Using the batter from pumpkin cream cheese muffins, make homemade pumpkin donuts with brown sugar icing for fall breakfast or snack-time. This brown sugar icing sets, so the donuts are easy to stack and transport. See recipe notes about turning these into pumpkin muffins or mini pumpkin donuts.
Wonderfully moist cake-like donuts… but make them PUMPKIN! My mini pumpkin muffins are donut-like, but it wasn’t until I transformed my favorite pumpkin muffins into cake-like donuts that I was truly satisfied with a traditional baked pumpkin donut recipe. And I’m thrilled to show you how I made them!
Why You’ll Love These Pumpkin Donuts
- Baked, not fried
- Makes a big batch, but can be halved
- Cake donut texture
- Pretty easy & no mixer needed
- Ready in less than 45 minutes
- Perfectly spiced and you can use homemade pumpkin pie spice
- Delicious plain, but even better with icing
Behind the Recipe
For a guaranteed successful starting point, I turned to my pumpkin cream cheese muffins. I love this muffin batter because it’s really easy to prepare and always impresses, even without the cheesecake filling and crumb topping. (And that says a lot!!) The batter is a lot like my pumpkin crumb cake muffins, but there’s baking powder for lift and we’ll sweeten the donuts exclusively with brown sugar.
How to Make Baked Pumpkin Donuts
Made with basic ingredients, these pumpkin donuts come together quickly.
- Mix the dry ingredients together.
- Whisk the wet ingredients together.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients.
- Fill donut pan.
- Bake.
I have a handy trick for filling donut pans— and I swear by it if you’re looking for an easy shortcut. Add the batter to a large zipped-top bag, cut off a corner, then pipe the batter into the donut pan filling only about halfway. The bag makes transferring the batter easy, neat, and quick.
Bounce Back Trick
I have another trick for you and I do this with almost every cake, muffin, cupcake, and donut that I bake. When the donuts are looking just about done, lightly poke the top with your finger. If the donut bounces back, they’re done. If your finger leaves an indent, the donuts need a little longer in the oven. Testing with a toothpick works as well.
Brown Sugar Icing
I had the toughest time deciding how to top these pumpkin donuts! So I made several batches and finally decided on a creamy brown sugar icing. Oh my gosh, this has to be one of the tastiest donut icings I’ve ever made. Adapted from the glaze used on my apple Bundt cake, I melted butter with brown sugar and milk on the stovetop. Let the 3 simmer for a minute, then add vanilla extract and sifted confectioners’ sugar until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Taste, then add a pinch of salt for a little extra flavor. (DO IT!)
Let the icing thicken for a few minutes, then give those donuts a nice belly flop right into it. Brown sugared and buttery, this icing might just be better than the donuts themselves. Definitely a close call. If you’re hooked on it, you’ll also love this icing drizzled on apple cinnamon bread.
The brown sugar icing sets, so these are convenient for stacking or transporting.
Alternate Pumpkin Donut Toppings
Before the icing sets, you can garnish the donuts with finely chopped nuts (I used walnuts), toffee pieces, coconut, or sprinkles. If you’re not into brown sugar icing, try any of these:
- Vanilla Icing
- Maple Icing
- Brown Butter Icing from these Apple Blondies
- Cinnamon-Sugar Topping (see recipe note)
More Fall Baking Recipes
- Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
- Apple Cider Donuts
- Pumpkin Bread
- Simply Pumpkin Muffins
- Maple Brown Sugar Cookies
- Pumpkin Scones
Baked Pumpkin Donuts
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 11 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: about 16 donuts
- Category: Donuts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Make homemade pumpkin donuts with brown sugar icing for fall breakfast. This brown sugar icing sets, so the donuts are easy to stack and transport. See recipe notes about turning these into pumpkin muffins or mini pumpkin donuts.
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (219g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon store-bought or homemade pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil (or canola oil or melted coconut oil)
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup (227g) fresh or canned pumpkin puree
- 1/3 cup (80ml) milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Brown Sugar Icing
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (60ml) milk
- 1 Tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 cups (175g) sifted confectioners’ sugar
- pinch of salt, to taste
- optional: toppings, see note
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray donut pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.
- Make the donuts: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice together in a large bowl until combined. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk the oil, brown sugar, eggs, pumpkin puree, milk, and vanilla extract together until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then fold everything together gently just until combined and no flour pockets remain.
- Spoon the batter into the donut cavities or for ease, I highly recommend using a large zipped-top bag. Cut a corner off the bottom of the bag and pipe the batter into each donut cup, filling about halfway.
- Bake for 10-11 minutes or until the edges and tops are lightly browned. To test, poke your finger into the top of the donut. If the donut bounces back, they’re done. Cool donuts in the pan for 2 minutes then transfer to a wire rack. Re-grease the pan and bake the remaining donut batter. *For mini donuts, bake in a mini donut pan for 8-9 minutes. Cool donuts for at least 10 minutes before icing them.
- Make the icing: Combine the brown sugar, milk, and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the butter has melted and mixture is smooth. Bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 1 minute then remove from heat and whisk in the vanilla extract and sifted confectioners’ sugar until smooth and combined. Taste, then add a pinch of salt if desired– I always add a tiny pinch. Let the icing cool for 5 minutes to slightly thicken. Dip the tops of the pumpkin donuts into the warm icing. If icing is getting too thick as you’re dipping, add a little more milk or warm back up in the microwave or on the stove to thin out. Place dipped donuts on a wire rack placed on a baking sheet so any excess icing can drip off. Top with chopped nuts or other toppings if desired. If applied lightly, the icing will eventually set in about 1 hour so you can stack or transport the donuts.
- Cover leftover donuts tightly and store at room temperature for 1-2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: You can freeze the donuts, plain or topped with the icing, for up to 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and warm up to your liking in the microwave. I usually just microwave them for a couple seconds. If plain, top with icing before serving if desired.
- Special Tools: Sifter/Fine Mesh Sieve, Donut Pan
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: You can find pumpkin pie spice in the baking aisle of most grocery stores or make your own homemade pumpkin pie spice. If you don’t have either and want to use individual spices, use 1/4 teaspoon each: ground ginger, ground nutmeg, ground cloves, and ground allspice. This is in addition to the 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon—you will still add that.
- Milk: Any milk works for the donuts and icing. I’ve tested with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, whole milk, and skim milk. You can use any, dairy or non.
- Optional Toppings: After applying the icing, you can sprinkle toppings on top or dip the donuts into any the following: sprinkles, finely chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted coconut, finely chopped toffee, or a sprinkle of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. Instead of icing, you can add a cinnamon sugar topping. Follow the same topping instructions (including dipping in melted butter) found in my Baked Cinnamon Sugar Donuts recipe. Feel free to replace that cinnamon in the topping with pumpkin pie spice.
- No Donut Pan? Make donut muffins in your standard 12-cup muffin pan. Follow the baking instructions for my pumpkin crumb cake muffins, leaving off the crumb topping. Top warm muffins with this brown sugar icing before serving.
- Mini Donuts: Want to make mini donuts or mini donut holes in a mini muffin pan? Grease your pan, add the batter to the pan only about 3/4 of the way full. Bake at 350°F (177°C) for about 8-9 minutes.
Keywords: baked pumpkin donuts, pumpkin donuts
Just made these but with 160 gms of sourdough starter. I decreased the flour by 80gms and omitted the milk. Awesome. Light and delish! Thanks for the recipe.
★★★★★
My husband got me a donut pan for my birthday, so even though it is February, I really wanted to make pumpkin donuts. They were great! Husband’s comments were (with about 5 minutes in between over the course of several donuts) “Wow” then “these are delicious” then “these might be dangerous” and then “yes, these are in fact dangerous.” I added some maple extract to the glaze to amplify the fall flavor.
★★★★★
1 teaspoon of baking soda! Is this a typo? Unfortunately the baking soda overpowered the flavor of the donut and without the icing it was nearly inedible. Other than that I think these would have been delicious.
★★★
Hi Abigail! When baking soda has a strong flavor, it may be expired. Thank you for giving these donuts a try!
I never made donuts before because I was afraid of failing and this recipe was very tempting, so I tried and it was a complete success! I used gluten free flour, almond milk and plant based butter, to make them gluten free and dairy free. I’ve made them twice in 3 weeks and I’m sure that I’ll make them again. Thank you so much for sharing this easy, fun and delicious recipe.
★★★★★
Can I freeze the donuts with the frosting on them?
You can freeze the donuts, plain or topped with the icing, for up to 2-3 months. See recipe notes for details.
My boys had a day off school so we made these donuts in our mini donut maker and they were amazing!!!
★★★★★
Wow! Thanks Sally for such and amazing recipe! They were moist and light. I made these this afternoon with some extra pumpkin I had from your pumpkin cake roll that is currently waiting in the fridge for me to ice and roll. Those were the perfect afternoon fall snack. Sooooooo yummy! 😀
Cans of pumpkin puree here are so large. I had so much leftover from making your Mini Pumpkin Pies that I figured I’d try these. OMG. SO. DELICIOUS. And easy. These will be a bookmarked recipe for sure. I think I’ll add roasted, salted pecans to the top the next time I make them.
★★★★★
I LOVE the flavor of these Donuts – so good! I had some trouble with the glaze, though, and would appreciate suggestions/advice. Is the amt of powdered sugar, 1.5c, b4 or after sifting? My glaze was too thick, even after adding extra milk & keeping it warm on the stove. I barely had time to add toppings. Any advice appreciated bc I know I’m capable of following directions & usually have success with any recipe I try.
I will DEF make these again, ty!
★★★★★
Hi Natalie! Measure after sifting. And always make sure to spoon and level when measuring powdered sugar (or any dry ingredient)!
The donuts were scrumptious! I loved the tips and tricks; used them all. The recipe was easy and the instructions made the exact donut as stated. A great fall favourite at my house now!
★★★★★
WOW! these donuts are perfection. BUY A DONUT PAN!!!! it’s soooo worth it! thanks for the awesome recipe!
★★★★★
This recipe is perfection! Made them today and wanted to share them with the world. Ha! Perfect texture and moistness. I love that the glaze sets. I added pecans to the top.
★★★★★
My family loved this recipe. I was surprised at how fluffy and moist the donuts were. We got 12 donuts, filling the pans up halfway. I halved the glaze recipe and had more than enough.
★★★★★
These donuts were excellent, light but not a cake. I put in only 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoons of pumpkin spice. We like things with a little less spice than what Sally uses in her baked goods. I overcooked the icing just a tad, so had to compensate with a little more liquid when it started thickening up. I made 12 large donuts, filling the cavities a little more gives a thicker donut—more like a donut shop. Only baked 9 minutes.
★★★★★
What would you suggest for baking if you have no special doughnut pan or mini Bundt pan? Am looking forward to trying this recipe, and one modified to take advantage of our persimmon bounty.
Hi Rachel, this recipe bakes beautifully in a standard 12-count muffin pan! See recipe notes for details.
Do you have a nutritional chart for these? They look so good.
Wow these are incredible! Easy to make and delicious! I added a little grains of paradise into the dry for a bit of spice and flaky sea salt after i glazed them. So good thank you! A keeper for sure. They are getting better as they sit!
★★★★★
Can you substitute buttermilk for the regular milk?
Hi Michele! Buttermilk may be a bit too thick, but any other milk (like a lower fat or non dairy) will work instead. Hope you love these donuts!
These donuts were delicious and the glaze was absolutely amazing. I followed your recommendation of not putting in an airtight container so the glaze didn’t my off and it worked! I left them in a cardboard pastry box and they stayed beautifully.
★★★★★
So glad it worked!
Hey Sally!
Thanks for all the good recipes, I’m starting to really enjoy baking because of you 🙂 My question for this recipe is, could I use a mini bundt pan instead?
Thanks <3
Hi Evy! You can use a mini Bundt pan. We’re unsure of the exact bake time. Enjoy!
Hi there! Can you use melted butter instead of vegetable oil?
Thanks!
Hi Heather, you can substitute melted butter for the oil, but the donuts won’t taste quite as moist. Hope you enjoy these donuts!
Made these this morning and as usual it was amazing! I can’t say enough about how light and delicious these are. I made them exactly as the recipe and they are perfect! All of Sally’s baking recipes are wonderful and I also love all her pre recipe explanations about how’s and why’s. THE BEST site for baking which is my passion/hobby!
★★★★★
Hi Nancy, we are so glad you loved these!
Made these this morning as I had leftover pumpkin from the pumpkin spice roll cookies (also 5 stars!). What a treat! These were easy to make an SO FUN! The “bounce back” test worked like a charm. Instead of the brown sugar icing here, I used the maple icing (also from the ps roll cookies). I am in heaven. Perfect for a chilly morning in New England! Thank you again for another delicious and fun recipe!
★★★★★
Hi Catherine, we are so glad you put your leftover pumpkin to good use! Enjoy.