Lemon Scented Cake Doughnuts

You will need a special doughnut pan for this recipe. They're inexpensive though and pretty easy to find. We used Wilton's Nonstick 6-Cavity Doughnut Pan with great success and our recipe is actually adapted from the basic instructions they include with the pan.

Ingredients ~

2 cups cake flour, sifted
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons butter, melted

For the glaze ~

1-1/4 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon lemon extract

Preparation ~

Preheat the oven to 425°F.

Sift together the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

In a separate bowl, combine the buttermilk, lemon zest and extract. Stir the mixture into the dry ingredients, then add the eggs. Add the melted butter and mix until just combined. The batter will be thick and quite sticky.

Fill the 6 cups of a regular-size, nonstick doughnut pan with batter to about 2/3 full. Bake for 7 to 9 minutes, until the doughnuts are golden and spring back when touched. Cool in the pan for 3 to 4 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Repeat the process with the remaining batter.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar, milk and extract in a shallow bowl. Dip the top of each doughnut in the glaze and transfer to a plate.