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    How to Make Donuts without a Donut Pan

    Home » Recipes » Breakfast » How to Make Donuts without a Donut Pan

    Published: May 17, 2013 · Modified: Mar 27, 2024 by Sarah · This post may contain affiliate links · 24 Comments

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    Craving donuts? Try this amazing Cookie Butter Donut recipe. No need for fancy kitchen gear, today we are sharing an easy way to make donuts without a donut pan! 
     
    Stack of Cookie Butter Donuts on a white plate.

    *This post contains affiliate links.

    My new obsession has three names: Cookie butter, Speculoos and Biscoff Spread. Three names seems like a lot but it's all the same delicious thing so who cares.
     
    Have you tried Cookie Butter? Yesterday I decided I wanted to try baking with it instead of just eating it by the spoonful like I have been, and baked donuts sounded so good. 
     
    I started to gather my ingredients when I realized might need a donut pan. I considered choosing another breakfast recipe, or running to the store before realizing that there must be a better way. So I improvised with a little tin foil!
     
    Below I'm going to show you how to bake donuts without a donut pan and share the recipe for Cookie Butter Donuts with Cookie Butter glaze. You could also try this method and make these Birthday Cake Donuts as well! 

    How to Make Donuts without a Donut Pan - Video Tutorial

    What You Need:

    Muffin tin
    Tin Foil
    Cooking Spray

    How to Use Tin Foil 

    • Roll small sheets of tin foil into cylinders. I like to make mine tall enough that they can reach the top of the muffin pan.
    • Grease the muffin pan as well as the tin foil. 
    Tin foil cylinders in muffin pan to make donuts without a donut pan.
    Tin foil in a muffin pan ready to make donuts without a donut pan

    Pipe Batter into the Muffin Pan

    • Add donut batter to one side of a gallon sized ziplock bag and cut the corner off of the bag. You will use this as a piping bag for the batter. 
    • Squeeze batter into muffin cups in a circle around the tin foil. 
    • Bake donuts at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until donuts are golden brown. Let them cool.
    • Dip donuts in glaze and allow it to set before serving.
    Cake donuts on a cooling rack with tin foil cylinders in the middle, just out of the oven.
    One word: YUM.
     
    You can sprinkle some powdered sugar on the donuts as well. It's your breakfast, do what you feel is right. 
     
    Cookie Butter Cake Donut with powdered sugar dusted on top.
     
    You guys these were so easy, and so delish! I highly recommend trying them. Or at least try the cookie butter. Really it's so good with apples, on toast or just from a spoon...
     

    Cookie Butter Donuts Recipe

    If you love this recipe or the tutorial for making donuts without a donut pan, consider leaving us a comment and positive review! They mean so much to us. We'd also love if you share a picture on instagram, and tag us: @prettyprovidenceblog

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    Cookie Butter Donuts

    Delicious baked donut recipe, plus an easy tutorial for how to make donuts without a donut pan!
    5 from 7 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 35 minutes minutes
    Servings: 10
    Calories: 170kcal
    Author: Pretty Providence

    Video

    Ingredients

    Cookie Butter Cake Donuts

    • ¼ cup cookie butter
    • ¼ cup sugar
    • ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon milk
    • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
    • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 egg
    • 1 cup all-purpose flour
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder
    • ¼ teaspoon salt

    Cookie Butter Glaze

    • 2 tablespoon melted butter
    • ¼ cup cookie butter
    • 2 tablespoon milk
    • ½ teaspoon water
    • ½ teaspoon vanilla
    • ½ cup powdered sugar

    Instructions

    How to Make Donuts

    • Preheat oven to 325F.
    • Get out a muffin pan. Roll aluminum foil into little cylinders the size you would like the middle of your donuts to be. Place one in each muffin cup and grease with cooking spray.
    • Use a hand mixer to combine cookie and sugar until incorporated.
    • Add milk, oil, vanilla, and egg; mix.
    • Slowly add flour, baking powder, and salt over top of cookie butter mixture. Mix until just combined.
    • Transfer to a ziploc bag, cut a small hole in one corner and pipe into muffin pan around the tin foil balls.
    • Bake 8 - 10 minutes, until donuts are golden brown. Allow to cool for a few minutes before removing them from the pan. Once you remove them, let them cool fully while you make the glaze. Push tin foil out right before glazing.

    Cookie Butter Glaze

    • Whisk together melted butter and cookie butter. Once incorporated, add milk, water, vanilla, and powdered sugar; whisk. If the glaze is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it's too thick, add more milk.
    • Dip donuts into the glaze and allow to set for 15 minutes before serving

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1donut | Calories: 170kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 87mg | Potassium: 107mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 100IU | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 1mg
    Did you make this recipe?Mention @prettyprovidenceblog or tag #prettyprovidence!
    Sarah

    This post was originally published in May 2013 and has been updated with new pictures, a video and more information.

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      Recipe Rating




    1. kathleen v regan

      January 11, 2025 at 11:43 am

      I think if you don't know how to write a recipe you shouldn't try it. This is just loaded with stupid ideas, none of which actually worked. Messy and a waste of time.

      Reply
    2. Sha

      August 22, 2024 at 5:31 am

      5 stars
      This is soooo brilliant! Never thought of this before. Yummy!

      Reply
    3. Ellie Grove

      August 21, 2024 at 10:09 pm

      5 stars
      These are so fun to make and turned out perfectly the first time! I love how easily they come together and taste just like a donut! I love that I didn't have to buy another pan too!

      Reply
    4. Kristyn

      August 21, 2024 at 1:54 pm

      5 stars
      First of all, these donuts are amazing!! My kids can eat them as fast as I can bake them!! And, secondly, what a great idea!! Now, there is no excuse on being able to make them!

      Reply
    5. Kristyn

      April 15, 2024 at 9:54 am

      5 stars
      Love this!! Super easy to do & makes the perfect donut shape. And, cookie butter..yes, please!! We love everything about these donuts!!

      Reply
    6. Faye R

      April 15, 2024 at 5:05 am

      Ok, these are AMAZING. Even better than I expected!! My husband and I were fighting over the last one lol

      Reply
    7. Sha

      April 13, 2024 at 8:00 am

      5 stars
      This is a super fun experience! Made it with the kids and they loved the outcome. Such a great recipe. I'm keeping it!

      Reply
    8. Alma Russell

      February 10, 2024 at 11:10 am

      I have read this several times but I cannot find what “ cookie butter” is…I know I’m missing something here

      Reply
      • Sarah

        February 10, 2024 at 11:14 am

        Hi! Cookie butter is a spread, kind of like peanut butter or nutella but it is made out of biscoff-style cookies.

        Reply
    9. Danny

      February 06, 2023 at 9:28 am

      5 stars
      I will be making these next I already know they will be delicious.

      I was reading the comments about it not working for some and though what if you roll a two or three inch strip of foil around your finder then twit the tip of it.
      I made donuts for the first time yesterday and come to find out I didn't even have muffin tin's anymore and had to use a baking sheet with parchment paper they were pretty thin but good

      Reply
    10. Julie

      August 01, 2019 at 7:45 am

      It didn't work for me. The foil was terrible and I couldn't do the bag thing because it would have been too messy. They just look like mini muffins and were underdone. I will be buying a donut pan. Hopefully, they will taste good.

      Reply
    11. Melissa McArthur

      June 04, 2019 at 1:52 pm

      5 stars
      This idea is the best!! Such a clever way to make donuts, and so delicious!!

      Reply
      • Jessica

        June 04, 2019 at 1:57 pm

        Thank you so much! It really is so fun!

        Reply
    12. David Richardson

      March 04, 2019 at 1:57 pm

      See the problem with this is that Aluminum Foil is harmful to the body. Not that average Person cares about this, but I certainly do. If you did this the aluminum would go into your food. The main reason I don’t cook with aluminum at all. If you told me this idea years ago, I would have thought you where a genius.

      Reply
      • Nina

        January 19, 2023 at 11:04 am

        Bingo! Could not agree more, it’s actually astonishing to me how few still actually know this.

        Reply
        • Jay

          February 25, 2023 at 8:19 pm

          You’re looking at a cookie butter donut recipe. You must not be that concerned about what you’re putting in your body.

    13. simone

      October 05, 2014 at 8:45 pm

      So wish this had worked for me, but the aluminum foil balls just rose to the surface and made little toppers for muffin towers. Still tasty but no doughnut pan substitute.

      Reply
      • Erin

        January 27, 2019 at 12:57 pm

        Same issue. Tried to use the foil, but it was an epic fail. They just rose on top of the batter.

        Reply
        • Sarah

          January 28, 2019 at 5:55 am

          Oh man, I'm so sorry! I need to update this recipe. I shared this back in 2013 and it worked really well for me a few times with that specific recipe, but I haven't tried it with other flavors or types of pans.

    14. M.S..W

      February 10, 2014 at 1:06 pm

      Yay! Thanks for the idea to use instead of a donut plan!! Can't wait to try it, thanks!! <3

      Reply
    15. P

      January 31, 2014 at 5:13 pm

      Brilliant idea!

      Reply
      • Jessica @ Pretty Providence

        January 31, 2014 at 5:44 pm

        Thanks so much! We hope it works for you!

        Reply
    16. Fernando

      January 23, 2014 at 6:42 am

      That's clever.

      Reply
    17. Heidi@OneCreativeMommy.com

      May 18, 2013 at 4:49 pm

      You're so clever to figure out how to make donuts without a donut pan!

      Reply

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