Fill donut pan with batter & bake for 12-16 minutes or until the top is springy to the touch & the sides are turning golden brown. Remove from oven & let cool in pan for 5-10 minutes then transfer to cooling rack.
- For Coating: In a small bowl, combine sugar & cinnamon together. Melt butter in another small bowl & brush onto both sides of donuts. Place donut in bowl of cinnamon/sugar mix & flip over to coat both sides.
(This post contains an Amazon affiliate link. I included this link to help you find the specific product I used. If you purchase the item from the link we receive a small commission.)
I don’t make baked donuts often enough! I’ve been thinking about upgrading to a larger pan (I only have a mini) and these banana ones are convincing me to go ahead and splurge ;) They’re gorgeous!
Thanks Megan! I have a mini donut pan too. I’m a little obsessed with making baked donuts. ;)
Never thought about making baked donuts, but I’ll try anything with banana at least once! Thanks for the idea cause I know my donut-obsessed sons will totally love them!
Your welcome! I love donuts & bananas so this is one of my favorite recipes!
Wonderful recipe girls! Well done. I am actually going to try this tonight. :)
Thanks! Hope you like it! :)
Wow those sound really good, got any left in the freezer? ;) I’d like to try them with maybe a vanilla or sugar glaze on top.
Hi Jason, nope they are long gone. ;) I agree, I think they would be good with a vanilla glaze.
Can u substitute the oil for applesauce?
Hi, I’ve never tried it but I’ve heard of people using it as a substitute before. I think it would probably work but I can’t say for sure.
Donuts came out tasty. Texture was more like muffins than cake but kids were happy nonetheless.
I’m glad your kids liked the donut recipe! Thanks for commenting!
Hi, I’m so glad your kids liked the donut recipe! Thanks for commenting!
What would the cook time be for mini donuts?
Hi Kristen, I’ve never made mini donuts before so I’m not sure but I would try cutting the baking time in half & check them until they are done.
Added mini chocolate chips and baked these in a mini donut maker. My kids love them! On to my second and third batch. Going to freeze them.
Hi Ronni, Adding mini chocolate chips sounds like a great idea! I’m glad your kids loved them! Thanks for commenting!
Just made these for Easter morning breakfast. They’re amazing! The only change I made was brown sugar for white sugar. Next time I am going to make them with chunky applesauce, Thank you for sharing,
Hi Eileen, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Have a Happy Easter!
They turned out so moist and mmmmmm good! I used mini bundt pan similar in size to the regular donut pan and adjusted to gluten free. I’m hoping they don’t disappear before I can freeze some.
Hi Katie, I’m so glad the recipe turned out for you! Thanks for taking the time to comment, we appreciate it.
These came out perfectly! I have the Wilton pans too. I substituted plain Greek yogurt for the sour cream. They came out in 13 minutes. Great recipe!
So glad you liked the donut recipe! Thanks for sharing that Greek yogurt worked as a substitute. Thanks for taking the time to comment, we appreciate it.