Baked Gingerbread Christmas Donuts

2 days ago 14

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Bake these soft gingerbread Christmas donuts for an easy holiday treat. These festive Christmas donuts are baked, glazed, and full of warm spice.

Recipe at a Glance

Servings: 18

Prep: 20 minutes

Cook: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Flour, sugar, warm spices (ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves), baking powder, egg, milk, molasses, butter, vanilla, powdered sugar

Soft, warmly spiced, sweet vanilla glaze

Donut pans, bowls, whisk, wire rack

Switch cloves for allspice if that’s what you have at home.

A hand with red nail polish picks up a glazed gingerbread Christmas donut topped with red, green, and white sprinkles from a pile of similarly decorated baked donuts.

In the Test Kitchen

I wanted these Christmas donuts to taste like a cozy gingerbread cookie without being dense, so I tested different spice levels until the balance felt just right. Increasing the ginger and adding a touch of molasses gave me the warm flavor I wanted, but keeping the donuts baked instead of fried kept them light and soft. I also found that dipping the donuts twice in the glaze gives that pretty bakery shine without making them overly sweet.

Close-up of baked donuts topped with white glaze and red, green, and white sprinkles. One gingerbread donut is broken in half, showing its fluffy interior. Other decorated donuts are visible in the background.

Ingredient Notes

An assortment of baking ingredients on a white surface, including flour, sugar, milk, butter, vanilla, honey, salt, spices in jars—perfect for making gingerbread donuts—and colorful sprinkles in glass bowls and containers.

All-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder

Light brown sugar adds deeper molasses flavor

Ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg

Swap cloves for allspice if needed

Whole milk, unsalted butter, molasses, vanilla extract, large egg

Half-and-half for milk, vanilla bean paste for extract

Powdered sugar, melted butter, ginger, cinnamon, vanilla, milk

Half-and-half for milk if you want a richer glaze

Christmas sprinkles that add color and a festive crunch.

Use sanding sugar, nonpareils, or a simple dusting of cinnamon if you want something less sweet.

Seasonal baking section or the baking aisle near the sprinkles.

You can find the full, printable recipe at the top of this post, but you can read the detailed instructions with photos for each step below.

How To Make Christmas Donuts

Preheat & Grease

Set your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease two donut pans well so the donuts release easily later.

A six-cavity metal donut baking pan, each cavity coated in a thin layer of butter or oil—perfect for baking gingerbread or Christmas donuts, viewed from above.

Mix the Dry Ingredients

In a large bowl, whisk together 2 cups (250 g) flour, 1½ cups (300 g) sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground cloves, and ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg until everything looks evenly blended.

A metal whisk with a wooden handle rests in a glass bowl filled with flour, ready for mixing up gingerbread donuts, viewed from above.

Combine the Wet Ingredients

In a separate bowl, whisk 1 beaten egg, 1¼ cups whole milk, 2 tablespoons melted butter, 2 tablespoons molasses, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract until smooth and slightly glossy.

top left, a bowl with eggs and milk; top right, a bowl with flour, sugar, and spices for gingerbread donuts; bottom, a whisk mixing smooth brown batter in a glass bowl.

Bring the Batter Together

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture and stir gently until just combined. A few small lumps are fine and help keep the donuts tender.

A metal whisk mixing thick, light brown gingerbread batter in a clear glass bowl on a white surface.

Fill the Pans

Spoon or pipe the batter into your pans, filling each donut mold about halfway to two-thirds full. That gives you a nice rise without spilling over.

A metal donut pan filled with six cavities of unbaked gingerbread donut batter, ready to be baked, shown from above on a white surface.

Bake the Donuts

Into the oven they go for 15 to 17 minutes. You’ll know they’re done when they spring back to the touch or a toothpick comes out clean. Cool them for a few minutes in the pan, then move to a wire rack.

A metal tray with six baked gingerbread donuts sits next to a cooling rack holding twelve more donuts, all with holes in the center, on a white background.

Make the Glaze

While the donuts cool, whisk together 2 cups of powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons melted butter, a half teaspoon of ginger, a quarter teaspoon of cinnamon, a teaspoon of vanilla, and a few tablespoons of milk until it’s smooth and pourable.

the left contains flour, egg, spices, and vanilla for Gingerbread Donuts; the right shows the mixed batter with a whisk resting inside. Both bowls are on a white background.

Glaze & Decorate

Dip each cooled donut into the glaze and let the excess drip back into the bowl. Place on the rack to set. For a thicker coating, dip again once the first layer dries. Add Christmas sprinkles while the glaze is still wet so they stick.

A hand dips a baked donut into white glaze; six glazed gingerbread donuts cool on a rack; below, nine donuts with white glaze and red and green sprinkles rest on a wire rack.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Serves 18

For the Donuts

▢ 2  cups all-purpose flour
▢ 1 ½  cups granulated sugar
▢ 2  tsp baking powder
▢ 1  tsp salt
▢ 2  tsp ground ginger
▢ 1  tsp ground cinnamon
▢ ½  tsp ground cloves (or allspice)
▢ ½  tsp ground nutmeg
▢ 1  large egg (beaten)
▢ 1¼  cups whole milk
▢ 2  Tbsp unsalted butter (melted and cooled)
▢ 2  Tbsp unsulphured molasses
▢ 1  tsp vanilla extract ( or vanilla bean paste)

For the Glaze

▢ 2  cups powdered sugar (sifted)
▢ 2  Tbsp butter (melted)
▢ ½  tsp ground ginger
▢ ¼  tsp ground cinnamon
▢ 1  tsp vanilla extract
▢ 2 Tbsp milk (Plus more as needed)

Decoration

▢ Christmas sprinkles (or a dusting of cinnamon)

Preheat your oven to 350 °F (175 °C). Grease 2 donut pans generously with butter or nonstick spray.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg, milk, melted butter, molasses, and vanilla until well combined.
Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined. Don’t overmix—lumps are totally fine.
Spoon or pipe the batter into your donut pans, filling each mold about halfway to two-thirds full.
Bake for 15–17 minutes, or until the tops spring back lightly when touched and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Glaze:
In a bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, melted butter, ground ginger, cinnamon, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of milk. Add more milk a little at a time until the glaze is smooth and pourable.
Dip each cooled donut into the glaze. Let excess drip off, then place on a rack to set. Repeat for a second layer if desired. Sprinkle with Christmas sprinkles or dust with extra cinnamon.

Erren’s Top Tips

Grease every nook of the donut pans. Even nonstick pans can cling to baked donuts, so get into the curves with butter or spray to help them pop right out.
Use a piping bag (or a zip-top bag with the corner snipped) to fill the molds. This keeps the batter even and prevents overfilling, which helps every donut keep its perfect shape.
Don’t pack the flour into the measuring cup. If you’re not weighing it, lightly spoon it in and level it off so the donuts stay soft instead of dense.
Keep the mixing gentle. If the batter starts looking shiny and stretchy, it’s overmixed. Stop as soon as the flour disappears for tender donuts.
Add the glaze only when the donuts are fully cool. If they’re even a little warm, the glaze will melt and slide off instead of forming that pretty finish.
Adjust the glaze slowly. If the glaze seems too thick, add milk a teaspoon at a time—you’ll hit that “smooth ribbon” stage fast.
Add sprinkles right after dipping. The glaze sets quickly, so sprinkle immediately so they stick and look bright.

Variations & Add-Ins

Maple Glaze: Replace the milk in the glaze with maple syrup.
Cinnamon Sugar: Skip the glaze and toss warm donuts in cinnamon sugar.
Chocolate Drizzle: Add a thin drizzle of melted chocolate on top.
Orange Spice: Add ½ teaspoon orange zest to the batter for a citrus twist.

Storage & Freezing

Storage: Store your glazed gingerbread donuts at room temperature for up to 3 days.
To freeze: freeze unglazed donuts for up to 2 months, thaw, then glaze before serving.