Chocolate Amaretto Baked Donuts

It’s spring break and my kids are at home with me this week.  It’s a welcome break in the routine and I’ve especially enjoyed the slow mornings.  No alarm clocks, no last-minute lunch packing, no one frazzled running around trying to be on time for the bus.  Instead the kids have been enjoying some extra playtime while I work on special breakfast treats and fill the house with enticing scents of fresh-baked goodness.  For the longest time it seemed like mealtimes with small ones were always tiring, challenging, and frustrating.  If I wasn’t cleaning up a mess, I was up and down every five minutes getting something for someone.  I’ve recently realized that we’ve moved on from that phase of life and mealtimes with the kids are much more conversational, pleasant, and relaxing.  (Although we still have our fair share of sibling bickering at the table which is not at all pleasant and relaxing.)  For the most part, leisurely breakfasts are now a possibility.  And along with that comes so many more possibilities for what to make for breakfast.  I was fairly late to join the baked donuts fan club, but better late than never.  We are big fans of baked donuts now.  These Chocolate Amaretto Donuts have a classy rich grown-up flavor with the amaretto and a hint of  espresso, but they are still chocolate-y and sweet enough for the kids to enjoy.  Like most breakfast items I make, I prefer them not to be overly sweet, but feel free to increase the coconut sugar  by a tablespoon or two if so desired.

Chocolate Amaretto Baked Donuts

• Yield: 6 donuts

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1/3 cup coconut sugar (add 1-2 extra tablespoons for a sweeter donut)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons amaretto
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• powdered sugar or additional cocoa powder for dusting, optional

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, espresso powder, and salt.
3. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, olive oil, egg, amaretto, and vanilla.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix together until just combined. Do not over mix.
5. Pipe the mixture evenly into the donut pan. (I use a small ziploc bag and cut the tip off one corner for piping.)
6. Bake for 8-9 minutes, until donuts tops appear dry. Let cool in pan for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Donuts are best served slightly warm. Dust with powdered sugar or additional cocoa powder just before serving, if desired.