Description
These Chocolate Frosted Reindeer Donuts are a festive and fun holiday treat, perfect for Christmas celebrations. Soft, fluffy donuts are baked to a light golden brown, dipped in a rich chocolate icing, and decorated creatively with chocolate chips, red M&Ms, and pretzels to resemble cute reindeer faces with antlers.
Ingredients
Scale
For the 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
For the Icing
- 3 Tablespoons butter
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 1/2 Tablespoon light corn syrup
- 2 oz chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- pinch salt
For the 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°F (163°C). Grease two six-cavity donut pans thoroughly with nonstick cooking spray to ensure the donuts release easily after baking.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg until evenly combined. This will form the dry base for your donut batter.
- Combine Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk the sugar, melted butter, and egg together until the mixture appears shiny and well blended. Then add the milk, Greek yogurt, and vanilla extract, mixing thoroughly until fully combined.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture and stir gently just until combined, being careful not to overmix the batter to keep the donuts light and tender.
- Fill Donut Pans: Spoon the batter into the prepared donut pans, filling each cavity approximately three-quarters full to allow room for rising during baking.
- Bake Donuts: Place the pans in the preheated oven and bake for 7 to 9 minutes, or until the donuts are lightly golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let them cool in the pans for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Prepare Chocolate Icing: In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter with the milk and light corn syrup, stirring occasionally. Once melted, add the finely chopped chocolate and whisk continuously until smooth and the chocolate is fully melted. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract and a pinch of salt to enhance flavor.
- Dip Donuts in Icing: Carefully dip each cooled donut into the chocolate icing, ensuring an even coat. After dipping, return the donuts to the wire rack to allow the icing to set.
- Decorate Donuts – Eyes: Place two white chocolate chips, pointy side down, on each donut where the eyes would be. Using a toothpick, dab a small amount of chocolate icing on the bottom of a mini chocolate chip and press it into the center of the white chocolate chips to create pupils.
- Decorate Donuts – Nose: For the nose, if the donut hole is too large and an M&M risks falling through, plug the hole with one or two regular chocolate chips first. Then, place a red M&M in the center to represent the reindeer’s nose, securing it with a small dab of chocolate icing if needed.
- Decorate Donuts – Antlers: Insert broken pretzel pieces on each side of the donuts to mimic antlers, giving the donuts a whimsical reindeer look.
Notes
- Ensure the melted butter used in the wet ingredients is cooled slightly to avoid cooking the egg.
- Do not overmix the batter to keep the donuts soft and light.
- Use nonstick spray or butter to grease the donut pans for easy release.
- You can substitute Greek yogurt with sour cream if preferred.
- The chocolate icing should be used warm but not hot to avoid melting the decorations.
- For a gluten-free option, substitute flour with a gluten-free flour blend.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 donut
- Calories: 210
- Sugar: 15g
- Sodium: 150mg
- Fat: 11g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 24g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 50mg
