Baked Chocolate Peanut Butter Donuts with Vanilla Peanut Butter Glaze – Soft chocolate-peanut butter donuts are the best of all worlds because you get chocolate and peanut butter in one easy dessert. Because they’re baked rather than fried like traditional donuts, they’re healthier so of course you can feel free to have seconds!
You may have seen this recipe coming. I mean, come on.
Chocolate and peanut butter. I had to.
The vanilla glazed donuts, i.e. Krispy Kreme donuts And the cinnamon bun with cream cheese frosting donuts, i.e. Cinnabons in donut form, were lovely but.
The combination of chocolate and peanut butter will always hold a special place in my heart.
And these have been holding a special place in my heart and in my stomach the past few days.
The peanut butter keeps them extra moist. So moist and dense you may think they were fried, but they’re baked.
Does baking them mean they’re somehow better for you than fried and therefore you can go ahead and have seconds? Or thirds? Sure, I’ll go with that logic.
The scent of chocolate and peanut butter wafting through your house while these are baking is intoxicating. You’re forewarned.
But unlike chocolate cake or brownies which take much longer to bake, you’ll only be tempted for about 10 minutes while these babies bake.
And while they’re baking, you can make the vanilla peanut butter glaze.
Try not to lick the glaze-mixing spoon too many times while you wait for them to come out of the oven.
This is what they looked like fresh out of the oven and naked, BG (Before Glazing)
If for some reason you’re crazy you don’t like peanut butter, you could make a Cream Cheese Glaze or a basic Vanilla Glaze
But I happen to love peanut butter so the glaze choice was obvious for me.
If you don’t have a donut pan, you should get one. $8 bucks with a coupon and well worth it but if you don’t have one and you’re desperate to get your chocolate peanut butter fix on pronto, you can make these as muffins as suggested in the recipe.
Donuts seem more fun to eat than muffins though.
And these were very fun to eat.
I especially liked licking the vanilla-infused peanut butter glaze from my fingers. The sweet glaze balanced out the chocolate donuts which were not overly sweet. The donuts have a rich, dark chocolate flavor rather than a ‘sweet’ or milk chocolate flavor. They remind me of Flourless Chocolate Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies but in donut form.
Skylar and I were a sticky, peanut-buttery, chocolatey mess after we got done with these.
Her hair was getting in her eyes and face a bit while she was eating her donut and I had to remind her, “Honey, don’t touch your hair until after we wash our hands.”
Nothing like a little peanut butter in your hair to keep it soft and shiny and a little cocoa powder and chocolate streaked through your hair to accentuate your lowlights. The donuts were so worth a little hair mess. That’s what shampoo is for. No biggie.
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Baked Chocolate-Peanut Butter Donuts with Vanilla-Peanut Butter Glaze
Ingredients
Donuts
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tbsp creamy peanut butter, melted
- ¾ c all-purpose flour
- ⅓ c granulated sugar
- ¼ c unsweetened natural cocoa powder, I used Trader Joes but you could try Hershey’s Dark or any favorite
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- ½ c buttermilk, you could use regular milk/cream/vegan milk + 1/2 tsp vinegar, to mimic buttermilk if you don’t keep buttermilk on hand
- 1 large egg
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
Glaze
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tbsp creamy peanut butter, melted
- ⅓ c or more powdered sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract, use more if you like a stronger vanilla flavor
- 1 tbsp+ milk or cream, as needed for consistency
Instructions
- Donuts
- Pre-heat oven to 325F degrees and lightly grease or cooking-spray the donut pan (or muffin tin). I use this Wilton doughtnut pan. Pans vary by size but this is not a “huge” recipe. Double or triple the recipe as desired. For the extra bit of batter, rather than waiting for my one donut pan to come out of the oven, I made two small muffins in a muffin pan with it. It took about 15 minutes for the muffins to cook through.
- In a small bowl, soften/melt the butter and peanut butter in the microwave, about 15- 30 seconds. Stir to combine.
- In a large bowl, mix together flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, buttermilk, egg, and vanilla. Stir to combine.
- Then add in the melted butter/peanut butter mixture and stir to combine.
- Use a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip (or a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off) to pipe the batter into a 6-donut pan. Or just be extra neat and do this with a spoon which is what I did.
- Bake 8 to 11 minutes in the preheated oven, until doughnuts spring back when touched or until dough is set. Donuts will should be springy. (I always underbake my baked goods but in my oven these took 10-11 minutes to set up)
- Allow to cool slightly before removing from pan, about 5 minutes. While donuts are baking or cooling, make the glaze.
- Glaze (makes slightly more glaze than you’ll likely need if you’re glazing only the top half of the donuts. Store extra in the refrigerator for a later use or add to a smoothie, coffee, eat with a spoon, glaze the entire donut)
- In a small bowl, soften/melt the butter and peanut butter in the microwave, about 15-20 seconds. Stir to combine.
- Add the powdered sugar and vanilla to the melted butter/peanut butter mixture and stir.
- Slowly add the water or milk, one teaspoon at a time, until desired consistency is achieved.
- Dip the donuts into the glaze and add sprinkles or other garnishes as desired.
- To make Gluten Free: use your favorite gluten free flour blend. To make Vegan: My suggestion is be to replace the buttermilk with almond milk or full fat coconut milk (because it’s thicker like buttermilk) and add 1 tsp vinegar as noted in the recipe to mimic buttermilk; increase the amount of baking powder and/or add baking soda. Use melted margarine or Earth Balance, and use a flax/chia egg rather than regular egg.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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OMG these look so good! I love your pictures too. Can I ask what camera do you use? In in the market and I like the way these look.
I have it linked up in these two tabs/posts
https://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/popular
and also my photography tab
https://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/photography
also read over the posts in the photography tab about food styling…it’s not just the kind of camera you use! everything else matters just as much if not more.
https://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2011/03/food-styling-props-books-photo-quality.html
99% of the time I shoot with a Canon 5D Mark II and currently at 24-70mm lens
Those are all kinds of awesome! Really, the best flavor combination ever!
I love making donuts. Thank you for the inspiration!
I’m totally looking forward to those savory donuts…I’ve been working on a gluten free sage and onion biscuit that I think could make a great “donut”…I may or may not be buying a donut pan for my husband for christmas…shhhh
Chocolate + peanut butter = one of my favorite candies, peanut butter cups! I bet this would be good w/ almond butter, too…yum!
you can do these in a muffin pan or Heab’s donuts too…but I think muffins are more fun than donuts. 8 bucks, cheap thrills baby :)
whoops I replied to the wrong comment but yes, savory donut recipe coming up next week!
I need a doughnut pan! I just saw Heather (heathereatsalmondbutter) use her doughnut pan for a savory recipe and now your recipe just seals the deal:)
you can do these in a muffin pan or Heab’s donuts too…but I think muffins are more fun than donuts. 8 bucks, cheap thrills baby :)
Chocolate peanut butter is my favorite combo (so thank you for this ;)) otherwise, I like white cake with a light whipped frosting… not a rich frosting girl!
WOW!! Chocolate Peanut Butter Donuts w/ Vanilla Peanut Butter Glaze, yes please!! :)
I think baking them DEFINITELY means that you can go back for seconds…or thirds…or fourths :-)
especially if you’re preggers like you are :)
LOL I almost always end up with food in my hair and I have super short hair ;-)
Those look unreal! Nice job!
:) thanks
OH MY GOODNESS. Apparently you are my kinda woman. In my opinion, the combo of peanut butter and chocolate are heaven sent. These donuts look so amazing! How do you make all of these wonderful creations and not eat ALL of them?! It is quite impressive to me. ;)
Oh I do eat them. I get asked that all the time. Touched on it here :) https://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/popular
Thanks for the compliments on the donuts!
I really loved the distressed wood background you’ve been sporting lately! Is it a table you have?
No it’s actually a laminate product that’s made to look like wood but it’s not. I have a few of them in difference colors. Thanks for noticing! The chipotle almonds were on really dark, these donuts on natural, and the cranberry mango chutney on white.
Oh my… I do not normally like donuts… but THESE are genius! Anything with chocolate and peanut butter is a favorite of mine. Throwing vanilla in too makes it even better!
Drooling…
Thanks :)
OMG seriously? You are amazing. I have never had a chocolate/peanut butter donut. Now I need to!
make some!
I love that you’re having so much fun with your doughnut pan! And yes, who can resist the chocolate + PB combo?
yes tons of fun!