by Joy the Baker 94 Comments
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That first bite of doughnut… that very first tasteissuccess, surrender, satisfaction, joy, and celebration all wrapped up into one bite. It’s the anticipation that makes it so great! And the brown butter, obviously.
These doughnuts feel like an extra special treat because they’re topped (as all things should be, really…) with browned butter glaze and chopped salted pistachios.
Where brown butter and pistachios combine, the gates of Heaven open wide and welcome you in with open arms. Not literally… but that sure iswhat it feels like!
It’s time to make an extra pot of coffee. Call a friend. Pull up a few chairs and relish in it all. What a lovely life when doughnuts are fresh and pretty.
The beginning works thusly: flour, sugar, salt and baking powder, browned butter, and eggs.
I always add a dashing dose of freshly grated nutmeg to my baked doughnuts. Just enough to keep things interesting. Nutmegs adds a lovely depth of flavor.
I also needed mucho many pistachios for this recipe. I ate most of them during shelling. Guilty.
Dry ingredients are stirred together in the foreground. Eggs, browned butter, vanilla extract, and eventually buttermilk are whisked together in the background.
I’m a fool for brown butter. These perfect chocolate chip cookies are proof.
Brown Butter is simply (and gloriously) butter that has been melted long enough to brown the milk solids within the butter. The result is a wonderfully fragrant, nutty, deep golden brown butter that tastes toasty and delicious. It adds the perfect depth to these simple cake doughnuts.
Wet meets dry with specks of pistachios and the smell of browned butter. It’s very nice.
The baked doughnut pan is the key to these tender little cakes. Otherwise, they’re cupcakes and we’re sooooo over cupcakes, right? The doughnuts bake up quickly and only need about 10 minutes in the oven.
Just enough time whisk together our brown butter glaze. Brown butter, salt, powdered sugar, vanilla and a touch of milk! Butter in glaze! It’s perfect.
Some doughnut glazes are for dipping doughnuts, others are for spreading. This brown butter glaze situation is thick and spreadable! Sprinkle pistachios on the doughnuts immediately after you frost them so the pistachios stick!
I’m pretty enthusiastic about my baked doughnuts. They’re simple little cakes ready for virtually any flavor and topping you want to throw their way. When frosted and topped, they’re little show-stoppers that I want to eat forever and ever.
The brown butter and pistachio flavors are sweet and nutty, with just a hint of salty intrigue. I love the crunch that pistachios add to the top of the tender little cakes. Little dreams! I think you’ll love these!
In other baked doughnut news, theseBrown Butter Baked Doughnutskicked off my whole obsession.
TheseApple Cinnamon Baked Doughnutswill be perfect once Fall rolls around (noooooo!).
Double Chocolate Baked Doughnuts. Extrafudge-y for when chocolate is necessary!
Black and White Baked Doughnuts for indecision. It’s cool!
Baked Brown Butter and Pistachio Doughnuts
★5 Stars☆★4 Stars☆★3 Stars☆★2 Stars☆★1 Star☆No reviews
- Prep Time: 0 hours
- Cook Time: 0 hours
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 12 doughnuts 1x
Ingredients
Scale
For the Doughnuts:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup shelled pistachios, finely chopped and divided
- 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup / 4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted and browned (we’ll only use 4 tablespoons of browned butter for the doughnuts and 2 tablespoons for the glaze)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the Brown Butter Glaze:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoons brown butter
- 3 to 4 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a doughnut pan and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, sugar, and 1/2 cup choppedpistachios. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt butter. Butter will begin to crackle and pop as it melts. That’s the water melting out of the butter. Once the water has evaporated the butter will quiet down and begin to brown. Keep an eye on it, it browns quickly. The butter will begin to smell nutty. Remove from heat and immediately transfer browned butter (brown bits and all) to a small bowl.
- In a medium bowl whisk together egg, buttermilk, and vanilla extract. Measure out 4 tablespoons of browned butter and whisk into the wet ingredients.
- Add the wet ingredients all at once to the dry ingredients. Stir together until no flour bits remain and all of the ingredients are well combined. Try not to overmix the batter. That might create rubbery doughnuts.
- Use a small spoon to dollop batter into the prepared pan. Smooth out and fill each doughnut in the pan three-quarters full with batter.
- Place in the oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Keep an eye on them and try not to over-bake them. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the doughnuts cool, make the glaze.
- To make the glaze, in a medium bowl whisk together powdered sugar and salt. I didn’t sift my powdered sugar. I was able to whisk the lumps out. If you have stubborn powdered sugar, sifting before is best.
- Add 2 tablespoons brown butter, 2 tablespoons of milk, and vanilla extract. Whisk to combine. Add more milk as necessary to create a thick but still spreadable glaze.
- Once the doughnuts are completely cool, use a butter knife to spread glaze onto each doughnut. Return to the wire rack and sprinkle with remaining pistachios. Allow to set for about 30 minutes before stacking or serving. Doughnuts are best within 2 days.
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Reader Interactions
All Comments
I Made This
Questions
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Jane Bartow
Why do we brown 8 oz of butter when we use 6 of them in this recipe. Just asking’.
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pulla
sorry i didnt like the texture or the flavour , so i just baked the same dough that i use for fry and the result was just perfec.
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that donuts loo awesome thanks for sharing its recipe
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J-Mom
I made it into muffins since I didn’t have the donut pans but they were delicious! I’m not a fan of glazes so I was just going to sprinkle the other half cup of pistachios on top before baking and I forgot (as I do, a lot of times ;) I’ll be definitely making this recipe again and again and hope that I don’t forget the topping next time.
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Mommy Charlotte
You are making me drool. These sound and look divine and the good news is … I have all of the ingredients and can make them today!
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Morgan
I don’t like nutmeg very much and either does part of the family Im making these for any recommendations on a replacement ? Or should I just go without. Thanks!
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Wow, what an amazing recipe… I’m going to try this out and make my kids enjoy its flavour
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You can tell just by looking at these that they are light, airy and delicious. I recently went through a fried doughnut kick – trying and testing all sorts of recipes. Looking at these, I think it’s time I did the same for baked doughnuts. And, brown butter! Is there anything not made better with brown butter?! Delicious. Thank you so much for sharing!
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sweetcoffee
I love doughnuts and pistachio. what a combination. i love it.
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Wow …Not fried but baked Doughnuts . Thanks . I am baker & cake artist in India . I can say I love ur recipie
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Kim12354
Has Anyone made these? wondering how moist they are since they are baked
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My son wants donuts for his birthday…we are going to make these! Happy feasting!
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Susie
Hi Joy I love love love your post they are so clever and the pictures are beautiful, one question the metal gadget in the picture is that a grater and where can I get one looks like a very useful item.
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Alexis
Made these the other day (as well as the chocolate with chocolate ones). Everyone LOVED them. Thank you for making such tantalizing treats for me to try! Holy amazingness!!!!
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Ella
I was tasked with making a smallish, easy to pass around dessert for a big dinner for my mum and her workmates and these were perfect! They turned out amazingly. Thankyou for continually supplying me with the perfect recipes for different occasions. x
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Kerri
Absolutely amazing! So easy and earned raves!!!
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Rachel
I tried this recipe last night for my mother’s birthday and it was a huge success! Being without a donut pan, I made it into a bundt cake instead. It required about double the cooking time, but it was absolutely delicious – thank you for a great recipe!
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Lola
Where’s the recipe?
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joythebaker
Hello Lola! There was an issue with the plugin, but it’s all fixed now. Thank you for letting me know!!
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Jo
Any thoughts on mini doughnuts? How long would you suggest baking the mini version?
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joythebaker
Hello Jo, I’d try cutting the baking time in half! Mini would be great, you’d be able to eat more of them.
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Rachel
I’m making these tomorrow for me and husband! So excited!
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Hi Joy, just wondering, why do you list 8 tablespoons of butter when you only use 6 tablespoons?
P.S. Love your blog, I’ve been a religious reader for a few years now and you’re the one who really sparked my interest in baking :)
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Maalika
These look heavenly! But I cant seem to get my hands on buttermilk. Anything I can substitute it with, or any recommendations for making it at home? Thanks!
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Kelly
Would the brown butter glaze work on the brown butter doughnuts? Not a huge chocolate glaze fan. Just looking for a yummy alternative that the kids and adults will also like.
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joythebaker
brown butter glaze + brown butter donuts is such a success!
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Hannah
Hi! I made these last night but without a donut pan.. Haha. Ended up using a tart and random little cake pans I had. It’s the same cake but it would have been so much better if I had a donut pan. I also halved the glaze for the recipe because I usually have so much left over.. But that was a mistake on my part because the glaze tasted amazing and I needed more on those “donuts”
The pictures on @peekintohannah on Instagram if you want to see how they came out!Reply
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Sheetal
Looks yummy! Brown butter is clarified butter aka. ghee. Used in most of Indian desserts :)
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Joy, these look fantastic! I’ve tried your other donuts, but am looking most forward to trying these!!!
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LBN
These were delicious! Super easy and amazing. Personally I’d leave out the nutmeg a second time but I don’t care for nutmeg. I got 17 good-sized doughnuts out of it (and had enough glaze to cover them).
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Jenn V
I made these last night and just ate them for breakfast. Total perfection. I had some batter left over and used a mini muffin tin to bake the rest. They made great doughnut holes!
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that brown butter glaze… be still my heart!
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Awn
I’m hoping someone has an idea…I used the link for the chocolate cake donuts and the cake part was brilliant! The problem I had was the glaze soaked into my donuts within minutes. They tasted amazing but were a bit more moist than they should have been. Too much liquid in the glaze is my thought but I’d love any ideas.
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I have always been nervous to make my own donuts… but these look great! They are gorgeous… and I LOVE the texture of the pistachios on top. Nicely done!
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Rach C
I’m sure these taste amazing, but can I just say haw cool the photos are with the squares from the cooling rack showing the through the circles of the doughnut holes! Yes, I know, geeky, but so lovely!
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I need one of those. Now.
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Woooo baby look at those beauties! Fantastic combo!
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You are the donut queen! Brown butter and pistachios?! Oh happy day!
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These are the most beautiful doughnuts I’ve ever seen! Aaaand now I think I need one. Right now. Love them!
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ashley
I have a question.
What do you do with all of these? I know you don’t eat all of them, you look to good for that. But I’m curious! Do you just have very lucky/happy neighbors? If so, what’s your address? :)
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joythebaker
i share them with friends. no biggie.
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Oh my gosh, Joy. Are you trying to kill me?! These look fantastic!
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I love baked doughnuts so I will definitely have to try these! Visit my blog at http://www.forloveofbaking.com.
Sydney
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April
I bought a doughnut pan specifically for the chocolate glazed brown butter donuts on your site. They are amazing as are these ones I’m sure. Cannot wait to try these!
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Beautiful!
I love browned butter, and these sound sooo good.
Such gorgeous photos too!I will be getting one of those perfect doughnut pans and mixing up this recipe hopefully sooner than later ;-)
Isabelle @ Head Red & Blondi
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Jen
These look totally bonkers delicious, as usual! Question: I want to bring these as a hostess gift this weekend. I want them to be as fresh as possible but I’m short on time. Do you think I could make the batter ahead of time and refrigerate?
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Barbara
Just made these; no pistaschios in the house so I subbed salted butter pecans…super yummy! Definitely a keeper. Thanks!
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I just love this post! Beautiful photos and lovely imagery!
My dad just gave me a bunch of salted pistachios that I now believe need to be combined with brown butter glaze in the near future! I unfortunately don’t have a donut pan yet, but I think I’ll be fixing that ASAP :-)
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Mira C.
You’re reeeeeaaally making me want to jump on the doughnut bandwagon and get a pan. Wowzers those look good!
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I love pretty much any reason to eat cake for breakfast. And browned butter to boot!
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doughnuts + pistachios = genius & physic! My brain just exploded a bit. Thank you
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Jena
“Over cupcakes”?!?! Ummm, NEVER!!! (That’s crazytalk, lady.) But I can definitely get excited about these tasty treats!
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I’m really loving your lighting game in Nola! Beautiful beautiful donuts.
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Jayne
I’m really loving the lighting game you’ve got at Nola. These are some beautiful beautiful donuts!
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Lexi B.
Hello, quick question, for the brown butter glaze, do I make the brown butter? Thanks :)
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Nicole B.
You must have read my mind when I was thinking about how I wanted the recipe for these since they were pictured in yesterdays post. You. Are. Good!
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I definitely do not brown my butter nearly enough. Great doughnut flavor.
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Jeff
These look AWESOME! Loved seeing you in the September issue of “Better Homes and Gardens”…congrats!!!!!
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I love that you made these baked! Not enough baked donuts out there
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brianne
I love the trail of pistachios. Awesome recipe and photos!
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These donuts are so flipping tasty looking! Love the flavour!
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Raise your hand if you eat halfway through your main ingredients (aka pistachios). *raises hand bashfully* hah! I would have definitely done that too. And these are sooo pretty!!!! Can you believe I still haven’t had a baked donut? Well, i did once which I bought at a cute little place in Hermosa Beach, CA, but it was so small I only ended up wanting more. I need to start making these asap for sure.
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Julie Jones
These look amazing! I’ve just bought a baked doughnut pan, and I definitely see some of these in my future… :)
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Joy! You did it AGAIN! I have a question though, if I were to use the same Wilton pan you used, but in the mini donuts size, how long would you bake those for? Just a guesstimate, I won’t hold it against you if you steer me wrong, duh.
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Yum! I could eat that whole pan right now! :D
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Uhm, yes. I will take them all. Thank you.
xoxo
TaylorReply
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Oh, yes! Pretty much brown butter anything and I’m in. I was once a skeptic of pistachios in sweets, but after trying pistachio ice cream, I’m definitely a convert.
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mmm pistachios are great on doughnuts! love everything about this.
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Pistachio…doughnut. Pistachio, doughnut. It’s like my Iranian-American worlds colliding. Love it.
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Just reading your post, i can just taste these!! And they are Goooorrr-geous looking!
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Duuuuuude your glaze styling in these photos in E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G. Really gorgeous job!
https://www.youtube.com/sparklesandsuch26Reply
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Ahhhhh, I need some of these in my life! Love the crunchy pistachios on top. It has been far too long since I used my donut pan! :)
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Perfect flavor combo! I can’t believe I don’t see pistachio donuts more often.
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Laura @ Laura's Culinary Adventures
What a perfect little snack! A benefit of baking something is being able to snack on the ingredients :)
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Jessica from 'All About Travelling'
Oh my word.. those look amazing. Beautiful photos as well:)
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Holy canole! This looks yummy!
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Dreamy!!!
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These look positively divine!! Do you think I could substitute some almond milk or coconut milk so I could make them for my son, who has a dairy allergy? Am also a new listener to your podcast. I often listen to it whilst paper crafting and working on my own blog!!
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joythebaker
sure! add coconut milk or almond milk with just a splash of vinegar stirred in. also, you could substitute coconut oil for the butter if need be!
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dessertfortwo
It’s like you knew I had a jar of shelled pistachios in the pantry. And you knew that I haven’t had a donut in too long. I’m on it!
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joythebaker
kitchen psychic.
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T
hey look divine!!! Where do I find the doughnut pan?Reply
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joythebaker
there’s a link to the doughnut pan on amazon in the post!
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Girrrrl… I so need to get one of those doughnut pans, because I am drooling. Doughnuts+brown butter?! I don’t stand a chance.
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joythebaker
treat yourself to the doughnut pan so you can treat yourself to the doughnuts!
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I feel like I absolutely have to have a coffee get together and serve these donuts. Although I may have to pony up for shelled pistachios. I only like shelling those things when I’m sitting on the couch watching Orange is the New Black or some other form of entertainment. And then there will most definitely be none left for donut topping.
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joythebaker
in my experience, pre-shelled pistachios are soft and don’t have the same fresh crunch of those fresh out of their shells. but i feel you!
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If theses are not the most cheerful donuts I’ve seen then I don’t know what they are! This recipe and gorgeous photos promptly sent me to amazon to order a donut pan! Can’t wait.
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There is nothing quite so beautiful as the color and look of pistachios. These donuts are beauties and love that they are baked not fried!
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joythebaker
pistachios are just sooo pretty! you’re right!
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This is the best doughnut recipe ever seen. It makes me want to shove the computer (with doughnuts and pistachios and all) right into my mouth. P.S. Honoured to be the first to comment for the first time in my life!
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joythebaker
thank you for being here!
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I loved your Monday post. I went out I got my self a good breakfast today and sat down to eat it. My Monday way not have been as nice but Tuesday and this post sure made up for it! Yummo donuts!
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they’re absolutely gorgeous, joy! also, i’m pretty sure it’s mandatory to eat at least three-quarters of pistachios you shell for a recipe… right?!
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