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Strawberry Donuts are soft, pink, bakery style cake donuts made easy with white cake mix, strawberry jello, and real strawberry puree, all dipped in a sweet vanilla glaze and finished with sprinkles. I baked a batch on a *summer Saturday morning* and Maddie declared them better than the donut shop. If baked treats like my pumpkin donut holes are your speed, these pink beauties belong in your pan next.
Soft pink cake donuts with real strawberry flavor, baked in the oven and dipped in vanilla glaze.
Strawberry Donuts Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 15 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 20 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 35 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 8 donuts
- ⚡ Calories: 495kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Sweet strawberry cake with a creamy vanilla glaze and a sprinkle crunch
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with my pumpkin donut holes
Quick Answer
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Beat the white cake mix, strawberry jello, egg whites, oil, and water together for about 3 minutes, then mix in the fresh strawberry puree and red food coloring. Spoon the batter into greased donut pans about three quarters full and bake for 17 to 19 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool the donuts completely on a wire rack, then dip each one in a glaze of powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk and top with sprinkles.
Jump to:
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Cake mix is the shortcut base. White cake mix already has the flour, leavening, and sugar balanced, so the donuts turn out light and consistent without measuring a dozen dry ingredients.
- Strawberry jello supercharges the flavor. The jello powder dissolves into the batter and delivers concentrated strawberry flavor and color that fresh berries alone cannot match in a baked donut.
- Real strawberry puree keeps it honest. A half cup of pureed fresh strawberries adds true berry flavor and moisture, so these taste like strawberries, not just candy.
- Egg whites keep the crumb light. Using only the whites keeps the batter pale so the pink shines through, and it bakes into a soft, springy cake donut texture.
- Baking beats frying here. Donut pans give you that classic ring shape with no hot oil, no thermometer, and a fraction of the mess, perfect for baking with kids.
- The glaze sets into a bakery finish. A simple powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk glaze dries into that crackly, sweet shell that makes them look and taste like donut shop donuts.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- They are made with real strawberry puree plus strawberry jello, so the berry flavor is bold and the pink is gorgeous.
- The cake mix shortcut means the batter comes together in about 5 minutes with a hand mixer.
- They are baked, not fried, just like my easy cinnamon rolls, so there is no messy oil to deal with.
Key Ingredients
A boxed mix and a few strawberry boosters make bakery magic.
- White cake mix: The base. It keeps the donuts light and lets the strawberry flavor and color take center stage.
- Strawberry jello: The flavor concentrate. It dissolves into the batter for bold berry flavor and a rosy tint.
- Fresh strawberry puree: The real deal. About 6 blended strawberries add true fruit flavor and moisture.
- Egg whites: The lift. They keep the crumb soft and springy and the color bright.
- Powdered sugar: The glaze. Whisked with vanilla and milk, it dries into that classic crackly donut shell.
- Sprinkles: The fun. Totally optional, completely necessary according to my girls.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
One pink donut, plenty of ways to make it yours.
- Swap the strawberry jello for raspberry or cherry for a different berry spin.
- Add a splash of strawberry puree to the glaze for a pink on pink finish.
- Skip the glaze and toss the warm donuts in cinnamon sugar instead.
- For more berry breakfast baking, my banana cream cheese muffins are a weekend favorite.
- Bake the batter in a mini muffin pan for strawberry donut bites, just shorten the bake time by a few minutes.
How to Make Strawberry Donuts
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix the cake mix, jello, oil, water, and egg whites with a hand mixer on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl, add the strawberry puree and food coloring, and mix until combined.
- Spoon the batter into greased donut pans, filling each ring about three quarters of the way up.
- Bake for 17 to 19 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the donuts sit in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Whisk the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk together for the glaze. Dip the cooled donuts one by one into the glaze, set them back on the rack, and top with sprinkles before the glaze sets.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Grease the donut pans well. Get into every ridge of the rings so the baked donuts release cleanly with their shape intact.
- Do not overfill the rings. Three quarters full is the sweet spot. More than that and the batter bakes over the center hole.
- Use a piping bag for clean rings. Spoon the batter into a zip top bag, snip the corner, and pipe it into the pans for even, tidy donuts.
- Cool completely before glazing. Warm donuts melt the glaze into a puddle. Patience gets you that thick, crackly shell.
- Glaze over the wire rack. Set the rack over a sheet tray so the drips fall through instead of pooling around the donuts.
- Add sprinkles right away. The glaze starts setting fast, so top each donut as you dip it, not at the end of the batch.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
Serve them beside my strawberry angel food cake for a pink dessert table.
My strawberry earthquake cake doubles down on the strawberry cream cheese combo.
For a chilled strawberry dessert, my strawberry poke cake is a summer staple.
And my homemade pop tarts round out a bakery style breakfast spread.
Strawberry Donuts FAQs
Yes. Bake the batter in a regular muffin tin for strawberry muffins, or use a mini muffin pan and roll the little bites in glaze for donut holes. You will lose the classic ring shape but keep all the flavor. A 12 cup muffin tin takes about 15 to 18 minutes at the same temperature, so start checking early with a toothpick.
They are their own delicious thing. Baked cake donuts are soft and springy like a tender cake rather than airy and chewy like a fried yeast donut. The strawberry jello and real puree give them bold berry flavor, and the vanilla glaze delivers that classic donut shop sweetness without any hot oil on your stove.
Absolutely. Thaw the berries first and drain off the extra liquid before blending, then measure out the half cup of puree. Frozen strawberries are picked ripe, so the flavor is often even stronger than out of season fresh berries. Just avoid adding extra liquid to the batter, it should stay thick enough to hold its shape in the pan.
Store them in a single layer in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. The glaze can soften a little as they sit, so separate layers with parchment if you must stack them. They are best the day they are baked, which has never been a problem in this house.
Yes, and they freeze best unglazed. Cool the baked donuts completely, freeze them in a single layer, then transfer to a freezer bag for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature and dip them in fresh glaze before serving. Glazed donuts can be frozen too, but the glaze turns sticky as it thaws.
The pan needed more grease or the donuts came out too soon. Coat every ridge of each ring with nonstick spray or softened butter, and let the baked donuts rest in the pan for about 5 minutes. That short rest lets them firm up and release cleanly. Silicone donut pans are the most forgiving if sticking keeps happening.
Made these strawberry donuts? Leave a comment and a star rating below, and tell me if the sprinkles survived the kids!
Baked Strawberry Donuts
Ingredients
- 1 box white cake mix
- 3 oz strawberry jello
- 4 egg whites
- 1/3 Cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 Cup water
- 1/2 Cup strawberry puree about 6 strawberries, tops removed and pureed in blender
- 20 drops red food coloring
- 2 Cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 Tbls milk or water
- sprinkles optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix together cake mix, jello, oil, 1/2 cup water and egg whites with hand mixer on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Scrap the sides of the bowl, add in the strawberry puree and food coloring. Mix until combined.
- Spoon batter into greased doughnut forms 3/4 of the way up and bake for 17-19 minutes, until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let sit in tin for 5 minutes on a wired rack to cool. Take doughnuts out and cool completely on rack.
- When doughnuts are cooling, make the glaze. Combine the powdered sugar, vanilla and milk or water and whisk to combine. Dip doughnuts one by one into glaze and place on wired rack. Top with optional sprinkles at this point if desired.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
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I need some of these pans you use 🙂 and then the recipes! Or maybe you can just send some finished donuts down to me? These look yummy and I love strawberries! Thanks for sharing with us at Snickerdoodle Sunday!
Oh wow – they look so delicious – and I never make donuts because I always think you have to fry them. I’m putting these on my list of things to bake!
So pretty and perfect for the fourth of July. Can’t beat a strawberry doughnut!
These look so super tasty.
Yummy! I am featuring you this weekend… Thank you for linking up with us 🙂
Mmmm these doughnuts look fabulous! I love those mini cakes with the funfetti dip too!
I wouldn’t be able to stop myself around these. I need to get a doughnut pan asap!
Stopping by from Foodie Friday.
Toodles~
I want one of these right now! Looks delish!!!
Thanks for sharing!