The husband and I are maple fiends.  And butterscotch.  And caramel.  For his birthday I made maple bourbon cupcakes with maple buttercream frosting and maple bourbon glazed bacon crumbles.  You get the idea.  And we ate a lot of the buttercream while attempting to reach just the right level of maple-ish deliciousness.  Add flavoring, taste, repeat.

We were recently invited to a potluck brunch.  I decided I would make some homemade baked donuts.  I also took a jar of the lemon curd.  While it didn’t go with the donuts it paired very nicely with the mini cranberry orange scones and mini blueberry scones that someone brought.  I also blurbed a little bit on top of my fresh fruit.

As an aside, this was my sink the morning of the brunch:

Tough life, huh?  Those were the tulips I purchased while on my little adventure to Degoede Bulb Farm.   I took some with me to the brunch.  And kept a hefty amount for myself.  Tulips are my favorite.

Oh, and check out my new Easter platter.  I transported the donuts on this plate. Pier 1.  Another favorite store.  Particularly around Christmas.

I acquired a Wilton donut pan for my birthday.  I’m not much of a donut girl. Someone brings a box into the office and I have no problem passing them up. Every-once-in-a-while I might have half a maple bar.  And stopping for a maple bow at The Donut House in Anacortes when we’re headed to the San Juan Islands is tradition.  But, other than that….eh.  I find that most donuts leave a weird greasy coating on the roof of my mouth.  For the most part they’re simply not good enough to warrant the calories.  Cupcakes and cake, that’s a whole different story.

So, why would I want a donut pan if I’m not a donut fan?  Well, the novelty of it. And, just because I’m not a fan doesn’t mean the husband isn’t.  And, I’ve discovered that baked donuts are (in most circumstances) tastier than their deep-fried counterparts.  I made eggnog donuts for Christmas morning.  Those were really good.  But, is it possible to go wrong with eggnog?  I think not.

The recipe for these maple glazed donuts comes from Sally over at Sally’s Baking Addiction.  I doubled her original recipe and made 12 donuts.  I probably could have gotten more if I’d gone a little lighter in the amount of dough I put in the pan, but it is what it is.

Part of what I love about this recipe (besides the glaze) is the donut itself.  It’s a spicy cake donut full of cinnamony, nutmeggy goodness.  The original recipe calls for ground cloves.  I didn’t have any on hand, so I tossed in some pumpkin pie spice.  Why not?

Maple Glazed Donuts

Maple Glaze:

• 1/2 c unsalted butter
• 1 c pure maple syrup
• 1 c sifted confectioners’ sugar
• 1 tsp maple extract

In a small saucepan over low heat melt the butter and maple syrup together, whisking occasionally.  Once the butter is melted remove from heat and whisk in the confectioners’ sugar.  Add the maple extract.  Add more to taste.  Set the glaze aside–it will thicken as it cools.

Spice Donuts:

• 2 c all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 c packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 c 1% milk
• 1/2 c low fat plain greek yogurt
• 4 tblsp unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tblsp pure vanilla

Preheat the over to 350 degrees.  Lightly oil your donut pan.

Whisk the dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl.  Set aside.

Whisk the eggs, brown sugar, milk, yogurt, melted butter and vanilla in a small bowl.  Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir just until combined–don’t overmix.

I find the best way to get the dough into the pan is to put it in a gallon-sized ziploc bag, squeeze it down into a corner, snip the corner and “pipe” it into the pan. Since this recipe makes 12 donuts and I only have one pan I put 1/2 of the dough into the bag at a time.

Bake for 9-11 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.  Allow to cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack.  Put something under the rack (waxed paper, foil, a cookie sheet) to catch the glaze drizzles.

Allow the donuts to cool slightly.  To glaze, hold the donut and dip into the glaze.  I dipped them once and then used a spoon to drizzle some extra over top.  Allow the glaze to set a bit, then serve.

A couple of final words of wisdom:  you’ll note that I listed pure vanilla as an ingredient.  Not extract.  I’m a fan of the real stuff.  It’s worth the money to buy it here (or you can beg friends going to Mexico to bring you back a bottle).  I’ve also heard, though it’s not the pure stuff, that Penzey’s double vanilla is very good.  Of course, who knows what’s in that bottle from Mexico.

I found that the glaze reached a certain point where it was just too thick and started to tear the tender donuts.  I popped it in the microwave to melt it a bit and was quickly back in business.

Final verdict:  we came home with three donuts.  And there was an over-abundance of food (that’s how this group of friends rolls), so I felt pretty good. And, frankly, the husband was quite happy to “have” to bring a few home.