Salted Brown Butter Maple Donuts

October 19, 2026
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Dessert

Salted brown butter maple glazed donuts ᝰ.ᐟ

Today we’re making salted brown butter maple glazed donuts! I’ve been craving everything fall lately, but wanted something different from the pumpkin desserts I’ve been baking recently. So of course I had to make a maple donut. The dough is just incredible, I added a little dry milk powder to give it a tender, bakery-style texture. For the glaze, I brown salted butter first so we get beautiful nutty, toasty notes, then whisk in maple syrup, powdered sugar, and more salt on top of that. Yes, salt on salt. Trust me. The salted butter keeps the glaze from being too sweet and really brings out the maple. These take a little patience, as most bread recipes do, but they’re so worth it. Best enjoyed the same day!!

Few tips

Make sure your yeast mixture is foamy before you add it to the dough. If it doesn’t bubble, it usually means the yeast isn’t active, and that can happen for a few reasons. The water might be too hot and kill your yeast, or too cold and simply not activate it. Sometimes the yeast itself is old or expired. If your mixture isn’t bubbling after 10 minutes, it’s better to start over than risk dough that won’t rise. Once it’s foamy, you know it’s ready and your dough will puff up beautifully!
Weigh the flour and resist adding more. Enriched doughs are supposed to feel a little tacky. Extra flour makes a tighter, drier donut. Give it the full 10 minutes of kneading instead, the gluten will develop and it’ll get less sticky on its own.
Roll your dough a little thicker, around half an inch. This will give your doughnuts more puff and a taller, bakery-style shape when fried.
Keep your oil between 335 and 350 degrees. Too low and the doughnuts soak up oil. Too high and they brown before cooking through.
Use a thermometer and watch it the whole time. The oil drops when the donuts go in, so let it come back up to temp between batches. That’s why two at a time works so well.
Look for the white ring. A pale band around the middle is a sign they were proofed well and floated high in the oil.
Check your first one. Break it open, if it’s raw in the middle but dark outside, your oil is too hot.
Watch salted butter closely when browning. It foams more than unsalted, which makes it harder to see the color. Scrape the bottom with a spatula to check the solids.
Dip while the donuts are warm, not hot. Hot donuts make the glaze melt right off. When they are warm, they cling beautifully to the glaze.
And yes, we’re using salted butter AND adding salt to both the dough and the glaze! I specifically use Diamond Crystal kosher salt here, which is less salty than regular table salt. If you’re using a different salt, cut the amount by about half so the glaze doesn’t end up too salty.

Process

Salted Brown Butter Maple Donuts

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Prep Time 45

Rest time 2 15

Total Time 3 30

Course Dessert

Ingredients

Yeast mixture

115 grams lukewarm water (1/2 cup)
8 grams active dry yeast (2 1/2 teaspoons)
15 grams granulated sugar 1 tablespoon

Rest of dough ingredients

595 grams all-purpose flour (4 3/4 cups)
50 grams granulated sugar (1/4 cup)
20 grams dry milk powder (3 tablespoons)
3 grams Diamond Crystal kosher salt 1 tsp
2 eggs, whisked (room temperature)
115 grams salted butter, melted (8 tablespoons)
180 grams whole milk (3/4 cup, room temperature)
neutral oil for frying

Salted brown butter maple glaze

180 grams salted butter, (3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon)
160 grams maple syrup (1/2 cup)
400 grams powdered sugar (3 1/3 cups)
90 grams whole milk (6 tablespoons)
8 grams vanilla extract (2 teaspoons)
3 grams Diamond Crystal kosher salt (1 teaspoon)

Instructions

In a small bowl, stir together the lukewarm water, yeast, and 1 tablespoon sugar. Let sit for 10 minutes, until foamy and active on top. If it does not foam, start again.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, whisk together the flour, 50 grams sugar, dry milk powder, and kosher salt. Add the whisked eggs, melted butter, room temperature milk, and the yeast mixture.
Mix on low until a shaggy dough forms, then increase to medium-low and knead for about 10 minutes, until the dough becomes smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky but not sticky. It should pull away from the sides of the bowl.
You can also knead by hand. Turn the shaggy dough out onto a lightly dusted work surface and knead for about 12 to 15 minutes, until it’s smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky. Be careful not to add too much extra flour, just enough to keep it from sticking to your hands and the counter.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled or floured bowl, cover, and let rest at room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours depending on your kitchen.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick. Using a 4 1/2-inch round cutter, cut out circles. Use a smaller cutter to cut out the center holes.
Place each doughnut onto its own small square of parchment paper. This makes transferring them into the oil much easier later and keeps their shape intact.
Cover loosely and let rest again for 45 minutes, until noticeably puffy.
While the doughnuts rest, make the glaze. Melt the salted butter in a light-colored saucepan over medium heat, swirling often, until the milk solids on the bottom turn golden brown and smell nutty, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the maple syrup. Let cool for a minute, then whisk in the powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add milk or cream a little at a time until you reach the consistency you like. Keep it somewhere warm so it stays dippable.
*we’re using salted butter AND adding salt to both the dough and the glaze! I specifically use Diamond Crystal kosher salt here, which is less salty than regular table. If you’re using a different salt, cut the amount by about half so the glaze doesnt end up too salty*
Meanwhile, heat the oil to 335 to 350°F. Keep the oil within this range. Lower than 335°F and they will absorb oil. Higher than 350°F and they will brown too quickly before cooking through.
Carefully lower the doughnuts into the oil, using the parchment to guide them in. Fry for about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side, until deeply golden and puffed. Do not overcrowd the pot. I prefer to fry one to two at a time. Depending on the size of the pot or pan that I'm using.
Set onto a paper towel lined baking sheet, just to drain of any excess oil.
Dip into your glaze and set onto a wire rack placed inside a baking sheet. (if you'd like to make clean-up even easier, line the baking sheet with paper towels). Let set for a few minutes before serving so the excess glaze has time to drip off. If the glaze thickens while you work, whisk in a splash more milk. Best enjoyed the same day !!