These Baked Pumpkin Donuts are moist sweet and full of fall spices. Baked instead of fried; these donuts are easy and quick to make. Then covered in cinnamon sugar adding that perfect bit on the outside. These Pumpkin Donuts are so delicious.

These Pumpkin Donuts taste similar to apple cider donuts except with pumpkin flavor instead. They are perfect for fall and will fulfill all your pumpkin dreams! They are tender, moist, super cinnamon and coated with sugar!
Try these other pumpkin and fall flavored desserts....
Apple Galette with Puff Pastry
PUMPKIN DONUTS STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS
- In a large bowl combine your oil, eggs, sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin, and vanilla until combined. In the same bowl add your flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove. whisk until combined.
- Transfer batter into a pastry bag.
- Using a non-stick donut pan. pip a ring of batter into each donut ring. you should be able to fill about 20 donuts. Bake donuts at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.
- Once done take out and let cool completely
- To make the sugar coating...in a small bowl combine your cinnamon and sugar and mix.
- Brush each donut (front and back) with your melted butter, and then toss your donuts into your cinnamon sugar mixture (Both sides).
- Eat fresh and enjoy!
PUMPKIN DONUTS MAIN INGREDIENTS AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Vegetable Oil. I use oil instead of butter, because it is full fat and I feel like it gives you a more moist donut.
Sugar. I use mostly granulated sugar and a little brown sugar for the best combination of flavor and texture. But if you do not have brown sugar you can replace this for more granulated sugar.
Pumpkin Puree. This makes your donuts pumpkin flavor! Make sure to use only pumpkin puree and NOT pumpkin pie mix
Spices. I load my donuts with spices. I use the best combination of Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and clove. you can replace this with 2 tablespoon of pumpkin pie spice instead.
Baking Powder. This makes your donuts rise! Baking powder unlike baking soda doesn't need an acid to rise your dessert, so its my go to when you want a higher rise.
Cinnamon Sugar. I topped these donuts with cinnamon sugar, but you can make a maple glaze instead with just some powdered sugar, milk and maple syrup!
BAKING TIPS
My Biggest tip is you do not need to mix your dry ingredients in a separate bowl when baking. This is usually suggested so that you combine your dry ingredients evenly first before you add it to your batter and so that you can add them slowly to avoid clumps. And while this may be needed for some recipes it is not required for most. So I like to make less dishes and still get amazing desserts. I use One large bowl and combine all my wet ingredients. Then in the same bowl I add my dry ingredients.... I lightly mix these ingredients that are on top first... and then whisk it all together. This is easier, makes less mess and gets the same results.
I also recommend measuring your ingredients precisely. For example a heaping cup of pumpkin puree vs a cup of pumpkin pure could actually add almost an additional ¼ of a cup of pumpkin... that extra water content could keep your donuts from rising. So Measure!
FAQ
- Are fried donuts and baked donut recipes interchangeable? NO, So fried donut recipes usually use yeast instead of baking powder to rise... since they are being cooked in oil. So No you can not use this recipe to make fried donuts.
2. Are Baked Donuts healthier? Kind of. You are eliminating a lot of oil, so there is by far a lot less calories but by no means are these healthy donuts. Just enjoy them!
3. Can I make these wit a glaze instead of cinnamon sugar? Absolutely, I would recommend a maple glaze using 1 cup of powdered sugar, ¼ cup maple syrup and a splash of milk if needed.
4. What kind of Donut Pan should I use? I use a non stick donut pan. This is best to prevent your donuts from sticking and burning! If you only have a non stick donut pan i would prep them by rubbing on some butter and sprinkling on some flour.
5. What If I do Not Like Clove? Clove has a bad rep. People think they do not like it because on its own its WAY too overpowering and bitter. But if balanced nicely with all the other sweet and spicy spices clove adds that perfect fall balance of flavors. BUT if you prefer you can leave it out.
STORING AND FREEZING
These Pumpkin Donuts are best eaten fresh out of the Oven, So I recommend making the batter and if you don't think you will eat all 20 in a day or two.... then I like to refrigerate half the batter and bake the second half a few days later. You can also freeze the batter in a freezer bag for up to a month. Defrost it and bake like normal.
But the baked donuts them self can hold in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Note these are not fried so they hold up longer than your average donut.
Lastly, if you try out this recipe, be sure to leave a comment/rating on how it turned out. I love hearing from you guys and will try my best to reply to every comment! And don’t forget to tag me on Instagram!
Pumpkin Donuts
Ingredients
Donuts
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon clove
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ¾ cup flour
Top
- 4 tablespoon butter (melted)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
Instructions
Donuts
- In a large bowl combine your oil, eggs, sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin, and vanilla until combined. In the same bowl add your flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove. whisk until combined.
- Transfer batter into a pastry bag.
- Using a non-stick donut pan. pip a ring of batter into each donut ring. you should be able to fill about 20 donuts. Bake donuts at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.
- Once done take out and let cool completely
Top
- In a small bowl combine your cinnamon and sugar and mix.
- Brush each donut (front and back) with your melted butter, and then toss your donut into your cinnamon sugar mixture (Both sides).
- Eat fresh and enjoy!
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