Winter is citrus season, which means that gorgeous citrus fruits are in abundance. Because of this, I get especially excited to make desserts with lovely, fresh citrus! While scrolling through my Instagram feed recently, I came across a picture of some Key Lime Coconut Donuts (by Ashley of the food blog Baker by Nature) that looked amazing! I kept thinking about these baked donuts and how I could make my own version of them using lemons from our tree in the backyard. That’s when I came up with this adapted recipe.

To check out Ashley’s original recipe from which these donuts were adapted, click here.

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Disclosure: There are Amazon affiliate links provided in the post below. If you click on any of the Amazon links and make a purchase, I do get a small percentage of the sale which helps me pay for my ingredients and my website. I genuinely use anything that I link, and I want to make it easy for you to find these ingredients and kitchen tools, too, if you want to utilize them!

Donut Base Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon zest
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 2 1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup whole milk

Donut Glaze Ingredients:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Donut Decoration Ingredient (optional):

• 1-2 teaspoons fresh lemon zest

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Equipment:

• Microplane
• Citrus juicer (check the link at the bottom of this post for the citrus juicer I use)
• Small mixing bowl
• Large mixing bowl
• 2 whisks
• Rubber spatula
• Spoon or piping bag (check the link at the bottom of this post for the piping bags I use)
• Donut pan (check the link at the bottom of this post for the donut pan I use)
• Measuring cups
• Measuring spoons
• Small bowl
• Small whisk or spoon
• Baking tray
• Parchment paper

Donut Base Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Thoroughly grease the donut pan and set it aside while working on the batter.
2. To a small mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Give it a quick whisk and then set the bowl aside.
3. To a large mixing bowl, add the granulated sugar and lemon zest. Thoroughly mix the zest into the sugar until it is evenly distributed. Next, add the egg and whisk it with the sugar and zest mixture until completely combined. Then, add the vegetable oil and milk, and whisk until well combined.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and gently fold them together until just combined.
5. Using either a piping bag or spoon, add the batter to the donut pan, filling each well until they are about 2/3 full. Bake the donuts for 12-14 minutes, or until firm.
6. Allow the donuts to slightly cool in the donut pan for 10 minutes before removing them and placing them on either a baking tray or wire rack to completely cool. While the donuts cool, make the glaze.

Donut Glaze Directions:

1. To a small bowl, larger than the diameter of the donuts, add the powdered sugar, lemon juice, salt, and lemon zest.* Whisk until thoroughly combined. Once the donuts are completely cooled, dip them one at a time into the glaze and place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Let them sit for about 10 minutes to allow the glaze to slightly harden.

Donut Decoration Directions (optional):

1. Sprinkle lemon zest over the donuts before the glaze sets.

Note(s):

• *If you find that the glaze is a little too thin, add a little more powdered sugar until it reaches your desired consistency.
• The donuts are best enjoyed on the same day they are made.

You can find the printable recipe right here:

Here are a few links to some of my favorite supplies that I utilized in making these Lemon Cake Donuts:

Here are is a link to the kind of citrus juicer I use:

Here are is a link to the kind of piping bags I use:

Here are is a link to the kind of donut pan I use:

Thank you so much for checking out this recipe! Let me know how you like these yummy lemon cake donuts!