Why I Love These Pumpkin Donuts:
This time last year, I was training for a half marathon and by September I had reached the 10-12 mile long runs. If there’s one thing I learned about running long distance, it’s that you get really, really hungry and nothing seems to satisfy the hunger. Of all the things I was craving, the one sweet food I wanted was pumpkin donuts from Dunkin’ Donuts. Funny thing is that up until that point, I didn’t even like donuts! And while pumpkin muffins have been my favorite life-long fall recipe, pumpkin donuts now take second place.
Given that the Dunkin’ Donuts donuts have a few sulfites, I (as usual) needed to create my own. This recipe is a great, healthier alternative to the typically fried pumpkin donuts that everyone enjoys at fairs, apple farms, and from Dunkin’ in the fall. They’re soft, cakey, and light and the cinnamon-y, sugary flavors in these donuts are sure to satisfy any sweet tooth. You can also switch ingredients to make the recipe vegan, sulfite free, and nut-free. If you’re a fan of pumpkin flavor, donuts, or delicious desserts, you should whip up a batch of these and share them with everyone you know!
Ingredients
- Unbleached & organic all purpose flour
- Organic pumpkin Puree
- Organic cane sugar
- All natural maple syrup
- Natural vanilla
- Organic unsalted butter
- Organic almond milk
- Baking soda
- Sea salt
- Cinnamon & Pumpkin spices
Making the Pumpkin Donuts:
The great news is that it is much easier to bake a donut than it is to fry one! This recipe doesn’t require and hand mixers or extra steps to mix the best pumpkin donut batter. All you’ll need is a donut pan (or 2) and a few bowls, spoons, and measuring cups.
First, preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease the donut pans with organic oil. Then in one bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, sea salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice. In another bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients and mix thoroughly. Combine the two bowls and stir well. The batter should be smooth and similar to cake batter or brownie batter!
Using a spoon, pour the batter into the donut pan and smooth the tops of the donuts. If a spoon is not working, you can put the batter into a Ziploc bag and cut the corner to pipe the batter into the pan. It is similar to icing a cup cake and can be a lot less messy! Next, bake the pumpkin donuts for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Creating the Donut Toppings:
While these donuts are really tasty without toppings, they’re quite incredible with cinnamon sugar and/or a maple glaze! If you have a sweet tooth like me, you’re most likely going to prefer at least one of the toppings below.
Cinnamon Sugar:
This is my personal favorite for these donuts because it is so simple to add. To prep, you mix the sugar and spices in a bowl and melt butter on a plate. Then take the donuts from the pan and dip them into the butter and then into the cinnamon sugar mix. Voila! You’ve got delicious pumpkin donuts with cinnamon sugar topping.
Maple Glaze:
For my sulfite free friends, a maple glaze is probably something you’d only dream about! Most glazes and icings are made with powdered sugar which is rather hard to make and about impossible to find without preservatives. BUT, this glaze is real and is delicious as a topping on these donuts.
To make the glaze, melt the butter, almond milk, and vanilla together in a saucepan. Then add in the cane sugar, maple syrup, and flour and cook until the glaze thickens. Once thick, spread the glaze onto the pumpkin donuts and let them cool entirely.
Notes:
- The toppings for this recipe are measured out to top 1/2 the donuts. Simply double the recipes if you would like to use one topping for the entire batch!
- These pumpkin donuts can be frozen for up to 2 months with the exception of the maple glaze. The plain donuts and cinnamon sugar donuts will freeze nicely, but I do not recommend freezing the donuts with glaze.
Check out some other great fall recipes:
Pumpkin Donuts with Cinnamon Sugar & Maple Glaze
Ingredients
- 1 cup All purpose flour Unbleached, organic
- 1 tsp Baking soda
- 1/2 tsp Sea salt
- 1/2 cup Almond milk sub dairy milk
- 1/3 cup Pumpkin puree
- 1/4 cup Cane sugar
- 1 tbsp Maple syrup
- 1 tbsp Melted butter
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla
- 1 tsp Pumpkin Spice
- 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
Cinnamon sugar topping
- 1 tbsp Cinnamon
- 1/2 tbsp Pumpkin spice
- 2 tbsp Cane sugar
Maple Glaze topping
- 1 tbsp Butter
- 2 tbsp Cane sugar
- 1 tbsp Maple syrup
- 1 tbsp Flour
- 1/2 tbsp Almond milk
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease two donut pans (6 donuts/pan).
- In one bowl, sift flour, baking soda, sea salt, and pumpkin & cinnamon spices together.
- In another bowl, mix together the almond milk, pumpkin puree, cane sugar, maple syrup, melted butter, and vanilla.
- Mix together the two bowls and stir until combined. Then fill your donut pans with the batter using a spoon.
- Bake the donuts for 12-15 minutes, then let them cool for 5-10 minutes.
Cinnamon sugar topping
- Mix together cinnamon, pumpkin spice, and cane sugar in a bowl and melt butter on a plate.
- Take the donut and dip it into the melted butter followed by the spice and sugar mix.
Maple glaze topping
- In a saucepan, melt together butter, almond milk, and vanilla.
- Add in the cane sugar, maple syrup, and flour.
- When the mixture thickens, use a knife to spread onto the donuts.
