Chocolate Fudge Doughnuts

My chocolate fudge doughnuts are a surely chocaholic’s dream come true! Moist, rich, soft and lighter than air, these chocolate cake doughnuts are topped with the most silky smooth incredible chocolate fudge glaze in the world. And if that weren’t enough chocolate yumminess, they’re decorated with a white chocolate drizzle and chocolate curls. Pure chocolate heaven!!

A (chocolate doughnut) star is born

There’s a bit of a tale behind how this bake came to be. Let me share: every year for my birthday since the children were old enough to bake for me, I’ve requested a chocolate fudge cake. It’s one of my all-time favourite cakes, and I love that it can be enjoyed not only as a slice of beautiful decadent cake but also warm and gooey with some vanilla ice cream. If you haven’t already, you must check out my ultimate chocolate fudge cake recipe, it truly is heavenly! It is the only recipe you will ever need for the most amazing chocolate fudge cake ever!

So anyway, being such a fan of chocolate fudge cake as I am, I knew I wanted to create a doughnut version as soon as I got my doughnut pan last year. Really you could say it was just a matter of time before my chocolate fudge cake doughnuts came into being!

What ingredients do I need to make these chocolate fudge doughnuts?

• Flour: this recipe uses plain flour (all purpose if you’re in the US).
• Caster sugar: this adds sweetness to the doughnuts.
• Cocoa powder: essential for that chocolatey yumminess we all crave!
• Baking powder/bicarbonate of soda: these are the leavening agents in this bake.
• Salt: salt enhances the flavour of your bake. You won’t taste it, don’t worry!
• Milk: adds to the liquid requirements of this doughnut recipe.
• Egg: gives structure to your bake and helps with the rise of it too.
• Vanilla: purely for flavour. Yum!
• Melted butter: this is the fat content of the recipe. Butter helps keep your bake moist and trap air during baking, leading to a fluffier bake.
• Espresso powder: when used in a chocolate bake, enhances the flavour of the chocolate, making it rich and decadent and so moreish!
• Icing/powdered sugar: used in the icing/glaze. Better than other sugars as it dissolves more easily making for smoother topping for your fudgy doughnuts!

What equipment do I need to make baked doughnuts?

• Doughnut pan*: you will need a 6 hole doughnut pan to make baked doughnuts.
• Pastry brush*: for brushing butter on your doughnut pan.
• Digital kitchen scales*: whilst I do provide cup measurements for all my recipes, I always recommend using digital kitchen scales to weigh your ingredients out instead. Weighing out your ingredients is much more accurate than measuring by volume, as you do with cups, and will ensure better results.
• Measuring spoons*: for measuring smaller quantites such as tablespoons (tbsp) and teaspoons (tsp), I would recommend getting a set of spoons as they would be far more accurate than using your everyday eating spoons.
• Mixing bowl*: any bowl large enough will do, plastic, glass, the choice is yours! I prefer using a glass bowl.
• Sieve*: removes any lumps from your dry ingredients whilst also aerating them as you add each one into your bowl.
• Whisk*: totally optional, but good for aerating your dry ingredients.
• Spatula*: to mix ingredients together.
• Measuring jug*: because this mixture is really quite liquid, I prefer pouring my mixture into a jug so I can measure it out easily and evenly into my doughnut pan. You can spoon it in, of course, but using a jug is so much easier
• Small bowls*: one for making your chocolate fudge glaze and one for melting white chocolate for the final drizzle.

How to make chocolate fudge doughnuts

This doughnut recipe uses simple ingredients you probably already have at home. The doughnut mixture doesn’t take long to come together, so you can be enjoying some delicious doughnuts in record time!

For the doughnuts

Step 1: Brush your doughnut pan with some melted butter and set it aside. Preheat your oven to 180C/350F while you make your mixture.

Step 2: Into a large mixing bowl, sift in the flour, caster sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Whisk lightly to combine, then set aside.

Step 3: In a separate bowl, or ideally a large jug, tip in the milk, egg and vanilla and whisk together. Gradually add in your melted butter, whisking as you go so your butter doesn’t solidify when it hits the cold ingredients in the jug. Pour your wet ingredients into the bowl with your dry ingredients and whisk together to combine.

Step 4: In the jug, mix together your espresso powder, if using, with your boiling water, then gradually add it to your chocolate mixture in the mixing bowl, whisking until you have a beautiful shiny and silky mixture.

Step 5: Transfer this mixture back into your jug to make it easier to pour into your prepared doughnut pan. Fill each doughnut hole no more than ⅔ full. Bake in your preheated oven for 9-10 minutes until lightly springy and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool in the pan for a few minutes before really carefully (these are super delicate doughnuts, so you need to be extra careful with this step!) removing and leaving on a cooling rack to cool completely.

For the decoration

Step 1: To make the chocolate fudge glaze, place your icing sugar, cocoa powder and melted butter in a small bowl, mixing together with 2 tbsp milk. Add more milk and mix in as needed to get the consistency you want. If your glaze looks slightly split, simply pop it in the microwave for 5 seconds or so then whisk it vigorously. It should be a beautiful smooth and shiny chocolate fudge glaze when ready.

Step 2: Carefully dip one side of each doughnut into your glaze, being gentle so as not to break the delicate doughnuts, and smoothing the edges as needed. Decorate with a drizzle of melted white chocolate over one side of each doughnut and top the drizzle with a few chocolate curls.

How do you remove the doughnuts from the tin?

Once you’ve removed your doughnut pan from the oven, let it sit on your cooling rack for 2-3 minutes. Then, very gently, use a (rounded) knife to gently ease the doughnuts to make sure they’re loosened from the pan. If you greased your pan before baking, they should easily pop out.

How long do these chocolate baked doughnuts last and how do I store baked doughnuts?

These doughnuts will last 2-3 days if stored in a cool place and in an airtight container. However, these chocolate cake doughnuts are best enjoyed on the day they are made.

Can you freeze doughnuts?

Absolutely! Freeze your doughnuts before you glaze or decorate them for best results, and freeze for up to two months. Keep reading for how to freeze your doughnuts.

How to freeze doughnuts

I would recommend not decorating your doughnuts before freezing, but doing it after you have defrosted them.

I like to use large (sealable) food or freezer bags to freeze my doughnuts. Cut two pieces of baking paper slightly smaller than your bag, then slide one into the bottom of your freezer bag. Place your doughnuts, in one layer, on the paper and top with the second piece of paper. Gently push as much air out of the bag as possible and seal almost all the way, leaving a little part of the bag unsealed. Using a straw, carefully slip it into the unsealed part of your bag. Use the straw to suck the remaining air out of the bag. This will make it look like it’s shrinking and make the paper contract against the doughnuts – perfect! Once you’ve got as much air out as you can, seal the bag and lay it flat in your freezer. 

How to thaw your doughnuts

When you want to enjoy your frozen doughnuts again, just thaw them in the fridge for a couple of hours, then microwave them at 50% in short bursts to bring to room temperature. If you are short on time (or you forget to pop them in the fridge!), you can warm the doughnuts in short bursts directly in the microwave, but this can run the risk of drying your doughnuts out, so I wouldn’t advise this unless you’re desperate!

Can I make these doughnuts gluten free and dairy free?

Yes! You can substitute your plain/all purpose flour for a gluten free flour, but do add an additional ¼ tsp Xanthan gum for a better texture. For dairy free options similarly use a plant based milk and plant based butter. Also make sure to grease your tins with dairy free butter.

Additional tips for making this chocolate doughnut recipe

• Make sure you’ve prepared your tools before you start mixing: grease your pan and preheat your oven. It’s easy to forget once you start mixing!
• Leave your doughnuts to cool completely before decorating. They don’t take long, maybe 20 minutes or so. Doing it sooner could result in your soft, delicate doughnuts breaking or crumbling as you dip them in your glaze.
• When dipping your doughnuts in the glaze, first make sure your glaze isn’t too thick to risk pulling and breaking your doughnuts. I find it easiest to pop it in face down, wiggle it a little on the surface of the glaze, then very gently twist it to get it up off the glaze. Do use a (rounded) knife to help you lift it if needed, then just smooth the glaze over if required.
• I’ve made these doughnuts to be totally a chocaholics dream! But you can be creative too: use different sprinkles, popping candy or even some freeze dried fruit! Or just leave with a plain glaze and get devouring!

Troubleshooting

If you have any other questions about this recipe, please use the comments below to ask away and I’ll do my best to help! And if you made and enjoyed this, I’d love to hear from you too!

And don’t forget: if you do make this recipe for chocolate fudge cake doughnuts, please do consider leaving a rating and review below, I would love to know how you enjoy making them! You could even post a picture on Instagram and tag me when you share it with the world! 😊

More doughnut recipes to enjoy

Don’t forget too to check out these other delicious doughnut recipes on my blog:

Oreo doughnuts: if you’re looking for the best baked oreo doughnuts, you’ve found them! Cakey soft doughnuts topped with a tangy glaze, utterly delicious!

The BEST baked doughnuts: my easy baked doughnuts recipe uses no yeast and required no kneading. Comes together in under an hour, and I show you a few different topping options too!

Lemon blueberry doughnuts: fluffy lemon doughnuts, pops of blueberry and a stunning blueberry glaze make for a real showstopper!

Eggless cinnamon sugar donuts: my eggless cinnamon sugar donuts are utterly addictive! Light and fluffy, these baked donuts are enjoyed by everyone!

Happy baking, my friends! x

Recommended equipment and ingredients I used *

Doughnut pan	Pastry brush
Digital kitchen scales	Measuring spoons
Mixing bowl	Sieve
Whisk	Spatula
Measuring jug	Small bowls