Soft Baked Pumpkin Donuts With Buttermilk An Easy Fall Treat. 

Enter pumpkin spice season from stage left, and you will find that these easy, soft-baked pumpkin donuts are taking center stage! Each mini donut is baked up fluffy and sweet with just the right amount of pumpkin spice flavor to play outfall in your mouth. Adding the chocolate cookie crumbs on top brings another dimension to the pumpkin flavor. Baked in your oven, the buttermilk pumpkin donuts are a hit for friends and family. Best of all, it’s a great way to use up seasonal fall produce with real pumpkin puree! So what are you waiting for? Bake up a batch today.

I love pumpkin season. Baking with pumpkin always results in the most delectable soft creations. These baked donuts with real pumpkin puree prove it. The trick to making a beautiful home-baked donut is finding the right pan. I can’t tell you how many donut pans I’ve been through looking for one that created an actual donut shape, not a flat-sided disappointment. That’s when I found this double pack of donut pans, great for those selling their baking. They have a taller central hole maker, and once you pipe the batter into the pan using a large piping bag, you know it will result in the cutest baked donuts.

I’ve been on a buttermilk kick lately as I experiment with various recipes. Growing up, I was told adding vinegar to milk was the same as making your own buttermilk. After comparing, I know that it isn’t. While it’s true that a home trick will result in good baking results, it’s different. If you’ve never purchased buttermilk, let me explain. It’s got a slightly sour odor and is much thicker than regular milk. It leaves a coating, unlike regular milk, when it is poured from the measuring cup. Further investigation has proven that buttermilk results in a slightly different flavor profile in the end baking result. It also interacts with the baking powder and soda differently, making things fluffier.

My conclusion is that I simply must now experiment with using it in my baking. So, of course, it was natural for me to use it in these soft-baked donuts. I love how the cookie crumbs, when added before baking, resulted in a crackled appearance on top of the donuts.

If you love this pumpkin donut recipe, you will also enjoy my pumpkin chocolate chip walnut bundt cake.

Why You Will Love These Homemade Pumpkin Donuts

One Bowl Recipe: This tasty pumpkin donut uses only one bowl, making cleanup easy!

Soft And Fluffy: The donuts bake up super soft and fluffy with a great bounce-back texture, making each mouthful melt-in-your-mouth delicious.

Use Real Pumpkin: The real pumpkin puree means using your seasonal produce!

Let’s Start Making These Easy Baked Pumpkin Donuts

Get out of the mixing bowl! A medium bowl will work just fine. Then, gather all the ingredients so they are ready to measure. Be sure to grab two measuring cups and your measuring spoons as well.

Measure the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl first. That includes the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. This flour mixture should then be stirred so that the warm spices are distributed in the flour well.

Now measure and add the shortening and part of the buttermilk. Mix the dough well before adding the rest of the wet ingredients. This step may seem odd, but trust me, it’s needed. It will start a chemical reaction and make the batter perfect for baking in the donut pan.

Once the soft lump of dough is mixed well after two minutes, you can add the remaining ingredients. That includes the rest of the buttermilk, the eggs, vanilla extract, and, of course, your pumpkin puree. Beat the mixture for another two minutes until it’s nice and smooth.

You will then need a large piping bag to fill the donut pan. Fill the bag and carefully close the end as the batter is thin and will run out. I use a disposable bag when making donuts to cut off the end when ready to fill the pan.

Fill the donut pan evenly and up to the top of the donut hole post. Again, if you have purchased an excellent deep donut hole pan, as mentioned above, this recipe will make an even dozen. If your posts are shorter, it will make several doughnuts.

Next, if you like, you can sprinkle the tops of the donuts with chocolate cookie crumbs. These look so pretty when baked and add a bit of sweetness and complex flavor to the fall-spiced baking.

Bake the donuts in a preheated 350°F oven for 15-20 minutes. They are done when the top springs back to touch. You can also test one with a cake tester for doneness.

Remove the donuts from the oven and remove them from the pan. Cool donuts on a wire rack before enjoying them.

Ingredients:

All-purpose Flour: Regular white flour works for a delectable baked donut like this.

Baking Powder: This everyday pantry staple helps the baking to rise.

Baking Soda: Reacts with the buttermilk to result in the fluffiest donuts.

Salt: Enhances the overall flavor profile.

Sugar: Sweetens the donut, which is great because plain pumpkin puree is rather dull all on its own.

Cinnamon: This is a great warm spice when baking with pumpkin.

Nutmeg: The ground spice brings another layer of spice to the donut.

Shortening: I used regular vegetable oil. Oil in baking, like donuts, results in a less dense texture.

Buttermilk: This ingredient reacts with baking soda, producing ultra-soft fluffiness that can’t be beaten.

Eggs: These bind the donuts together to create a nice, moist donut.

Vanilla Extract: Enhances the flavors in the pumpkin donut.

Pumpkin Puree: This great fall ingredient is perfect for creating a golden brown hue in baking and a spongy texture in almost any baked good.

Substitutions And Add-ins For These Pumpkin Spice Donuts:

All-purpose Flour: This can be replaced with cake flour or even oat flour. Oat flour creates an almost nutty flavor when baking.

Baking Powder: Can be replaced with cream of tartar. A two-to-one ratio will work for replacement.

Baking Soda: Don’t replace.

Salt: Regular table salt is recommended for best results.

Sugar: This recipe uses regular granulated white sugar. You can replace that with coconut or brown sugar, but they will have slightly different textures.

Cinnamon: The spice blend can be replaced with pumpkin pie spice, eggnog spice, or chai spice, all with warm spice components that include cinnamon.

Nutmeg: See above. You can also use a mix of cinnamon and allspice if you prefer.

Shortening: Regular neutral oil is recommended, although it would also be acceptable to bake with margarine or butter. In this case, I recommend melting the solid fats.

Buttermilk: You can replace it with soured milk or clabbered milk (two tablespoons of white vinegar to milk).

Eggs: These should remain in this recipe.

Vanilla Extract: This can be omitted with little consequence to the result.

Pumpkin Puree: This is a main ingredient I don’t recommend replacing. If you have time use the real thing by roasting then pureeing pumpkin from the garden.

Make these donuts glazed donuts-omit the cookie crumb topping and dip in a sweet buttermilk glaze. The fall season is full of tasty surprises. You can dip the warm donuts in a simple powdered sugar for another flavor profile. If you top them, these homemade donuts will be a hit. 

Don’t miss out on donut recipes when you’re short a pan. You can easily bake this donut batter in a muffin tin or mini muffin pan for great pumpkin muffins! 

Expert Tips, Serving, And Storing Suggestions For These Pumpkin Donuts:

Tip #1: The PAN. Grease your donut pan with cooking spray to make removing the baked donuts easier.

Tip #2: Pipe The Batter. Piping the batter results in a more rounded donut than spooning it into the pan.

Tip #3: Remove From Pan While Hot. Removing the baked donuts while hot keeps them from continuing to bake in the hot pan.

Serve these tiny pumpkin-baked donuts as part of an afternoon tea with friends, or pack them in school lunches for the perfect fall treat. These excellent donuts are lovely, how ever you choose to enjoy them this time of year.

Store uneaten donuts in an airtight container on the counter. There is no need to refrigerate this baking. If covered properly, they will stay fresh for up to five days.

Alternatively, you can successfully freeze these baked donuts for up to three months. Why only three months? After that, baking tends to lose flavor and gain that freezer flavor. Blech. So be sure to label your freezer container or bag to know when the best-before date is.

If you’ve baked these tasty fall pumpkin donuts, be sure to share your results. We love hearing about how our recipes worked for you. Please rate the recipe as well, as it helps others know how good they are!