These Healthy Baked Pumpkin Donuts are gluten-free, baked not fried, and are ready in under 30 minutes. Full of warm fall flavors and only 150 calories each!
I am not a big donut lover, due to the high-carb, high-fat, high-sugar element in traditional donuts.
I am however, a fan of these Healthy Baked Pumpkin Donuts. Also, a superfan of these Healthy Black Bean Avocado Brownies as well as this Gluten-Free Dutch Oven Apple Crisp.
Do you see where I am going with this? You can eat desserts, even for a healthy breakfast just try to make them a little lighter so you can enjoy them more often.
How are these healthy baked pumpkin donuts healthier than traditional donuts?
- They have melted coconut oil to remove some of the added fat and cholesterol.
- Fully gluten-free thanks to the use of All Purpose Gluten-Free Flour in place of regular white flour.
- Lower in sugar by adding warm spices like ground cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice to bring out the natural sweetness of the pumpkin.
- Finally, and most importantly, these are baked in the oven rather than frying them in oil.
So you can feel good about eating these Healthy Baked Pumpkin Donuts, since they only have 150 calories each and Bonus, they are ready in less than 3o minutes!
What ingredients do you need to make these Healthy Baked Pumpkin Donuts?
- Pumpkin Puree – not pumpkin pie filling
- Eggs
- Coconut Oil
- All Purpose Gluten-Free Flour
- Granulated Sugar
- Baking Powder
- Spices – ground cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice
- Cornstarch
- Salt
To bake these donuts I used donut mold pans, which I purchased on Amazon for only $10 each.
If you don’t have donut mold pans then you can use a mini muffin pan or a regular size muffin pan. See notes section of the recipe card for baking time recommendations.
Let’s get down to the good stuff, and make these healthy donuts.
How to make Healthy Baked Pumpkin Donuts
First, combine the melted coconut oil, eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree, spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice), salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl (step 1).
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- Add wet ingredients to a mixing bowl
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- Mix well to combine
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- Add in the dry ingredients and mix into a smooth batter
Then mix until a smooth batter forms (step 2).
Add in the flour and cornstarch and mix well to form a slightly thick but still smooth donut batter (step 3).
Then pour the donut batter about 3/4 of the way full into each donut mold. About 1/4 cup of batter works perfectly to fill each mold.
Smooth the top of each out with the back of a spoon or small spatula (Step 4).
Bake at 350 degrees F in a preheated oven for 15-17 minutes, until the tops are puffed up and starting to turn golden brown.
Remove the donuts from the oven and let them cool for about 2-3 minutes.
While they are cooling you can make the cinnamon sugar topping.
Combine 1 cup of granulated sugar with 1/4 cup ground cinnamon in a medium size mixing bowl and lightly whisk until all of the cinnamon is incorporated with the sugar.
Carefully run a butter knife around the edge of each donut, lift them out of the pan and shake each lightly in the cinnamon sugar.
Serve warm and enjoy with a nice hot cup of your favorite coffee.
Expert Tips for making homemade baked Donuts
- Don’t over mix the batter – mix well to combine the ingredients but do not over mix or the donuts will turn out gummy and not cakey and soft.
- Spray the donut pan with cooking spray before adding the batter to allow the donuts to easily be removed from the pan after baking.
- Let the coconut oil cool slightly after melting it before combining it with the rest of the ingredients – 4-5 minutes of cooling time should do the trick.
- Make sure to coat the donuts in the cinnamon sugar when they are warm or the coating won’t stick to the donuts.
Recipe Variations
- Don’t have any pumpkin puree? You can use unsweetened applesauce or even greek yogurt in place of the pumpkin in this recipe.
- Add in some chocolate chips or chopped pecans for added texture. Simply fold them into the batter before filling the donut pans.
- Want to cut out the white sugar in the donut recipe? Sub in half coconut sugar and half brown sugar in place of the white sugar – 1 cup coconut sugar and 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons brown sugar.
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment and rating below I would love to hear from you!
Healthy Baked Pumpkin Donuts – Gluten Free
Ingredients
For the donuts
- 1 1/2 cups Canned pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie filling
- 4 Large eggs at room temperature
- 1/4 cup Melted coconut oil
- 1 1/2 cups Granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp Baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp Pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp Ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 3/4 cup All-purpose gluten-free flour plus 2 tablespoons
- 1/2 tsp Cornstarch
For the cinnamon-sugar coating
- 1 cup Granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup Ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees and grease two donut pans or mini muffin pans.
- In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine together the pumpkin, eggs, coconut oil, sugar, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, and salt and mix until smooth
- Add in the flour and cornstarch and mix well until the batter is slightly thick but smooth.
- Fill the donut mold with the batter about 3/4 of the way full, about 1/4 cup of batter fills each donut mold.
- Place the pan in the oven on the middle rack and bake for 15-17 minutes, until the tops of the donuts are puffed up and lightly golden brown.
- Remove the donuts from the oven and let them cool for 2-3 minutes.
- While the donuts are cooling, you can make the cinnamon sugar topping – Combine the sugar with the cinnamon and lightly whisk.
- Carefully remove each donut from the donut pan by running a butter knife around the edge of each and lifting them from the pan.
- Gently toss each donut in the cinnamon-sugar coating. Serve warm.
Notes
- For making these in a mini muffin pan bake them for 12-15 minutes.
- For making these in a regular size muffin pan bake for 20-25 minutes.
- Don’t over mix the batter – mix well to combine the ingredients but do not over mix or the donuts will turn out gummy and not cakey and soft.
- Spray the donut pan with cooking spray before adding the batter to allow the donuts to easily be removed from the pan after baking.
- Let the coconut oil cool slightly after melting it before combining it with the rest of the ingredients – 4-5 minutes of cooling time should do the trick.
- Make sure to coat the donuts in the cinnamon sugar when they are warm or the coating won’t stick to the donuts.
- These donuts can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
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