15 Best Donut Recipes To Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth

Donuts are one of the few foods that can come in all different shapes and sizes. The classification includes everything from the classic yeasted raised donut to the dense old-fashioned. You'll also find donuts filled with jams and jellies or ones that are stuffed to the seams with the smoothest ganaches and creams you've ever tasted. And we can say unequivocally that we love all donuts equally.

To celebrate the diversity of donuts, we've collected some of our absolute favorite recipes so you can bring the flavors of your favorite café selection to your home kitchen. Some of these recipes are tailored to beginners who might shudder at the sign of hot oil bubbling on the stove, while others are made for folks who instinctively know when their yeasted dough is adequately proved. You'll also find evergreen selections that can be readily made for any occasion or those that make the most of seasonal ingredients. We don't want to wait any longer to share our selection of recipes with you, so here they are.

You can't go wrong with a soft, sticky, glazed doughnut. This plush doughnut gets its texture from using yeast, which will take slightly longer to proof than if you go with a chemically leavened doughnut. But, the yeast here is essential for creating a doughnut with height and one that can carry the weight of a thin glaze on top.

These doughnuts can also be reheated in the microwave on day two to bring them back to a plush state. But with a recipe like this, we doubt there will be any leftovers.

Recipe: Glazed Donuts

There's no better way to say "I love you" than with a donut — especially when they're heart-shaped and covered in pink, red, and white sprinkles. The best part about this recipe is that you won't have to get a separate tin to shape your donuts; just twist aluminum foil into a heart-shaped mold.

Once the donuts are thoroughly cooled, then dip them in a pink glaze and sprinkle with your seasonal favorites. Love is in the air, and so is the smell of donuts wafting from your kitchen.

Recipe: Valentine's Day Donuts

Our main qualm with donuts is that they always take on one profile: sweet. But with the addition of a bright, citrus element like orange, you can make an adult-friendly donut recipe.

These cake donuts are so much easier to make than yeasted ones and are super moist, thanks to the addition of olive oil. It's also an easy recipe to make gluten-free; just swap out the flour for a measure-for-measure replacement.

Recipe: Orange-Olive Oil Cake Donuts

When fall rolls around, the first thing we're grabbing is an apple cider donut. These seasonal staples are filled with warming spices like cloves and allspice berries, as well as apple butter, to give them an unprecedented softness.

We recommend serving these donuts with a side of homemade apple cider caramel sauce. This will help bring out the flavors of the donut and all of its cinnamon sugar glory.

Recipe: Apple Cider Doughnuts

Finding a gluten-free baking recipe that isn't stodgy and dense can always be tricky. This one is made possible with the addition of canned pumpkin pureé, which helps bind the ingredients together and adds a unique fall flavor to the dessert.

You might not even know that these donuts are gluten-free. We also love that these donuts are finished off with a maple glaze that has just the perfect amount of sweetness.

Recipe: Gluten-Free Pumpkin Doughnuts

The start of Mardi Gras wouldn't be complete without these pillowy pączki donuts. They are so airy and can be rolled in cinnamon sugar, powdered sugar, or plain granulated sugar and stuffed with a variety of fillings. Although this recipe uses raspberry jam, it can also be swapped out with Bavarian or chocolate cream, apple butter, or other fruit preserves.

Pączki will always taste best the day they're fried and filled. But you can also pop them in your oven and enjoy them after your holiday festivities.

Recipe: Raspberry-Filled Polish Paczki (Doughnuts)

Strawberry is our favorite fruity accompaniment for a puffy, yeasted donut. These puffs are filled with copious amounts of homemade roasted strawberry jelly.

That means both a little bit of guaranteed sweetness in every bite and a mouth covered in a unique salt-and-pepper sugar. Although adding these seasonings to an otherwise sweet donut might seem unconventional, they both balance the sugary flavor and instill a complex flavor harmony.

Recipe: Strawberry Jelly Doughnuts

In the world of food hybrids, the cronut stands alone. This combination of the croissant and the donut is very well-known and adored for its soft, distinct layers and sweet profile.

This cronut is elevated with premium dark chocolate drizzle, ganache filling, and granulated cinnamon sugar coating. While it may not be the easiest donut recipe for novices to master, it is perfect for a special occasion or when you want to feel like a professional pastry chef for the day.

Recipe: Salted Chocolate Cronuts

Everyone loves the look (and taste) of a plain glazed donut with rainbow sprinkles. This recipe will produce donuts that not only taste like the nostalgic ones you picked up from the local shop as a child but are also baked, not fried.

And, they are completely free of any gluten-containing ingredients. You can also tweak the glaze by adding different flavor extracts, like almond or maple, instead of plain vanilla.

Recipe: Gluten-Free Glazed Donuts

Chocolate and almonds are a delicious combination, so we added them to a donut. The donut is flavored with both almond flour and almond extract, and you can also up the ante with a toasted almond garnish.

We love that this recipe is beginner-friendly. It includes a rich chocolate icing that is bound to provide the perfect café-ready shimmer that is bound to impress all of your breakfast guests.

Recipe: Baked Chocolate Almond Donuts

Forget apple and cinnamon — blueberry and cardamom are our new favorite flavor duo. These grown-up donuts are made with a moist batter (kudos to the scoop of sour cream) topped with a simple glaze.

You don't even have to wait for fresh blueberry season to make these donuts at home; frozen berries will work just as well. And if you can't eat the entire dozen in a single sitting, you can pop these donuts into an airtight container for up to five days.

Recipe: Blueberry Cardamom Donuts

Spring is the perfect season for baking a carrot cake. But if you don't want the hard work of making an entire carrot cake by yourself, you can switch to making these delicious donuts instead.

You'll get all the flavors of a traditional slice — including the walnuts, grated carrots, warming spices, and even the cream cheese icing. These donuts are excellent served with a warm cup of coffee or tea at any time of day.

Recipe: Baked Carrot Cake Donuts

Mochi... like those pillowy ice cream pockets? This recipe utilizes the same ingredient to make the soft coating on the outside of these popular frozen treats: glutinous rice flour.

The ingredient gives these donuts a delightful softness that is especially apparent when the fried treats are paired with a vanilla glaze. Although these donuts will always be in peak condition on day one, you can store them in an airtight container for two days or freeze them longer.

Recipe: Vanilla-Glazed Mochi Donuts

The second the first leaf falls, we must have a pumpkin spice latte in hand. These donuts not only have all of the spices of an authentic Starbucks beverage but they're also made with coffee icing that will transport your tastebuds to your local coffee shop.

We love that these donuts are made in a muffin tin so that they won't require any additional equipment or piping bag experience. You can also freeze the baked treats for up to a month to enjoy after the PSL season has passed.

Recipe: Pumpkin Spice Latte Muffin Donuts

Fall is the perfect time of year to bite into a caramel apple. But if you don't like eating these sugary, and frankly impractical, autumnal treats, try making these caramel apple donuts instead.

The donuts are filled with shredded apple pieces and covered in a homemade caramel sauce that is as decadent as it is sticky. You can also customize your donuts with the addition of candy corn, chopped peanuts, or chocolate chips.

Recipe: Caramel Apple Donuts