Description
These Chocolate Frosted Reindeer Donuts are a festive and delicious holiday treat perfect for celebrating the season. Soft baked donuts are topped with a rich chocolate glaze and decorated with white and mini chocolate chips, red M&Ms, and pretzel antlers to create an adorable reindeer face. Easy to make and sure to delight kids and adults alike, these donuts combine classic flavors of chocolate and vanilla with a fun seasonal twist.
Ingredients
Scale
Donut
- 1 cup flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 Tablespoons butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Icing
- 3 Tablespoons butter
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 1/2 Tablespoon light corn syrup
- 2 oz chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- pinch salt
Decorating
- 18 White chocolate chips
- 18 mini chocolate chips
- 9 – 18 regular chocolate chips
- 9 red M&Ms
- Pretzels, broken into antler shaped pieces
Instructions
- Preheat and Prepare: Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F and grease two six-cavity donut pans using nonstick cooking spray to ensure the donuts release easily after baking.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg until evenly combined to lay the foundation for the donut batter.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk the sugar, melted butter, and egg until the mixture becomes shiny and well blended. Then add the milk, Greek yogurt, and vanilla, mixing until completely incorporated to create a smooth batter base.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently fold them together, mixing just until combined to avoid overworking the batter for tender donuts.
- Fill Donut Pans: Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared donut pans, filling each cavity about three-quarters full for proper rising and shape.
- Bake Donuts: Bake in the preheated oven for 7 to 9 minutes, until the donuts are lightly golden brown. Let them cool in the pan for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely, ensuring they hold their shape when dipped.
- Make Chocolate Icing: In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter with milk and light corn syrup. Add the chopped chocolate, whisking constantly until smooth and fully melted. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and a pinch of salt to balance the flavors.
- Dip Donuts: Dip each cooled donut into the warm chocolate icing to coat generously, then place them back on the wire rack to allow the icing to set slightly.
- Decorate Eyes: For each donut, place two white chocolate chips pointy side down where the eyes would be. Using a toothpick, put a small dot of chocolate icing on the bottom of a mini chocolate chip and press it in the center of the white chocolate chips to form pupils.
- Decorate Nose: If the donut hole is too large for the M&Ms to stick, plug the hole with one or two regular chocolate chips first. Then place a red M&M in the center for the nose, securing it with a dab of chocolate icing if needed to keep it in place.
- Add Antlers: Insert broken pretzel pieces on each side of the donut to mimic reindeer antlers, completing the festive look.
Notes
- You can substitute Greek yogurt with sour cream if preferred.
- Ensure the melted butter used in the wet ingredients is cooled slightly to avoid cooking the egg.
- For a smoother icing, finely chop the chocolate or use chocolate chips.
- If you don’t have donut pans, you can use muffin tins but the shape will be different.
- Store donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days for best freshness.
- Decorate just before serving to keep the pretzels crunchy.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 donut
- Calories: 230
- Sugar: 14g
- Sodium: 150mg
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 27g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 45mg
