Chocolate Cake Donuts

Light and fluffy but still rich, chocolatey, and cakey, these chocolate cake donuts, or chocolate sour cream donuts, are yummy and so easy!

What is the difference between a cake donut and a regular donut?

Cake donuts use baking powder instead of yeast to rise so they have more of a tender soft crumb and are a little more dense whereas regular donuts are more like a light and fluffy bread.

Can you make cake donuts in advance?

Yes! While regular donuts should really only be eaten super fresh, cake donuts taste great for a couple of days as long as you glaze them! You can also prep the dough the night before and fry them in the morning.

Can you bake cake donuts?

Ok so I am testing baking another batch while writing this and while I suppose you CAN. I wouldn’t recommend it, they don’t puff and crack and get all nice an airy but they do bake and they are edible. But I wouldn’t do it.

Additional Recipes to try:

• Krapfen
• Cream and Jam filled donuts
• Quarkbällchen

Tips for making Cake Donuts

• Make sure all dough ingredients are at room temperature. This will help the batter come together more easily and give you a lighter fluffier donut. You don’t want the ingredients warm, just a cool room temperature.
• Sift the dry ingredients! Cocoa powder and cornstarch have a tendency to clump and you don’t want to have to over mix the dough to get rid of them.
• Don’t be tempted to add more flour to the dough. It should be very sticky but thick, think like chocolate chip cookie dough but even a little stickier.
• I use a heavy cast iron dutch oven for frying because the dense material helps the oil heat evenly and the tall sides keep oil from splattering. A thermometer is also key when frying to make sure the oil is at the right temperature.
• I like to use a combination of a well floured work surface and parchment paper to roll out the dough and prevent it from sticking.
• It is important to fry the donuts between 340 F and 350 F. I find that 340 F is the best temperature that allows the center to be fully cooked without the outside burning. To keep the oil at the temperature be sure to keep a thermometer in the oil and I recommend heating it to 350 F. Then add in the donuts and the temperature will drop to around 340F.
• Dunk the donuts in the glaze while still warm to get that thin crackly glaze texture.

Ingredients

Dough

• Butter: Unsalted or salted butter will work but if you use salted, cut the additional salt in half. Just be sure the butter is at room temperature.
• Sugar: Granulated sugar sweetens and aids the texture of these donuts.
• Fine Sea Salt: Salt is key to balancing sweetness and enhancing the flavor of the dough.
• Espresso Powder: Espresso powder which is not the same as ground espresso, enhances the chocolate flavor of the donuts.
• Vanilla extract: A teaspoon of vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste enhances the flavors and sweetness of the doughnuts.
• Egg yolks: Two standard large egg yolks are used in the batter to hold it together and add tenderness.
• All Purpose Flour: Any all purpose flour will work for these! I have not yet tried any other flours with this recipe.
• Cocoa Powder: Natural or dutch processed cocoa powder will work for these! I use a combination from Saco Pantry.
• Cornstarch: Cornstarch gives these a lighter texture because when mixed with flour it acts as cake flour.
• Baking Powder: Ultimately the baking powder is the key to making the donuts puff so make sure it hasn’t expired/is still active.
• Sour Cream: I haven’t tried any other dairy alternatives so I recommend using full fat sour cream to give the donuts their tenderness.
• Vegetable Oil: Vegetable oil or Canola oil are used to fry the doughnuts, I believe avocado oil may work as well but I haven’t tested it.

Glaze

• Milk: Any milk will work for the glaze. I usually use 2% or whole milk but non dairy milks work too!
• Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar will thicken and sweeten the glaze.
• Vanilla Extract: A little vanilla gives a boost of flavor to the glaze.

How to make Chocolate cake donuts

Make the dough

• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, cocoa powder and baking powder
• In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, salt, vanilla, and espresso powder. It won’t get light and fluffy so just beat for about a minute on medium speed.
• Add both egg yolks in with the butter mixture and beat until smooth.
• Alternate adding in 1/3 of the sour cream and then 1/3 of the dry ingredients sifted into the butter and egg yolk mixture. Be sure to mix until combined and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl in between each addition. Repeat until all the sour cream and dry ingredients have been used up.
• Scoop the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and wrap it into a square or circle that is between one and two inches thick.
• Place the dough in the fridge to chill for at least an hour or up to overnight.

Make the glaze

• In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and powdered sugar until a glaze forms. It should be about honey consistency. If it’s too thin add more powdered sugar, too thin, add more milk.
• Then whisk in the vanilla extract and set aside.

Shape the Doughnuts

• While the dough is chilling or about 20 minutes before you plan to cut out the donuts, pour the oil into a large dutch oven and place a candy thermometer on the side of the pot.
• Place a wire rack into a baking sheet and set it next to the stove for the fried donuts to sit on.
• Place the pot over low heat if using a gas stove and medium low if electric.
• Keep an eye on the oil temp but let it heat up to 350 F.
• Once the dough has chilled, roll it out on a well floured surface with a piece of parchment paper on top. Be sure to scoot the dough around on the counter between rolls to keep it from sticking.
• Roll the dough out so that it is 1/2″ thick.
• Use a biscuit cutter or a glass that is 4″ inches in diameter and cut out 4-5 donuts. Use a smaller circle that’s about 1″ in diameter to cut out the donut holes.
• Place the donuts and donut holes on a parchment lined sheet and place in the fridge until the oil is hot. Scraps can be cut into additional donut holes but I don’t recommend re-rolling the dough.
• Once the oil has reached 350 F. Carefully place two of the donuts in the oil, dropping them away from you. Set a timer for 2 minutes and keep an eye on the oil temperature. It should stay between 340 and 350.
• At first the donuts will sink, and then they’ll float, and then they will start to puff and get that classic crack around the top.
• Once the two minutes are up and the tops have cracked, use a metal slotted spoon or spider to carefully flip them over, away from you so the oil doesn’t splash on to you.
• Fry for another two minutes.
• Use the same metal tool to scoop the donuts out one at a time and place them on the wire rack to allow excess oil to drip off.
• Let the oil come back to 350 before adding in the second round of donuts. Then repeat the frying steps above. Lastly fry the donut holes and scraps for about 1 minute on each side.

Glaze

• While the donuts are still warm, I usually do this between batches, dunk the donuts into the glaze. Start with the top cracked side face down into the bowl.
• Then use your fingers or a fork to flip the donut over so that both sides get glazed.
• Carefully lift the glazed donut up and let any excess glaze drip off.
• Place the glazed donuts on a second wire rack and leave them to cool for at least ten minutes.
• Any leftovers should be left to cool completely and then stored in an airtight container at room temperature.

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