Homemade Rainbow Donuts with Vanilla Glaze
This fun rainbow donuts recipe pairs warm, fluffy fried donuts with a silky vanilla glaze and rainbow-colored frosting on top.
- Prep
- 3 hrs
- Cook
- 25 mins
- Total
- 3 hrs 25 mins
- Makes
- 18 donuts
This playful Rainbow Donuts recipe pairs warm, fluffy fried donuts with a silky vanilla glaze, then tops them with rainbow-colored vanilla buttercream piped on in swirls! They're a great size, taste wonderful, and are fun to share with friends, family, or coworkers for St. Patrick's Day or any time of year!
What the Recipe Is All About
This sweet breakfast treat started from my easy homemade donuts recipe, which has long been a favorite on my site! I used the same 3 1/2 inch donut cutter, then cut each donut in half with a bench scraper to create the rainbow shape!
Good results with this fried donut recipe come down to the ingredients (make sure the active dry yeast hasn't expired!), the prep work, and a bit of patience and fun, especially during decorating. In the end you get some really tasty donuts! Enjoy!
Rise and Rest Times. Making these rainbow donuts is fairly simple, but the dough needs a 1 1/2 hour rise after it's made, and the cut-out donuts need a 1 hour rest.
Frying and Glazing the Donuts. Frying takes a little time (about 25 minutes), but once your workspace is set up and ready, it goes smoothly!
Preparing the Decorations. Next up is making and getting the buttercream ready for decorating. If you'd rather buy frosting, that step becomes very quick. Coloring frosting can get messy, so be sure to read my decorating tips below!
What Ingredients Do You Need?
For the donuts, you'll need:
- Active Dry Yeast. Check the date to be sure it hasn't expired!
- Warm Water
- Plain Granulated Sugar
- Salt
- Unsalted Butter. It works best at room temperature.
- 1 Large Egg + 1 Large Egg Yolk. Save the leftover egg whites for scrambled eggs at breakfast!
- Vanilla Flavoring
- All-Purpose Flour. Plus extra for rolling out the dough
- Canola or Vegetable Oil. You'll need enough to fill a deep fryer
For the vanilla glaze, you'll need:
- Powdered Sugar. Sifting is a must!
- Milk. Any type of dairy milk works. I used 1%.
- Light Corn Syrup. It thickens the glaze and gives it a little shine.
For the vanilla buttercream frosting, you'll need:
- Unsalted Butter. Let it come to room temperature first.
- Powdered Sugar. Once again, sifting is a step you should never skip!
- Vanilla Flavoring. If you want the frosting to stay extra white, use a clear vanilla product instead.
- Heavy Whipping Cream. Also called heavy cream. Don't mix it up with sweetened condensed milk or evaporated milk.
Can You Use Store-Bought Frosting for Decorating?
Yes, absolutely! When I've gone the store-bought route, I usually pick Betty Crocker Vanilla Whipped Frosting, but go with whatever works best for you! I'd just skip cream cheese frosting, since it doesn't pipe as well.
For decorating the rainbow donuts, I recommend buying 2 containers of frosting to be on the safe side.
Whether you make it at home or buy it, you'll likely have some extra. Keep it in the refrigerator to use on another treat, or make more rainbow donuts!
Frying Donuts in a Deep Fryer
You definitely do not need a deep fryer to make these rainbow donuts, but having one is really nice! Last May I got this Breville smart fryer, and honestly, it's been a total game changer. I don't have to watch the temperature closely, and it has a timer too. It costs a bit more, but it's a good investment and easy to clean!
For more tips on frying donuts in a deep skillet or large stock pot, check out my Pennsylvania Dutch Fasnacht Doughnuts or Easy Homemade Donuts from Scratch recipes!
How to Decorate the Rainbow Donuts
Decorating the donuts was probably my favorite part of this whole recipe! I'll admit, mixing all the colors was my least favorite part. As long as you prep everything and keep your workspace as clean as you can, it won't be too bad!
And you get to enjoy those tasty donuts when you're finished!
To decorate your rainbow donuts, you'll need the following:
- Food Coloring. I used a mix of McCormick's Nature's Inspiration Food Coloring and the Chefmaster Natural Food Coloring Kit.
- Small Bowls. I used 6 of my cereal bowls for this, plus my mixing bowl for the white.
- Small Spatula. I rinsed mine in hot water after mixing each color.
- Gloves. Do not skip these! Disposable kitchen prep gloves are a MUST if you want to keep food dye off your hands. My favorite pick is Wegman's latex-free disposable prep gloves.
- Piping Bags. When I filmed the video tutorial below, the only ones I had were large. Small piping bags work better since you won't be using much frosting.
- Small Decorating Tip. I used the No. 12 Wilton round piping tip from their Master Decorating Piping Set.
Divide the frosting. I picked red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple for the rainbow colors, and used the white frosting for the clouds. Split the frosting into 7 bowls, using the mixing bowl as the 7th for the white frosting, since you'll just move it into a piping bag.
For red, orange, and yellow I used more frosting, around 1/3 to 1/2 cup each. For the rest of the colors, I used less, about 1/4 cup. I believe in erring on the side of more, so if you think it won't be enough, add a little extra frosting!
Coloring the Frosting. Getting each bright rainbow color didn't take much dye, except for the red. Start with a small amount of food coloring and add more as needed.
I used one small spatula to mix the color into the frosting, then rinsed it in hot water before moving on to the next color.
Filling the Piping Bags. Set a piping bag in a pint glass, then fold the top of the bag over and around the outside of the glass (like a wedding veil). Spoon in one of your frosting colors. Repeat until you've done all the rainbow colors.
I like doing this instead of holding the bag in my hand, since that always makes a mess for me. You don't need a piping tip for the rainbow colors, either! Just snip a small piece off the bottom of the bag when you're ready to decorate.
For the white frosting clouds, I used the Wilton No. 12 round decorating tip from their Master Decorating Tip Set. If you want to try a different tip or skip it entirely, go for it!
If you skip the piping tip for the clouds, cut the bag a bit higher up to get a rounder opening.
Decorating the Donuts. As you'll see in this short video tutorial below, I started with red, then added orange, followed by yellow, green, blue, and purple. If you make a mistake along the way, don't worry about it!
Use the tip of your piping bag to push the frosting back where you want it, or, as I did in the video with the yellow, just pipe right over the top of it!
Last, take the piping bag with the white frosting and make swirled clouds. I piped them the same way I pipe the tops of cupcakes.
Again, if you mess up a little, don't sweat it! They're rainbows and clouds, and no two are alike!
Recipe Notes
- The prep time listed for these rainbow donuts includes 30 minutes of prep, a 1 1/2 hour rise, and a 1 hour rest for the dough.
- The cook time listed is only for frying the donuts.
- Not included in the recipe is the prep time for the vanilla buttercream frosting (20 minutes) and the time needed to decorate the rainbow donuts (35 minutes).
- Prep and cook times are estimates and can vary depending on the tools you use and your experience level.
- After frying, do NOT pour the oil down the drain. I know many of you already know this, but I still want to say it. Let it cool completely, then pour it into a glass jar, into these Toss-It! Bags, or save it for reuse. I like to store the oil in this Oggi 4 quart grease can after I'm finished with it. It comes with a strainer and keeps the oil clean and tightly covered until I use it again.
More Breakfast Sweets to Enjoy!
If you try this Rainbow Donuts Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know what you thought in the comments below. Thanks for stopping by!
Homemade Rainbow Donuts with Vanilla Glaze
With St. Patrick's Day just around the corner, these homemade Rainbow Donuts make a perfect treat to share with family, friends, or coworkers! This fun recipe pairs a classic fried donut dipped in vanilla glaze with rainbow vanilla whipped frosting piped on top!
- Prep
- 3 hrs
- Cook
- 25 mins
- Total
- 3 hrs 25 mins
- Makes
- 18 donuts
Ingredients
donuts
- 2 1/4 tsp Active Dry Yeast
- 3/4 cup Warm Water
- 1/3 cup Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/4 cup Unsalted Butter, room temperature
- 1 Large Egg, room temperature
- 1 Large Egg Yolk, room temperature
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 3 cups All-Purpose Flour, plus any additional flour for rolling out the dough for cutting later
- Canola or Vegetable Oil, for frying the donuts in deep fryer
vanilla glaze
- 1 1/4 cup Sifted Powdered Sugar
- 1/8 cup Milk, any dairy type (I used 1%)
- 1/8 cup Light Corn Syrup
- 1 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
vanilla frosting
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter, room temperature
- 4 1/2 cups Sifted Powdered Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/4 cup Heavy Cream
Method
- Mix the packet of active dry yeast with the warm water in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Let the yeast proof (sit) for 10 minutes.
- Add the granulated sugar, salt, unsalted butter, egg, egg yolk, vanilla extract, and all-purpose flour, then set the mixer to low and knead until the dough comes together. It should pull away from the sides of the bowl easily when it's ready. If it's still very sticky, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time until the dough is soft but still slightly tacky.
- Move the dough to a lightly greased, medium bowl, turning it once so the whole ball gets coated. Cover tightly with plastic wrap (do NOT use aluminum foil) and set it in a warm, draft-free spot for about 1 1/2 hours, or until it has nearly doubled in size.
- Gently punch the dough down in the center, then turn it out onto a clean, lightly floured surface. Knead 6-7 times, until it forms a smooth ball with the same texture throughout.
- Using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick. Dust your 3 1/2 inch donut cutter with all-purpose flour, then cut out the donuts. Cut each donut in half with a bench scraper to make the rainbow shape. Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet, about 1 inch apart. Repeat until all the dough is used. Roll any small scraps into donut holes.
- Cover the baking sheet with a clean tea towel or dish towel and let the donuts rest for 1 hour, or until they've nearly doubled in size.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the sifted powdered sugar, milk, light corn syrup, and vanilla extract until smooth and well blended.
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the unsalted butter on medium-high speed until completely smooth (about 2-3 minutes).
- Lower the speed to low and add the sifted powdered sugar one cup at a time, until blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the vanilla extract and heavy cream, then mix until blended and smooth.
- Line a baking sheet with about 2 layers of paper towels. Set your bowl of vanilla glaze beside it, then next to that place another paper towel-lined baking sheet with a wire cooling rack on top. This is where the glazed donuts will go.
- Fill the deep fryer with canola or vegetable oil up to the max fill line. Set the fryer to 365ºF and the timer for 1 minute, 30 seconds. Mine beeps when it reaches temperature. If you're using a deep skillet or large stock pot, see the notes.
- Place 3-4 rainbow donuts in the fryer basket and fry for 1 minute, 30 seconds per side, turning them with tongs or a slotted spoon. You want a nice medium golden brown color.
- When the donuts are ready, carefully lift out the basket and move the donuts onto the paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain off excess oil. You can also take the donuts out with tongs if you'd rather not remove the basket.
- With tongs, pick up one donut from the baking sheet, dip it right into the vanilla glaze, then set it on the next paper towel-lined baking sheet with a wire rack on top to let excess glaze drip off.
- Repeat steps 3-5 until every donut has been fried and coated in vanilla glaze.
- Let the donuts cool slightly before piping on the buttercream, or it may melt a little.
- Divide the frosting into 7 piping bags (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, and white). You'll only need a piping tip for the white, which is used for the clouds. I used the Wilton No. 12 round decorating tip. For the rainbow bags, simply snip a little off the bottom before you're ready to decorate.
- Start by piping red first, then orange, yellow, green, blue, and finally purple.
- Next, pipe on the clouds the way you'd pipe little cupcakes.
Baker’s notes
- The prep time listed for these rainbow donuts includes 30 minutes of prep, a 1 1/2 hour rise, and a 1 hour rest for the dough.
- The cook time listed is only for frying the donuts.
- Not included in the recipe is the prep time for the vanilla buttercream frosting (20 minutes) and the time needed to decorate the rainbow donuts (35 minutes).
- Prep and cook times are estimates and can vary depending on the tools you use and your experience level.
- If you're frying in a heavy skillet or stock pot, you'll need about 3-4 cups of canola or vegetable oil.
- Pour the oil into the deep heavy skillet or stock pot and heat it to 365ºF using a candy or deep fry thermometer. Add the oil BEFORE turning on the heat.
- After frying, do NOT pour the oil down the drain. I know many of you already know this, but I still want to say it. Let it cool completely, then pour it into a glass jar, into these Toss-It! Bags, or save it for reuse. I like to store the oil in this Oggi 4 quart grease can after I'm finished with it. It comes with a strainer and keeps the oil clean and tightly covered until I use it again.
