These Chocolate Donuts with Sprinkles are tender, moist, and best of all gluten free. The chocolate glaze and rainbow sprinkles add sweetness and a festive flair to these baked gluten free donuts.
If you enjoy donuts, you’ll also like my recipes for Gluten Free Cinnamon Sugar Donuts and Gluten Free Pumpkin Donuts.
We always start the day with breakfast. And most of the time breakfast includes choices like muffins, oatmeal, or granola mixed with yogurt.
But there are times when I get a craving for something sweet and chocolatey to start the day. These chocolate glazed donuts are great for satisfying the craving.
The chocolate in the donuts combined with the chocolate glaze makes tasty double chocolate donuts. If you love chocolate, you’ll want to try these gluten free donuts.
This easy recipe makes a sweet, homemade treat that will be enjoyed by children and adults. The donuts are tender, flavorful, and filled with chocolate goodness.
Why this Recipe Works
- Using melted butter instead of oil in this recipe adds a richer flavor to the donuts.
- The colored sprinkles add a fun and festive flair to the donuts.
- Baking the donuts makes them healthier than frying them.
Recommended Tools for Baking Donuts:
Donut pan – I like my Wilton Nonstick Donut Pan. If you don’t own a donut pan, consider buying a set.
One 6-cavity donut pan is all you need to make these chocolate donuts, but if you want to make more than 6 donuts, it’s great to have a set of pans.
Reusable piping bag – Using a piping bag makes it really easy to transfer the batter to the donut pan. I like this set of piping bags because I can use them over and over again. A disposable piping bag, or a sealable plastic bag with the corner cut off will work as well.
Ingredient You’ll Need:
Donuts
- Gluten free flour blend - I use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour which contains xanthan gum. If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum, add ¼ teaspoon to the recipe.
- Cocoa - Unsweetened cocoa powder. I use Hershey’s cocoa powder.
- Baking powder and baking soda - The baking powder and baking soda give lift to the donut batter.
- Salt - Table salt.
- Egg - One large egg at room temperature.
- Sugar - White granulated sugar.
- Vanilla - Pure vanilla extract.
- Milk - I use 2% milk, but whole milk or almond milk will also work.
- Sour cream - The sour cream adds moisture to the donuts without thinning the batter.
- Butter - Unsalted butter, melted.
Chocolate Glaze
- Powdered sugar - Sometimes called confectioner’s sugar, the powdered sugar gives a silky consistency to the chocolate glaze.
- Cocoa - Unsweetened cocoa powder.
- Milk - I used 2% milk.
- Vanilla - Pure vanilla extract.
- Sprinkles - I used nonpareils for the donuts in the photos but use your favorite type of sprinkles.
(Note: Always check the ingredient labels to ensure the products are gluten free.)
How to Make Chocolate Donuts with Sprinkles
- Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg and sugar.
- Whisk the vanilla, milk, sour cream, and melted butter into the egg mixture.
- Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
- Transfer the batter to the donut pan and bake.
- Whisk together the chocolate glaze ingredients until smooth.
- Dip the donuts in the glaze and top with sprinkles.
Step by Step Instructions
(For ingredient amounts see the recipe card at the bottom of the post.)
Make the Donuts:
Spray a 6-cavity donut pan with nonstick cooking spray.
In a large mixing bowl, add the gluten free flour blend, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and whisk to combine.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the egg and sugar until completely combined and the color has lightened (about 2-3 minutes).
Whisk the vanilla, milk, sour cream, and melted butter into the egg mixture.
Using a rubber spatula, fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined.
Transfer the batter to the prepared donut pan.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the donut springs back when touched.
Cool the donuts in the pan for 4 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Chocolate Glaze:
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and cocoa powder.
Add milk and vanilla and whisk until smooth. Add a touch more milk if needed to achieve the desired consistency.
Dip each donut in the glaze, then top with sprinkles.
Tips for Baking Chocolate Donuts
- Grease the donut pan with nonstick cooking spray to prevent any part of the donut from sticking. Even though the donut pans I use are non-stick, I still take the time to lightly spray them with cooking spray.
- Use a piping bag to transfer the batter to the donut pan. The bag makes filling the donut wells easy. If you don’t have a piping bag you can spoon the batter into the pan or use a large plastic storage bag with the corner snipped off.
- Cool the donuts for a few minutes before inverting the pan onto a wire rack. The donuts are delicate when they come out of the oven and may break or crumble if removed from the pan too soon.
- Dip one donut in the chocolate glaze and add the sprinkles. Repeat the process with the remaining donuts. If you dip all the donuts before adding the sprinkles the glaze may set and the sprinkles won’t stick.
If your family enjoys breakfast as much as my family does, check out my other gluten free breakfast recipes.
Measuring Gluten Free Flour
Scoop the flour with a spoon into the measuring cup and use the back of a table knife to level off the top. Scooping the flour out of the canister or bag with a measuring cup can result in more flour than needed in the recipe.
What Gluten Free Flour Blend Should I Use?
I use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour to bake these donuts. This gluten free flour blend contains xanthan gum and is great for baking.
If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum, try adding ¼ teaspoon to the recipe.
Recipe FAQs
These gluten free chocolate donuts are best enjoyed the day they’re made. If stored in an airtight container, they will last 2-3 days.
You can freeze the donuts, without the glaze, for up to 3 months. Allow the donuts to cool completely, then place them in a freezer safe bag before freezing.
If you like chocolate donuts with chocolate glaze, give these Chocolate Donuts with Sprinkles a try. Baking the donuts is really easy and clean-up is a breeze.
I hope you enjoy these gluten free chocolate donuts as much as my family does. Happy Baking!
More Gluten Free Breakfast Recipes You’ll Love
- Gluten Free Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Baked Gluten Free Donut Holes
- Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Scones
- Simple Gluten Free Apple Muffins
- Sour Cream Coffee Cake Recipe (Gluten Free)
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Banana Muffins
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Chocolate Donuts with Sprinkles (Gluten Free)
Ingredients
For the Donuts:
- 1 cup gluten free flour blend
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup 2% milk, room temperature
- ¼ cup sour cream, room temperature
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
For the Glaze:
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ½ tablespoons milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- sprinkles (optional)
Instructions
Make the Donuts
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray a 6-cavity donut pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the gluten free flour blend, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and whisk to combine.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the egg and sugar until completely combined and the color has lightened (about 2-3 minutes).
- Whisk the vanilla, milk, sour cream, and melted butter into the egg mixture.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan with a spoon, pastry bag, or large plastic storage bag. Snip the corner off the bottom of the storage bag and pipe the batter into the donut cavities.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the donut springs back when touched.
- Allow the donuts to cool in the pan for 4 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Glaze:
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together powdered sugar and cocoa powder.
- Add milk and vanilla and whisk until smooth. Add a touch more milk if needed to achieve the desired consistency.
- Dip one donut in the glaze then place back on the wire rack and top with sprinkles. Repeat with each remaining donut.
Notes
- Grease the donut pan with nonstick cooking spray to prevent any part of the donut from sticking. Even though the donut pans I use are non-stick, I still take the time to lightly spray them with cooking spray.
- Use a piping bag to transfer the batter to the donut pan. The bag makes filling the donut wells easy. If you don’t have a piping bag you can spoon the batter into the pan or use a large plastic storage bag with the corner snipped off.
- Cool the donuts for a few minutes before inverting the pan onto a wire rack. The donuts are delicate when they come out of the oven and may break or crumble if removed from the pan too soon.
- Dip one donut in the chocolate glaze and add the sprinkles. Repeat the process with the remaining donuts. If you dip all the donuts before adding the sprinkles the glaze may set and the sprinkles won’t stick.
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