These homemade maple bacon donuts are soft, fluffy, and irresistible. Topped with a sweet maple glaze and crispy, salty bacon, they’re ready in 30 minutes!

Freshly glazed maple bacon donut topped with crispy, salty bacon cooling on a wire rack

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Homemade Maple Bacon Doughnuts

These maple bacon donuts are the perfect balance of savory and sweet, and addictingly delicious! They’re soft on the inside, and slightly chewy on the outside. A sweet maple glaze and bacon on top make them a unique combination that’s heavenly in flavor!

They taste just like the fried yeasted donuts from your local donut shop. But they’re made with refrigerated biscuit dough, which makes them super simple to whip up in only 30 minutes! Yes, please!

Why You’ll Love These Donuts

  • An easy shortcut. Using refrigerated biscuit dough is a genius method to make homemade donuts! No need to slave in the kitchen all morning waiting for yeast to rise.
  • Sweet and savory. The best of both worlds! These donuts are sweet from the maple icing and savory from the salty bacon.
  • A fun weekend treat. What better way to make memories in the kitchen than with homemade maple bacon donuts for breakfast or brunch!

Donut Ingredients

Ingredients for homemade maple bacon donuts, including biscuits, maple syrup, bacon, powdered sugar, and oil.

To make the actual donut itself, you only need two simple ingredients: a package of refrigerator biscuits and vegetable oil. The key to making super quick donuts is to use refrigerated biscuit dough. It fries up perfectly and makes a great donut consistency. The dough tastes like you made it from scratch, without having to slave in the kitchen all morning!

Maple Glaze for Donuts

Next comes the sweet maple glaze for donuts. It’s made with a simple mixture of butter, pure maple syrup, vanilla, powdered sugar and salt. It’s creamy and thick, with a sweet maple flavor that pairs perfectly with the buttery donuts and the salty bacon.

How to Make Maple Bacon Donuts

Step-by-step process showing how to make maple bacon donuts: shaping, frying, glazing, and topping with bacon.
  1. Cut a hole in each biscuit. To get started, use a small cookie cutter or apple corer to cut out the middle of each piece of refrigerated biscuit dough. Don’t forget to save the center pieces for making donut holes (more on that below!).
  2. Heat the oil. Using a heavy-bottomed pot, pour in the vegetable oil until about 1/4 of the pot deep. Turn to medium-high heat and heat the oil until it has reached a temperature of 350°F.
  3. Fry the donuts. Add 2-3 donuts in the pot at a time and cook until browned, about 2-3 minutes. Flip, then cook an additional 2-3 minutes. You want them nice and golden. If they are browning too fast, you can turn down the heat on the stove.
  4. Drain and cool. Carefully remove the donuts from the oil (I like to use a slotted spoon) and place on paper towels to drain the grease. Let cool for about 10 to 15 minutes.
  5. Prepare maple glaze. While the donuts are cooling, get started on your sweet maple icing. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, then whisk in the maple syrup. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla, powdered sugar and salt until the consistency is smooth with no lumps.
  6. Dip in glaze. Once the donuts are cooled, dip them into the maple glaze and then immediately sprinkle the crumbled bacon pieces over the tops!

Make Donut Holes!

Don’t discard those biscuit centers! Use them to make miniature donut holes. They are the perfect size for those who just want a small bite or two.

Simply fry them in the hot oil for about 30 seconds, or until the exterior is golden. Then dip in glaze and add a few sprinkles of bacon on top. Genius!

Homemade maple bacon donuts cooling on a rack, covered in maple glaze and sprinkled with crispy bacon crumbles.

Tips for Making Bacon Donuts

  • Measure the oil temperature. Use a candy thermometer to measure the temperature of the oil. As soon as it reaches 350°F, you’re ready to start frying! It also helps to check the temperature in between each batch so that they fry properly.
  • Be careful. The oil will be hot and can sometimes splatter, so be careful when frying. I like to use a long, slotted spoon to flip and remove the donuts so that there is some distance between my hands and the pot.
  • Unsalted butter. Bacon is fairly salty on it’s own, so I recommend using unsalted butter for the glaze. This way your donuts aren’t overly salty with the right balance.
  • Cooking bacon. Learning how to cook bacon in the oven is a huge game changer! It’s an easy, fool-proof and mess-free way to make sure you have perfectly cooked bacon each and every time.
  • Work fast. After dipping the donuts in glaze, you’ll want to immediately sprinkle the bacon on top. The glaze dries fast, so don’t wait too long or the bacon won’t stick to the tops!

Variations

Take these maple bacon doughnuts up a notch by adding a drizzle of caramel sauce or melted chocolate on top. During the fall months, feel free to add a sprinkle of nutmeg or cinnamon into the glaze for more spice.

If you have a little extra time and would prefer to make the dough yourself, learn how to make homemade doughnuts from scratch using my donut recipe.

Close-up of homemade maple bacon donuts topped with sweet maple glaze and crispy, salty bacon pieces.

More delicious pastries we love include homemade churros, apple fritters and this pop tarts recipe!

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Maple bacon donuts - these delicious sweet and savory donuts are so easy to make and ready in under thirty minutes!

Homemade Maple Bacon Donuts

5 from 8 votes
Recipe by: Jamielyn Nye
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 8
These homemade maple bacon donuts are soft, fluffy, and irresistible. Topped with a sweet maple glaze and crispy, salty bacon, they’re ready in 30 minutes!
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Ingredients 

Donuts

  • Vegetable oil
  • 1 (16.3-ounce) package refrigerator biscuits , I prefer Pillsbury original

Maple Glaze

  • 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
  • ⅓ cup maple syrup
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1-1 ½ cups powdered sugar , plus more if needed
  • Pinch of salt
  • 4 slices bacon , cooked and crumbled

Instructions

Donuts

  • Pour oil into a heavy-bottomed pot, about 1/4 of the pot deep. Heat over medium-high heat, until the oil reaches 350°F.
  • While the oil is heating, cut a hole in the center of each biscuit using a small round cookie cutter or an apple corer. Save the center pieces for making donut holes.
  • Add the biscuits to the hot oil, 2 to 3 at a time. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, or until browned, then carefully flip and cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes. Remove carefully from the oil and place on paper towels to drain. Repeat with remaining biscuits and holes. Turn down the heat if the donuts are browning too fast.
  • Let cool 10 to 15 minutes, or until cool enough to handle.

Maple Glaze

  • In a small saucepan, melt 3 Tablespoons butter over medium heat. Whisk in 1/3 cup maple syrup until melted. Remove from the heat. Whisk in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, and pinch of salt until smooth.
  • Dip the donuts into the glaze, then sprinkle with 4 crumbled slices of bacon. Best served the same day.

Last step: Please leave a comment and rating after you make the recipe.

Notes

Tip: I like to use a candy thermometer to measure the temperature of my oil for accuracy. 
Donut holes: Use the centers of the donuts to make donut holes. Fry for about 30 seconds, or until golden. Then fully emerge in the glaze and sprinkle with extra bacon crumbles, if desired.
Storage: These donuts are really best the same day, so it is recommended to avoid storing, if possible. 
Frying: Make sure your oil is at temperature in between adding each batch of donuts, so that they fry properly. Be careful around the hot oil.  

Nutrition

Serving: 1donut, Calories: 419kcal, Carbohydrates: 60g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 18g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 7g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 19mg, Sodium: 619mg, Potassium: 183mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 32g, Vitamin A: 136IU, Calcium: 45mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.

Storage

There are some recipes that just taste best the day of preparing, and maple bacon donuts are one of them. The texture and flavor will be the most fresh and delicious when enjoyed the same day, so I would avoid storing the donuts if possible.

stack of maple and bacon donuts on a white plate