Cinnamon Buttermilk Baked Donuts

Mmm these were easy and tasty...well, at least I thought so.  My 7-year-old preferred the batter over the donuts (silly kid!)  It's perhaps because these are not overly sweet--to me, these are great for that very reason.  You don't feel like you ate a heavy sugar brick afterwards (like with so many other donuts).  The texture is actually in-between a cake and a raised donut, as they aren't as dense as the cake ones you get at the store/bake shop.  And they are baked, so no messy frying to deal with!  I modified the recipe only slightly and am very pleased with the results--9.5 out of 10 :)

Link to original recipe: http://alidaskitchen.com/2015/11/09/cinnamon-buttermilk-baked-doughnuts-recipe/

Ingredients:

2 c. all-purpose flour (or whole wheat pastry flour (original recipe indicates either works))
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
3/4 c. buttermilk
2 eggs
1/4 c. honey
1 T. vanilla extract
1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
4 T. butter, melted, divided (melt only half at a time)
cinnamon sugar mixture, for dusting

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 425°F.  Spray donuts pan(s) (enough to hold 12 donuts) with non-stick cooking spray.

2. Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl.

3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together buttermilk, eggs, honey, and vanilla.

4. Whisk in the brown sugar and 2 T. of melted butter.

5. Gently fold in dry ingredients into wet mixture, until just combined (be careful to NOT overmix!!)

6. Pour batter into a pastry bag (or, like I did, a gallon-sized Ziploc-type bag and cut off the tip to leave a dime-sized opening) and pipe into the donut pans.

7. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of the donut batter comes out clean (I went 9 minutes).  Remove and leave donuts in pan(s).

8. Melt the remaining 2 T. of butter and place cinnamon sugar in a bowl/dish appropriate for dipping/dusting the donuts.

9. Using a pastry/basting brush, brush top of a donut in the pan with butter, then place the donut, buttered side down, in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.  Brush other side of donut with butter, then turn donut over to coat remaining side with cinnamon sugar mixture.

10. Transfer to a rack to cool slightly, then enjoy!