Glazed Chocolate Doughnut Muffins
The secret ingredient in these delicious glazed chocolate doughnut muffins is potatoes, those heroes of early-spring cooking.
By Yankee Magazine|Dec 27 2021|
Glazed Chocolate Doughnut Muffins
Photo Credit: Styled and Photographed by Liz NeilyThe secret ingredient in these delicious glazed chocolate doughnut muffins is potatoes, those heroes of early-spring cooking.
They’re modeled after chocolate potato doughnuts like the ones they serve at the Holy Donut in Portland, Maine. This Down East tradition makes good use of mashed spuds, folding them into the batter to make the doughnuts more tender and moist. Any leftover mashed potatoes will work well here, as long as they’re not drizzled in gravy.
To boost the “doughnuttiness” of these little cakes, you grease the wells of your muffin tin, then sprinkle in some sugar before adding the batter. It gives the exterior a bit of crunch without the mess and trouble of frying. Even better: You can serve these muffins for breakfast or dessert.
Yield:
12 muffins
Ingredients
6 tablespoons salted butter, softened, plus more for greasing muffin tin
Granulated sugar, for muffin tin
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2/3 cup riced or mashed potatoes
2/3 cup buttermilk
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375° and set a rack to the middle position. Generously grease a 12-cup muffin tin with butter, then sprinkle each well with granulated sugar. Tilt the muffin tin to fully coat with the sugar, then pour out any excess.
Using a standing or handheld mixer, beat the 6 tablespoons butter with the brown sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add one egg and beat for one minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the other egg, and beat again.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Add a third of the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and stir to combine. Add the potatoes and half the buttermilk. Stir to combine again, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you do. Add the remaining dry ingredients and buttermilk and mix just until smooth.
Divide the batter evenly among the wells of the muffin tin (a large cookie scoop helps here). Bake until the muffins are firm in the center and just beginning to pull away from the sides, 15 to 18 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
When the muffins have cooled, make the glaze.
For the glaze
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons milk
Multicolored candy sprinkles, for garnish
Instructions
In a small bowl, whisk the confectioners’ sugar with the milk until smooth. Set the muffins on their wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet, then drizzle evenly with the glaze. Decorate with sprinkles, and let the glaze set before serving.
These muffins look divine and sinfully delicious. I am perplexed, do I use dry potato flakes or actual mashed potatoes as the ingredient. Thanking you in advance for your response.
Hi Connie. You should use actual mashed potatoes. Happy baking! 🙂
Thanks for quick response Aimee, they just came out of the oven and best looking chocolate muffins I’ve ever seen..can it wait for them to cool, frost and devour!!!!!
So glad you liked them!
Would like to know if the mashed potatoes are plain potato only or mashed with milk, etc… ? Thank you. They sound delicious !
I have that same question! Did you find out?
Both will work! Plain or mashed with milk. The potatoes shouldn’t be *runny*, as that would make the muffins doughy. But as long as the texture of the potatoes isn’t oozy, they will work!
Barbara, according to the article, “any leftover mashed potatoes will work well here, as long as they’re not drizzled in gravy.” Hope that helps!
As a student at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, in the 1960’s, a favorite early morning stop on the way to/from class was the SPUDNUT SHOP????!
A main ingredient was…mashed potatoes!! Unique and sooo yummy!
Yes! Potato donuts seem to have been “invented” in two places around the same time!
Just made these. WOW!!! So good and moist. And easy to make!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
What do the potatoes do for the muffins and can something else be used?
The potatoes make the muffins tender and very moist. If I were to make this recipe without the potatoes, I would start by using 1 cup buttermilk and 4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter. But I haven’t tested that recipe, so I can’t promise the result. I think it’s a good guess, though…
Can you make these without the chocolate?
Yes, you could flavor the muffins with vanilla instead. I would add 2 extra tablespoons of flour to make up for the absence of the cocoa powder…
My Grandfather was the oldest of ten and grew up on a potato farm in Aroostook County, ME. I remember stories of potato harvesting, and doughnuts. My Great-Grandmother cooked for the lumberjacks; and I’m sure she used a similar recipe. Brings back such fond memories.
can you make these in doughnut tins instead of muffin tins and would there be a change in temp or time for baking
Can you fill the donut muffins just like you would with regular donuts?
You could inject some filling while these muffins are still warm, but you would just want to be careful to not overfill them and blow a hole out the side! Once they cool completely, they will be too “set” to easily fill.
You could certainly do that. I haven’t tested them this way, so I can’t give an accurate answer, but I would start by baking them at the same temperature for 8 minutes, check for doneness, and check every minute after that until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
I am making these for the third time. The recipe is terrific, moist and chocolatey. I even shared it on my FaceBook page giving full credit to Yankee of course. Still futzing with the glaze to get it the right texture. Just noticed you suggest waiting until the muffins have cooled. Will do!
try making the glaze with cream instead of milk….game changer
Can these be made with gluten free flour ?
Yes, I have used King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour. Fabulous, you will never know they are GF. Happy baking!
Can’t wait to try them!