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Is It Possible to Have a Healthy Pumpkin Donuts Recipe?

ByMarina Posted on Updated on

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Is It Possible to Have a Healthy Pumpkin Donuts Recipe?

Well, if your kids love donuts. (LOVE being the emphasized word here!) you will find a way to make their Fall treat a little healthier.

I have to admit I do have a secret affinity for donuts too but try to stay away from those round, sugar-covered circles of yummy-ness in an attempt to try to enjoy healthier sweet treats.

I know I just contradicted myself here.

A sweet treat and healthy just cannot go together…

unless you tweak a few recipes and come up with a healthier version, right?

Like when you love pumpkin baked donuts so much you modify the recipe to be a guilt-free version!

Allow me to introduce you to

my Healths Pumpkin Donut Recipe!

Pumpkin Spice Doughnuts (3)

You can make these regular sized, but for our family, the minis are what we prefer

and with our mini donut pans, we easily get 32 donuts with this recipe.

(You can get a third or a fourth without feeling guilty!)

What makes this a Healthier Pumpkin Donut Recipe?

A few things actually:

  1. Butter is replaced by applesauce
  2. The amount of sugar needed in the batter is reduced
  3. The donuts are baked and not fried

While I’ve used all-purpose flour, you could use a cup of whole wheat and a cup of all-purpose, 

or just switch out completely to two cups of all-purpose flour.

5 from 7 votes
Print
Healthy Pumpkin Donuts
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
8 mins
Total Time
18 mins
 
Servings: 32 minimum
Author: Marina
Ingredients
  • 2 eggs room temperature, gently whipped
  • 1/4 cup applesauce unsweetened (You can also replace this with softened butter. This is a not-so-healthy alternative but definitely makes the doughnuts less dense and fluffier.)
  • 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree I take the easy route and get canned, organic puree
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp cinnamon powder
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • For dusting:
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit
  2. In a bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients and set aside for use in a bit.
  3. In your mixer, add the eggs, brown sugar, applesauce, pumpkin puree and milk. Mix on low, till well combined.
  4. Add to this all the dry ingredients and combine well.
  5. Once the batter is ready, fill each doughnut mound in the doughnut baking pan upto 3/4th's the level.
  6. Bake for 8 minutes or till a toothpick inserted in a doughnut, comes out clean.
  7. Take the pans out of the oven, remove the doughnuts from the pan and while still warm, roll the same in the cinnamon powder and sugar mixture. (Or you can put the cinnamon and sugar mix in a large Ziploc bag, throw a few doughnuts in at a time, shake and remove.)
  8. Enjoy!

Enjoy This Mini Pumpkin Baked Donuts Recipe Without Any Guilt

These make great on-the-go and travel snacks, especially for after school, or even when you need to run a good number of errands and refuse to buy a pack of sugared cookies or a frosted donut for your kiddo.

If you aren’t particular about a healthier version, swap the apple sauce with butter. 

With one batch we even skipped the cinnamon and sugar dusting and chose instead to lather generous layers of chocolate, hazelnut goodness on top.

Oh so yum!

Pumpkin Spice Doughnuts (1)

Craving some more pumpkin goodness? 

Check out these recipes:

Pumpkin Recipes

Pumpkin Choco-nut Muffins

Iced Pumpkin Spice Coffee

50 MUST TRY Pumpkin Recipes this Fall

 

If you enjoy Fall recipes, you really should try this easy 3 ingredient baked apple fritter roll. 

This is one of my favorite breakfast recipes. 

Oooh, and these apple muffins with a crumble topping and pecans. 
So good!

It’s hard to make them just over the Fall!

Easy Mini Pumpkin Baked Donuts Recipe

Do you have a favorite pumpkin recipe?

Marina is a grateful, South Texas-based mom of two daughters and a son (an 18-year-old, 13-year-old and 10-year-old). Her husband, of 22 years, is her best friend and biggest cheerleader. The family loves soccer, basketball, their sweet rescue pup Jingle, good food and traveling!

What tides her through each day? A hot cup of cardamom chai, God's Faithfulness and Philippians 4:13!

24 Comments

  2. hmmm doughnuts! Those look absolutely delicious! I have a little boy who is wild crazy about pumpkin too, so he would cherish these like crazy.

  5. Oh they look so good. My favorite kind of donut is Boston Cream. But I’m always up for a healthier choice (ok, not always but I’m working on it). I like using applesauce in place of butter. I had to go check out what Nocciolata is. Looks yummy. I also entered to win a jar while I was there!

  8. Pumpkin cake donuts are one of my favorite donuts. I love the spicy flavors and they’re perfect this time of year. Not just for breakfast but for a snack as well. Yummy!

  10. I can not wait to try making these. I can remember helping my dad make homemade doughnuts when i was a kid and dipping them in icing sugar.

  11. Oooo,you had me at pumpkin spice! Wouldn’t this be the perfect treat with a morning coffee!!

  13. Oh man I wish I was not on low carb. These sound amazing. I so want to try to make donuts. I have never made them before,

  14. I’ve love a good cream filled donut myself but I, too, do my best to at least limit them to once in awhile. Not only is the wheat and gluten bad for me but the sugar is bad for my fibro. These donuts look pretty darn amazing if you ask me!

  16. I am going to have to give these a try. I have been trying to make muffins for a couple days and have screwed them up completely. Hopefully I can get these perfect!

  17. I love this recipe! Baked doughnuts are just as tasty as fried, but they don’t have all that fat. Love it.

  18. Just when I thought I’d seen everything pumpkin spice flavored… you made these! and now, I MUST as well! 😉

  21. Oh these look delicious! My favorite time of the year when all the pumpkin spice comes out!

  22. Omg, these doughnuts look amazing – and what a delicious-sounding recipe! I plan to try it asap, in the hope of making peace with my occasional doughnut cravings! Maybe I need not resist them anymore!

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