Baked Pumpkin Donuts
These dense and moist pumpkin donuts are easy to make (they’re baked, not fried) and are coated in a simple homemade vanilla glaze with milk chocolate chips.
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Table of Contents
About Baked Pumpkin Donuts
Baking donuts makes it easy to bring the comfort of fresh donuts to your home, and baked pumpkin donuts take it one step further:
By filling your house with the delicious smell of pumpkin spice.
That’s like comfort squared. And it’s absolutely delicious, too!
Do you have to deep fry these donuts?
For this particular recipe, no, these donuts are not deep-fried. The dough is piped into a special donut pan and baked in the oven.
Is it “donut” or “doughnut”?
Spelled differently yet pronounced the same, both of these spellings are acceptable – but according to Merriam-Webster, “doughnut” was the original form of the word. “Donut” has become an acceptable shorter variant after it appeared in various publications and businesses (hello, Dunkin’ Donuts). Donut is mostly used in America while doughnut is far more common worldwide.
So which spelling should you use? At this point, there’s no wrong answer, so you can leave it up to your personal preference. As for me, I prefer donut simply because it’s short and sweet.
Pumpkin Puree vs Pumpkin Pie Filling
When it comes to holiday treats, you’re going to be faced with two types of canned pumpkin in the baking aisle:
Pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie filling.
And while these types might seem interchangeable, there is a slight (yet significant) difference.
With pumpkin puree, the only contents are cooked and mashed pumpkin (or a variety of winter gourds), with no added flavors or spices. Pumpkin pie filling is made with cooked and mashed pumpkin, too, but it also has flavor added, typically with pumpkin pie spice.
The key difference here is convenience. If you don’t have (or don’t want to buy) pumpkin pie spice, using pumpkin pie filling can save you some time and effort; you simply add it to the recipe and skip measuring the spices. However, it does limit your ability to control the taste, and if you’re using the pumpkin pie filling with other flavors, there’s no way to guarantee how they’ll interact.
This is why you’ll see many homemade recipes use pumpkin puree (which, again, is just the gourds, no added flavor) and season and spice the recipe by hand as needed. It is a tad more work but it also gives you more control over the flavor of your fall treats.
Tools you’ll need
Before whipping up a batch of these pumpkin donuts, make sure you have the following on hand:
- Your preferred method of mixing, whether that be a stand mixer, hand mixer, or a whisk.
- Three mixing bowls.
- Donut pan.
- Pastry bags or a Ziploc bag – Either one of these will make filling the donut pan so much eaiser.
- Cooking spray.
- Wire cooling rack.
How long do baked donuts last?
Once baked, these donuts can be stored in a sealed container on the counter for three to four days. If stored in the refrigerator, they can last up to one week.
Can you freeze baked donuts?
Yes, you totally can!
Once baked and cooled, wrap the individual donuts in plastic wrap, then store them in a sealed container or freezer bag. Donuts can be frozen for two to three months.
More delicious pumpkin recipes
How to bake pumpkin donuts
This next part is only a photo tutorial of the recipe steps. If you’re looking for the full recipe measurements and instructions, scroll down to Recipe Details.
Step 1 – Kick things off by whisking together all of the dry ingredients: flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Once mixed, set the bowl aside for now.
Step 2 – In another bowl, mix together the pumpkin puree, milk, eggs, and olive oil.
Step 3 – Mix the dry and wet ingredients together until incorporated (but be careful not to overmix).
Step 4 – Add the donut batter to a pastry bag (or a Ziploc bag with a corner cut), then pipe the batter into a donut pan sprayed with cooking spray. Fill each cavity up about 2/3 of the way.
Step 5 – Bake!
Step 6 – While the donuts bake and cool, prepare the glaze by whisking together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth.
Step 7 – Decorate the donuts by dipping the tops in frosting. If you’d like, sprinkle the top of the still-wet frosting with chocolate chips.
Step 8 – Serve and enjoy!
Baked Pumpkin Donuts
Ingredients
Pumpkin Donuts
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 egg
Glaze
- 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
For the Pumpkin Donuts
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a donut pan with cooking spray, then set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Set bowl aside.
- Using a stand mixer (or hand mixer + large bowl), add pumpkin puree, milk, eggs, and olive oil. Mix on medium speed until combined, about 2-3 minutes.
- Drop mixer speed to low add slowly blend in dry ingredients, about 1/2 cup at a time. Mix just until dry ingredients incorporate and there are minimal clumps, about 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to overmix.
- Using a pastry bag (or a Ziploc bag with a corner cut), pour batter into the prepared donut pan, filling each cavity about 2/3 full.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until a tester toothpick comes out clean with no crumbs.
- Allow donuts to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
For the Glaze
- In a medium bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth.
- Check the consistency of the glaze. If glaze is too thin, add 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar at a time until desired thickness is reached. If glaze is too thick, add 1 teaspoon of milk until glaze is workable.
Putting it all together
- Dip pumpkin donuts into the prepared glaze. Shake off any excess, then transfer to the wire cooling rack to dry.
- If desired, sprinkle tops of glazed donuts with chocolate chips while glaze is still wet.
- Serve immediately.
Nutrition
I do my best to provide nutrition information, but please keep in mind that I’m not a certified nutritionist. Any nutritional information discussed or disclosed in this post should only be seen as my best amateur estimates of the correct values.
