Baked Pumpkin Donuts
These are the fluffiest and most flavorful pumpkin donuts you can make from scratch! They are ready in under 30 minutes and can also be made in a muffin tin. These easy donuts are guaranteed to turn out soft, sweet and full of flavor.
Pumpkin season is within reach and to get a head start I baked pumpkin donuts. These donuts are SO fluffy and soft. You won’t believe how satisfying it is to bite into one of them. Each donut is brushed with melted butter and coated in sweet cinnamon sugar. They’re the perfect treat on a crisp fall day.
Ingredient Notes
- Pure pumpkin puree: I prefer Libby’s pumpkin puree. Do not use pumpkin pie filling.
- Spices: You can use individual spices or homemade pumpkin pie spice.
- Melted butter: Allow it to cool slightly before using in the recipe.
For detailed ingredients and measurements, refer to the recipe card.
Recipe Variations
If you don’t have a donut tin, you can make these donuts in a muffin tin. Increase oven temperature to 400 F. Baking time will be 16 to 18 minutes. You can also try pumpkin donut holes.
If you prefer frosted pumpkin donuts, I suggest using the cream cheese frosting recipe in my baked carrot cake donuts.
How to Make Pumpkin Donuts
- Make the donut batter: Whisk together the dry ingredients—flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.
- In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients—melted butter, brown sugar, sugar, eggs and pumpkin purée.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until combined.
- Bake donuts: Transfer batter to a greased donut pan. Bake at 350 F for 12 to 14 minutes.
- Dip baked donuts in melted butter.
- Immediately coat donuts in cinnamon sugar.
Expert Tips
Pumpkin donuts are best when you have the proper tools. Use a donut tin that has cavities 3.25 inches wide.
Another pro tip: weigh your ingredients with a kitchen scale. It’s much more accurate than measuring them!
For uniform donuts, pipe the batter into the donut tin using a frosting bag or ziptop bag with the corner cut.
When the donuts are done baking, transfer donuts to a wire rack to cool so they don’t get soggy. It’s okay if they are still warm when adding the cinnamon sugar!
Frequently Asked Questions
Homemade donuts are best when eaten the day they are made. However, they may be stored in an airtight container and kept at room temperature for up to 3 days. Donuts will last longer if you don’t add the butter and cinnamon sugar to the outside until serving.
Yes. Once the donuts have cooled, place them in an airtight container and freeze for up to 1 month. Defrost in the refrigerator before bringing to room temperature and adding the cinnamon sugar coating.
Yes, this batter can be made in a mini muffin tin to create donut holes. Grease mini muffin tin, fill each cup two-thirds full and bake for 8 minutes.
Yes. Divide batter among 12 cups and bake at 400° F for 16 to 18 minutes. Cool muffins on a wire rack, brush with melted butter and roll in cinnamon sugar.
Related Recipes
Pumpkin is a versatile ingredient when it comes to baking. Here are a few of my favorite recipes:
Did you love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below and if you REALLY loved it, consider leaving a comment further down the page.
Get the Recipe: Baked Pumpkin Donuts
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250 g) all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves, or all spice
- ¾ cup (150 g) packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups (One 15 oz can or 425 g) pumpkin puree
Cinnamon sugar coating
- ⅔ cup (133 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 6 tablespoons (85 g) melted unsalted butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease a donut tin (cavities with 3 ¾-inch diameter) with nonstick spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk brown sugar, granulated sugar and melted butter together until butter is absorbed. Add eggs and vigorously whisk until combined. Stir in pumpkin puree.
- Pour wet ingredients into the large bowl of dry ingredients and mix until no flour pockets remain (avoid over-mixing). Spoon or pipe batter into prepared donut tin.
- Bake at 350° F for 12 to 14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with little to no crumbs. Let the donuts cool in the pan for a couple minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
- For the topping, whisk together the sugar and cinnamon. While the donuts are still a little warm, lightly brush them with melted butter, then generously coat the donuts in cinnamon sugar.
33 Comments on “Baked Pumpkin Donuts”
These taste really good, however they don’t store very well. These are so moist and delicious, but when I stored them in an airtight container the very next day there was a liquid buildup at the bottom of the container. So maybe don’t spread all of them with butter/cinnamon sugar mix until you’re ready to eat them. I’m not sure if that will work as I mentioned they are very moist. I made them for my coworkers and ended up just placing them in the cinnamon sugar mixture again to basically make them like new again.
Taste is 10/10 forsure tho!
I totally agree! An absolutely amazing recipe! love love love!
I made these twice and my friends and family inhaled them! I served them fresh to my guests however, did find the same liquid build up at the bottom when stored room temperature over night (for a small portion I left for myself). The second batch I tried less butter but still had the same thing. I wonder if there is an alternative to butter? Nonetheless, would definitely make again! Looking forward to making the gingerbread donuts for Christmas!
These pumpkin donuts are so easy to make. They are very moist and melt in your mouth. I absolutely love these and I will be making these again and taking them to family get togethers. I made regular size donuts and mini donuts. The mini ones came out just as nice.
Would ground flax seed work as an egg replacement?
if it calls for eggs, use eggs
Some people can’t use eggs due to allergies. I used a mashed banana as an egg replacement and it worked just as well. I’d imagine you could use flax seed as well. Good luck!
This recipe is unbelievably delicious! The pumpkin flavor is AMAZING!!!! Best recipe I’ve tried to date! Family couldn’t stop raving about them!
Absolutely delicious! I plan on making these on a regular basis including holidays!
I had been craving pumpkin, so I decided to try out a baked pumpkin donut recipe. This morning was the day to try it out! I just finished eating two of these pumpkin donuts. They are delicious! They are tender, moist, and full of flavor. I followed the recipe for the batter as written. The only change I made was to the cinnamon and sugar topping – I added in some cloves and ginger. If you need a pumpkin fix during the spring and/or summer months, try these donuts! They hit the spot for me, and I will probably make these donuts in the fall instead of buying them from the expensive donut shop near my home. Thank you for the recipe!
I saw this recipe referenced on IG and it looked so delicious so I took a chance and tried making it with my flour. I am allergic to wheat so I bake using Cup4Cup gluten free flour. I am happy to say that they came out absolutely perfect! Fluffy, moist and flavorful! I did cut the sugar a bit so my toddler could also enjoy them. We made them using a mini muffin silicone tray, small donut tray and a regular sized muffin tray. There was a lot of batter. I am in love with this recipe!
Oh my! I’ve been looking for the perfect pumpkin donuts recipe and this is it!
Thank you!
Fool proof delicious recipe!!
Very easy! I halved the recipe and made mini muffins – it made 18 and took just about 14 minutes. For the coating, i skipped the butter so I left the muffins in the pan for a minute, then took them out and rolled them directly in the cinnamon sugar and then left them on a rack to cool.
These turned out fantastic! Seriously moist and not too sweet…just perfect!
delicious – easy to make
Family asked me to make again!
These were super easy and delicious! I cut the sugar way down and subbed coconut oil for butter since that’s what I had and they were delicious!
Hello. Is there a way to make this recipe using pumpkin spice found in the spice aisle at your grocery store versus adding everything in individually? I have two cans of this already so it would be easier to use.
Yes, 2 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice may be used in place of the individual spices.
Made exactly as listed- weighed dry ingredients. I used piping bag. Made 12 donuts and 24 holes( using mini muffin pan). Super easy and very delicious. House smells great… my 22 yr old grandson staying over and the aroma drew him out of bed! I barely brushed tops with melted butter before putting in cinnamon sugar mixture and it worked great. I put paper towel in storage bin to help reduce moisture… it works for salads, I will see.
Great recipe – pillowy texture and good flavor but may add more spices in batter. Made one slight adjustment on second batch, add ginger, nutmeg and cloves into the cinnamon sugar mixture and wow! Agreed on the butter – brush it on lightly and I only needed 3 tablespoons. Thank you!
These donuts are so good!! Just the right amount off sweetness and so easy to make. I used a mini Bundt pan and they turned out so cute.
Thank you for the recipe it’s definitely a keeper. I’m going to share with everyone!!
Made this recipe today! Messed up a bit because I didn’t read the instructions fully (oops) and mixed the sugars with the dry ingredients but they still turned out amazing! We had the hardest time to not eat them al in one sitting (we are a family of three). This recipe is a keeper!
Made these today. These are the best donuts! All my family loved them. Easy to make and so moist.
I LOVED IT!!! SOOOO GOOD!! 😊 They tasted so much like pumpkin and were really soft. I would make again!!!
Amazing everytime! 👏
These are fantastic! I did make a few adjustments though. I cut the brown sugar down to a 1/2 cup and the white sugar down to a 1/4 cup and used oil instead of butter. I frosted them with a browned butter icing and sprinkled sea salt maple granola on top.
Just baked up some of these, and oh my they are amazingly delicious!!
So good! Fluffy, moist, flavorful. So glad I found this site. Thank you!
Can I cook these in a Bundt pan instead of donut pan?
Hi Alyssa, it should work in a mini bundt pan (baking times may vary). I do not suggest using a standard 10-cup or 12-cup bundt pan.
Moist and delicious!
I have a wheat allergy so I made these with King Arthur Gluten Free 1:1 flour. They turned out terrifically!!! My son said these were the best pumpkin donuts he’s ever had, and I agree!!!