These pumpkin donuts are so moist you won’t dare to dip them in anything! Also I gotta be real, many baked donuts are disappointing. They’re like tiny cupcakes without buttercream that have been over-baked. MEH!!!
These don’t have that problem, the pumpkin brings a lot of moisture and the glaze just seeps into the cake and makes each bite perfect!
Click here if you want to buy the donut pans I used. That is an affiliate link and I will earn a small commission. They are SO handy for making all sorts of easy baked donuts!!
How to Make homemade pumpkin spice mix
Mix together the following spices:
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Allspice
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 1 pinch Cloves
- 1 pinch Cardamom
- 2 tsp instant espresso (optional but makes pumpkin spice latte dreams come true)
How to make Vegan Pumpkin donuts
For a vegan option nix the eggs, whisk in 7 1/2 teaspoons of ground flax seeds into nine tablespoons of water until it becomes gelatinous. Substitute the milk and half and half for for coconut or almond milk. Trade the butter out for vegetable or coconut oil.
Pro Tips for making baked pumpkin donuts
- Measure your flour correctly! Adding too much flour to the recipe is the most common mistake. The best, and easiest way to measure flour is by using a scale. If you don’t have one then fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off.
- Because these are super-moist baked doughnuts the glaze will absorb into them so they are best eaten the day of.
- I LOVE my pumpkin spice mixture but you can sub in 2-2.5 tsp of store bought pumpkin spice if you’re in a rush.
- The instant espresso is optional but SO good. It really transforms these into dreamy PSL donuts!
- This recipe can be made as cupcakes if you don’t have a donut tin. I usually don’t like very specific kitchen tools but these pans REALLY come in handy!
How to make Pumpkin Donuts
1. In a small bowl mix the spices together and set aside. Add the flour, brown sugar, half of your spice mixture, leavening agent, and salt to a large bowl. Whisk together until completely mixed.
2. Add the eggs, pumpkin purée, butter and milk and half and half then beat together until smooth and mixed. Scrape the bowl down if needed.
3. Transfer the batter to a piping bag, snip the tip off and pipe into your prepared donut pan. Bake until centers are springy.
4. To make the glaze mix sugar, spice mixture and the first tablespoon of milk together in a large bowl. You can add more milk if needed to achieve the correct consistency for your glaze.
5. Once the donuts have cooled spoon the glaze on, OR dip them into the glaze if you prefer.
6. Melt chocolate and espresso powder in a small bowl. Transfer to piping bag, snip tip off and swipe across donuts for a streaked effect.
IF YOU LIKED THIS RECIPE TRY THESE OUT
If you’ve tried this Pumpkin donut recipe then don’t forget to leave a rating and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Pumpkin Donuts
Ingredients
For the Spice Mixture. (Reserve 1/2 for the glaze)
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 2 tsp instant espresso
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp cardamom
For the Donuts:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour 240g
- 1/2 cup brown sugar packed, 100g
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup pumpkin purée
- 1/2 cup half and half
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 cup butter unsalted, room temperature, 30g
- 2 eggs
For the glaze
- 1¼ cups confectioners' sugar
- 3 tbsp milk you might not use all
For the Chocolate Ganache:
- 1/2 cup chocolate semi-sweet
- 1 tablespoon instant espresso
Instructions
For the Spice Mixture:
- Mix the spices in a small bowl. You'll use half for the donuts and half for the glaze.
For the Donuts:
- Heat oven to 325F. Coat donut pans with oil or cooking spray.
- In a stand mixer, combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, half the pumpkin spice (about a 2 1/2 tsp), salt and baking soda.
- Add in pumpkin puree, eggs, milk and butter. Mix on low until mixture is thick.
- Transfer batter to a piping bag and snip the tip off. Pipe batter about 1/2 the way up.r. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until the centers are springy to the touch.
- Allow to cool in pans for a minute then invert onto a wire rack. Allow to cool completely
For the Glaze:
- Sift powdered sugar into a large bowl add about 2 tsp of the spice mixture and then ad a tablespoon of milk and mix until smooth. Add more milk a tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency is reached.
For the Ganache:
- Melt chocolate and espresso powder in a double boiler or un a small bowl using a few 30 second bursts at 50% power.
For the Assembly:
- Spoon glaze over the cooled donuts OR dip them into the glaze.Let sit for a few minutes.
- Mix chocolate and transfer to a piping bag, snip the tip off and squeeze ganache chocolate over the donuts in a sweeping motion to produce chocolate lines.
Video
Notes
- Measure your flour correctly! Adding too much flour to the recipe is the most common mistake. The best, and easiest way to measure flour is by using a scale. If you don't have one then fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off.
- Because these are super-moist baked doughnuts the glaze will absorb into them so they are best eaten the day of.
- I LOVE my pumpkin spice mixture but you can sub in 2-2.5 tsp of store bought pumpkin spice if you're in a rush.
- The instant espresso is optional but SO good. It really transforms these into dreamy PSL donuts!
- This recipe can be made as cupcakes if you don't have a donut tin. I usually don't like very specific kitchen tools but these pans REALLY come in handy!
Nutrition
I’m making these today, and i’m so excited! Found pumpkin puree here in Norway, and it cost me 10$ so I hope i don’t mess them up! Haha 🙂
Good luck!! 🙂
Hi!
ok bare with me, its amateur hour over in my kitchen when it comes to donuts.
i have a couple questions.
1) in the ingredients list “pumpkin pie spice” is listed as an ingredient. you are referring to the Spice Mixture
correct? if not, then im also using a separate mixture of pumpkin pie spice?
i was confused because of the 6 cups of confectioners sugar- that is a lot for just 2 teaspoons. but if that’s what
i’m supposed to do then ill do it!
2) if i make the Spice Mixture twice (youve got that written in parentheses) am I using 6 more cups of
confectioners sugar and making that spice mixture again? what happens with the first batch of spice mixture
that i make?
3) back to the batter mixture, im mixing in 6 cups of powdered sugar into my 2 cups of flour? (steps 2 and 3 in the
instructions). that seems like an insane amount of sugar! but ill do it if you tell me to 🙂
4) in step 3 you say to mix spices in- its missing allspice. im assuming that goes in anyways. but then, those are all
the ingredients that are supposed to be mixed into cream and eggs- so now its wet!
im sorry! i feel like im rambling, but i started making these last night, and was completely confused. they look delicious, and i basically mickey-moused your recipe with another donut recipe that had similar ingredients. they came out pretty good, but i want to try yours!
thanks again
Okp,
Sorry for the confusion! The ingredient measurements for the spice mixture are already doubled, so just make one batch and reserve half of it for the glaze mixture! When you’re mixing up the batter, you’ll be mixing in the correct reserved amount. I used McCormicks Pumpkin Pie Spice from Target! Hope that helps!
John
I agree with you about most baked donuts. I’m never a fan. But these sound incredible. I drug my husband across town for a pumpkin cake donut from my favorite donut place last weekend… not that he was complaining. But my pumpkin donut love is real!! Excited to try this recipe!! Love it!
Oh boy! I really hope you enjoy the donuts as much as I did!
Is pumpkin purée the same as canned pumpkin pie filling? All I can find is the pie filling. Can’t find puree at all. Gotta try this. Family loves baked donuts.
Hi Beth! It’ just 100% pure canned pumpkin. Pumpkin pie filling is probably super-tasty but a whole different ingredient. Hope that helps!