Baked pumpkin donut holes are coated in a rich cinnamon and sugar topping for the ultimate fall treat. The mini donuts are moist, sweet, and full of fall flavor.
Pumpkin Donut Hole Recipe
Good luck eating just one of these baked pumpkin donut holes. The mini donuts are like baked pumpkin donuts, just in a bite-sized version. The donut holes have a moist pumpkin base and are covered in a thick cinnamon and sugar layer.
Pumpkin flavor is all over these bite-sized treats. Pureed pumpkin gives the donut holes the main flavor. The pumpkin is then leveled up thanks to the addition of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. It's all the best flavors of fall wrapped up in one bite.
Don't fret if you don't have a mini donut pan to make these mini donuts. I actually use a mini muffin tin to get the bite-sized shape. The muffin tin doesn't provide a true circle, but it gives the donuts enough shape to make them perfect for a mini treat.
Looking for more pumpkin desserts to make this fall? Try my baked apple cider donut holes and pumpkin spice snacking cake next!
Why I Love These Pumpkin Donut Holes
- Baked treats - Baking these donuts in the oven removes the grease from frying donut holes.
- Fall flavors - The pumpkin puree mixed with the fall spice blend has all of the seasonal flavors in one bite.
- Quick - The donuts bake up in about ten minutes.
Ingreidents Needed For Pumpkin Donut Holes
See below for all the details on what you'll need to make the full recipe.
- Warming Spices - I use a combination of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice.
- Pumpkin Puree - Used canned pumpkin puree and not fresh pumpkin.
- Milk - Use whole milk, but you can swap in a dairy-free alternative if needed.
- Butter - The melted butter makes the cinnamon sugar topping stick to the donuts.
- Sugar - the sugar gives the donuts a perfect amount of sweetness.
Directions For How To Make Pumpkin Donut Holes
- Prepare.
Preheat the oven to 350, prepare a mini muffin pan with cooking spray, and set to the side.
- Mix wet ingredients.
Mix the pumpkin puree, milk, granulated sugar, egg, vanilla, and melted butter in a bowl with a whisk. Whisk the mixture until smooth and glossy.
- Add dry ingredients.
Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and spice blend to the batter. Use a rubber spatula to mix the batter thoroughly.
- Bake.
Fill the mini muffin tin with the batter. Fill each slot about ¾ of the way. Bake the donut holes for 10-12 minutes.
- Add cinnamon and sugar topping.
Let the donut holes fully cool and pop them out of the muffin tin pan. Then, place them in a plastic bag. Pour in the melted butter, followed by the cinnamon and sugar topping. Shake the bag to fully coat the donut holes.
Serving Suggestions
Because of their size, these pumpkin donut holes make the perfect sweet snack. They are great no matter what time of the day and hit the sweet craving every single time.
Make Ahead and Storage
The pumpkin donut holes can be made 1-2 days ahead of time if needed. However, do not add the melted butter and the cinnamon and sugar topping until you are ready to serve them. The melted butter and topping make the donuts very soggy and decrease the time you can store the donuts.
To store extra donuts, add them to an airtight container. Because of the topping, the donuts don't last more than 24 hours. If you don't need to serve all of the donuts at once, store the donut holes in an airtight container without the topping until ready to serve.
Tips and Variations
- Toppings - The cinnamon and sugar can be increased or decreased depending on how sweet you want the topping on the donut holes.
- Muffin tin - Don't fill the holes in the muffin tin all the way up. The donut holes puff up in the oven and will overflow if they are filled too much.
- Spices - If you want more of a pumpkin spice flavor in the donut, feel free to add the spice blend to the cinnamon sugar topping. This will make the taste more intense.
FAQs
A large spoon or a cookie dough scoop will help you transfer the batter without getting it all over the place.
I wouldn't recommend freezing the pumpkin donut holes. If you need to freeze them, do not coat them with the cinnamon sugar topping.
Yes! If you prefer pumpkin pie spice instead of making your own spice blend, feel free to use the premade blend.
Pumpkin Donut Holes
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat the oven to 350 and prepare a mini muffin tin with grease. Set to the side.
- In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, milk, granulated sugar, egg, vanilla, and melted butter. Whisk until fully combined.
- Add the flour, baking powder, spices, and salt in the batter. Mix with a rubber spatula until fully combined.
- Scoop ¾ of the batter into each muffin slot. Bake the donut holes for 10-12 minutes. When done, they should puff up and bounce back. Let them fully cool before taking them out of the pan.
- Add the cooled donut holes to a plastic bag and add in the melted butter, cinnamon, and sugar. Close the bag and shake the donut holes until they are fully covered in the cinnamon and sugar. Adjust the sugar levels to your liking.
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