Donut Express vs Deep Fried Donuts – Which Tastes Better?

by Theresa on March 14, 2009 · 4 comments

Donut Express says you can now make your own donuts at home. Baked donuts cut out all that nasty stuff...calories, cholesterol grease and fat. The infomercial looks pretty darn tempting... I'm already hungry for donuts! Well if they'd taste almost good as Krispy Kreme, Donut Express just might have a chance to win over some donut lovers.

It says on the box you can "Bake fresh donuts at home as easy as 1, 2, 3.... Just pour, bake and decorate."  You get 3 pans, a filling injector which is kind of like a big syringe with seven decorating attachments and a low fat recipe book. One pan is for regular old "hole in the middle" donuts. Another makes jelly or cream filled donuts. The "bonus" pan is the one to make the bite sized variety.

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The recipe book has instructions for making the fillings and glaze. And there's a simple recipe for the donut batter. They say the pans have a non-stick coating but they still advise you to grease them to keep the donuts from sticking. Fill each mold halfway up with donut batter. Then pop them in a 400 degree preheated oven for 10 minutes.

Is Donut Express Worth Buying?

  • The donuts rise high above the pans and close up the donut holes. You don't have donuts... you now have muffins. You have to probably fill the [tags]donut express[/tags]mold only 1/4 the way up.
  • They are a little stubborn coming out of the pan so you need to use lots of grease.
  • Donut Express donuts don’t even compare to regular ones.
  • Some say that the donuts come out tasting like biscuits with icing while others say they taste like a cupcake with holes.
  • You may need to alter the recipes to make them tasty.
  • People who expect the Krispy Kreme fried donut taste will be very disappointed.

Donut Express is a healthier alternative to a regular donut except the big problem is they don't taste like donuts! Not even close! Of course baking donuts instead of frying will never have the same results. Many who bought this product were disappointed. Although if you’re still interested, you can buy the Donut Express at major discount department stores for around $20. Just use good donut recipes and you should be fine. Regular donut pans work great too.

I wasn't able to located the Donut Express pan online. Although, I did some searching and found that the Norpro Donut pan is getting good reviews. You can find them on eBay and Amazon as well.

12 cup Mini Donut Doughnut NON STICK Bake Pan NEW
12 cup Mini Donut Doughnut NON STICK Bake Pan NEW
Paypal   US $10.99
Donut bakeware 6 cavity pan for normal size donuts
Donut bakeware 6 cavity pan for normal size donuts
Paypal   US $2.99
Professional Grade Non stick Donut Baking Pan by NORPRO
Professional Grade Non stick Donut Baking Pan by NORPRO
Paypal   US $9.95
Fox Run 12 Cup MINI Donut DOUGHNUT NonStick BAKING Pan
Fox Run 12 Cup MINI Donut DOUGHNUT NonStick BAKING Pan
Paypal   US $9.99
Mini Donut Pan Plus Donut Recipe
Mini Donut Pan Plus Donut Recipe
Paypal   US $2.25
NORPRO NONSTICK PETITE DONUT PAN HEAVY DUTY NONSTICK FINISH
NORPRO NONSTICK PETITE DONUT PAN HEAVY DUTY NONSTICK FINISH
Paypal   US $8.00
New Wilton Nonstick 12 Cavity Donut Pan $001 Bid
New Wilton Nonstick 12 Cavity Donut Pan $001 Bid
Paypal   US $10.35
Antique Vintage Ebelskiver Aebelskiver Danish Donut Fritter Cast Iron Pan F Logo
Antique Vintage Ebelskiver Aebelskiver Danish Donut Fritter Cast Iron Pan F Logo
Paypal   US $24.99
Porsche 914 jack point floor pan donut new
Porsche 914 jack point floor pan donut new
Paypal   US $19.50
6 cup Mini Donut Doughnut NON STICK Bake Pan NEW
6 cup Mini Donut Doughnut NON STICK Bake Pan NEW
Paypal   US $7.99
Wilton 12 Cavity Mini Doughnut Pan Baking Bakeware Donut
Wilton 12 Cavity Mini Doughnut Pan Baking Bakeware Donut
Paypal   US $13.95
Mini Cake Pan Donut 12 Cavity
Mini Cake Pan Donut 12 Cavity
Paypal   US $12.29

Baked Mini Doughnut Recipe

Looking for more donut recipes? Here's a higly rated Crispy Cream Donut recipe at Allrecipes.com. These of course are the deep fried variety where you don't need a pan. Take a look around there to find many more baked donut recipes.

This is the baked donut recipe Elyn is using. Have a look at her scrumptious donut pics.  You can tell they turned out pretty good! I'm not sure where she got her mini donut pan...I forgot to ask!

Ingredients :
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 tub around 6oz (150 gm) plain yogurt
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tsp confectioners' sugar, divided

Method :
1. In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients.
2. Combine the egg, yogurt, oil, lemon juice and vanilla and mix well.
3. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.
4. Coat the tube pans with nonstick cooking spray and dust with 1 teaspoon confectioners' sugar. Divide batter among pans.
5. Bake at 200°C (400F) for 10-12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
6. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.
7. Dust with remaining confectioners' sugar.

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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }

1 bhagina m June 13, 2009

where can i order to purchance the doughnut pan.

2 Theresa June 14, 2009

Hi Bhagina! Are you located in the States? I would also check the stores in your area that sell As Seen on TV products like Bed Bath and Beyond, Walgreens, and Walmart.

3 pikapal January 21, 2010

My mom has this set, but she hasn’t use it yet thanks for the tips.

4 JoBeth September 12, 2010

Of course they don’t taste like Raised Doughnuts.

They aren’t raised doughnuts, they are cake doughnuts.

The batter is the key.

Raised doughnuts must be proofed and raised like bread.