Every so often during our childhood, usually on Saturday mornings when we didn’t have soccer or basketball games, our parents would treat my brother and me to a special donut breakfast. We’d walk to the little mom-and-pop shop about a mile away from our house, bright and early before the rest of the neighborhood woke up, to pick out our treats.
As soon as we walked through the door, we ran over to the long glass display case filled with hundreds of pastries. The “kid-sized” donuts sat on the top shelf on the far right, closest to the entrance, a few rows above the bite-sized donut holes.
After careful consideration of each donut’s sprinkles — chocolate, rainbow, or festively themed (red, white, and blue stars in July, green Christmas trees in December, that sort of thing!) — we’d point to the exact donuts we wanted… Which generally were the ones with the most sprinkles! Always incredibly sweet, the owner would grab a pair of tongs and hover them over the pastries we pointed to, just to make sure we received the exact sprinkle-topped donuts we asked for.
As little kids, that was a huge deal… Not all of the donuts were evenly covered in those sprinkles!
On extra special occasions, our parents let us eat our treats in the shop, rather than carrying them home in a white paper bag. The owner put each of our donuts on a small plate and handed us little round glass bottles of apple juice, and we walked over to one of the booths with bright red vinyl-covered seats to happily enjoy every last crumb of our donuts.
Back then, we were picky eaters and gravitated towards the plain flavors of vanilla, chocolate, or a combination of the two. Vanilla with vanilla glaze, chocolate with chocolate glaze, vanilla with chocolate glaze… We didn’t really mind as long as the donuts had lots of sprinkles and we weren’t required to share a bite with our parents!
During one of my last few trips back home, my parents and I reminisced about that cute little donut shop and our favorite donut flavors. Although I became much more adventurous as I grew up, I still love cake-style donuts the most, like the ones we purchased from that store.
And with fall finally starting to arrive here in California, those memories inspired me to bake these Healthy Pumpkin Donuts with Vanilla Bean Glaze when I returned home! They’re so soft and moist with lots of cozy pumpkin and warm spice flavors, and I topped them with a deliciously sweet vanilla glaze as a nod to some of my favorite childhood donuts.
Yet unlike those ones from my past… These are baked, not fried! And with how comforting and rich they taste, you’d never believe they’re 36 calories!
HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY PUMPKIN DONUTS
Let’s go over how to make these healthy pumpkin donuts! You’ll start with white whole wheat flour and homemade pumpkin spice. Remember, white whole wheat flour has the same health benefits as regular whole wheat flour — just a lighter taste and texture! This is because they come from different varieties of wheat. White whole wheat flour is made from white wheat, whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from red wheat. (And no, white whole wheat flour doesn’t contain any all-purpose “white” flour!)
Hint: It’s similar to the difference between red and green grapes! Same health benefits, slightly different flavors.
I prefer homemade pumpkin spice, rather than store-bought, because I love a smaller ratio of cinnamon to the other spices. By increasing the amount of the other spices besides cinnamon in pumpkin spice, you get a much stronger and richer flavor! For these healthy pumpkin donuts, you’ll need cinnamon (← that type is my favorite!), ginger, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves.
Hint: Pumpkin spice is short for “pumpkin pie spice” — aka the spices that are used to make pumpkin pie. So pumpkin spice doesn’t actually contain any pumpkin!
Unlike most other baked donut recipes, you only need ½ tablespoon of butter or coconut oil to make these. That really helps keep your healthy pumpkin donuts low calorie and low fat! However, they still turn out really moist, cakey, and tender thanks to…
Pumpkin and Greek yogurt! If you’ve browsed through my recipes before, then you know how much I love using Greek yogurt in my baked goods. It adds the same moisture as extra butter or oil but for a fraction of the calories, and it gives these healthy pumpkin donuts a protein boost, too!
The pumpkin actually plays three roles in these healthy donuts. (What an overachiever! 😉 ) Flavor… Moisture… And an egg replacer! That’s right. These healthy pumpkin donuts are egg-free. No eggs required! To make my life easy, I use store-bought canned pumpkin purée. Just make sure it’s the regular kind, not pumpkin pie mix!
To sweeten your healthy pumpkin donuts, you’ll use liquid stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that contains nothing refined or artificial (aka it’s clean eating friendly!). It’s also really concentrated… You just need 1 ½ teaspoons to sweeten this entire batch of donuts!
Hint: Many brands and stevia products have slightly different sweetness levels, so I recommend using the same one I do for the best results. I buy it online here, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too. (It’s not a “one-recipe” type of ingredient — I promise!)
HOW TO BAKE HEALTHY PUMPKIN DONUTS
Now that you’ve mixed together your batter, it’s time to bake your healthy pumpkin donuts! First, you’ll need some donut molds. I bought mine online here! I have four of them, and I love how they’re really durable and super easy to use.
Hint: Because my favorite donut mold pans are silicone, they’re a bit floppy… So I just set them on a metal cookie sheet to make it easier to slide them into and out of the oven!
To quickly fill your donut molds (without making a big mess!), place a gallon-sized zip-top bag into a big tumbler. (I use the souvenir soda cups I’ve gotten from baseball games… They’re the perfect size!) Transfer your batter into the bag, cut off one corner, and pipe the batter into your donut mold pans.
Super easy, right??
HOW TO MAKE SUGAR FREE VANILLA BEAN GLAZE
This glaze is totally optional. I think the donuts taste excellent without it, but… I think the glaze turns them from “Yum!” to “WOW HOLY COW THESE ARE AMAZING!” So for me? It just depends on how motivated (or lazy!) I’m feeling! 😉
This healthy vanilla bean glaze is incredibly easy to make! Simply stir together confectioners’ style erythritol (← I buy it online there!), vanilla bean paste (← I buy it online there too!), and milk until you’ve reached your desired consistency. That’s right… No powdered sugar here!
Usually, I aim for a glaze that’s thick enough to dip and also stays put on the tops of these healthy pumpkin donuts, but… I got distracted and added a bit too much milk for this particular batch that I photographed. ???? However, I actually loved how that classic fully-glazed donut look turned out for these, so I just went with it — even though it did make a bit of a mess! 😉
After eating a plate of these delicious little gems… I know that my childhood picky eater self would’ve reached for seconds, even without any sprinkles on top! 😉
And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ????) I’d love to see your healthy pumpkin donuts with vanilla bean glaze!
| Healthy Pumpkin Donuts with Vanilla Bean Glaze | | Print |
- for the donuts
- 2 cups (240g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 4 ¼ tsp homemade pumpkin spice (see Notes!)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp (7g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp liquid stevia
- ¾ cup (183g) pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie mix!)
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt, room temperature
- ¾ cup + 1 tbsp (195mL) nonfat milk, room temperature
- for the glaze
- ½ cup (72g) confectioners’ style erythritol (see Notes!)
- 1 tbsp (15mL) vanilla bean paste
- 3-4 tsp nonfat milk, or adjusted for your desired consistency
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat 31 mini donut cups with nonstick cooking spray.
- To prepare the donuts, whisk together the flour, pumpkin spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, vanilla extract, and liquid stevia. Stir in the pumpkin and Greek yogurt. Stir ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon of milk. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and remaining milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.)
- Transfer the batter to a large zip-topped plastic bag, and cut off one corner, Pipe the batter into the prepared donut cups. Bake at 350°F for 15-17 minutes or until the tops are firm to the touch. Cool in the muffin cups for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Just before serving, prepare the glaze. Stir together the confectioners’ style erythritol, vanilla bean paste, and milk (use less milk for a thicker glaze, or use more milk for a thinner glaze). Working with one donut at a time, dip one side into the glaze, gently shake the donut to remove the excess, and return to the wire cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining donuts and glaze.
Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
Remember to measure your flour using this method or a kitchen scale (← that’s the one I own!). Too much flour will make your batter dry and your donuts crumbly, instead of really moist and tender!
HOMEMADE PUMPKIN SPICE: Stir together 1 tablespoon (6g) ground cinnamon {← that’s my favorite kind!}, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground allspice, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon ground cloves until thoroughly combined.
I highly recommend using the liquid stevia! It’s my favorite sweetener, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too. I buy it online here because that’s the best price I’ve found. For sweeter donuts, increase the liquid stevia by ¼ to ½ teaspoon.
If you prefer not to use the vanilla stevia in the donut batter, substitute ¾ cup (180mL) of pure maple syrup, honey, or agave, and reduce the milk to 1 tablespoon (15mL) in the batter. Alternative, substitute ¾ cup (144g) of granulated, brown, or coconut sugar, and reduce the milk to 7 tablespoons (105mL). The baking time may change with any of these substitutions.
Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.
I buy my confectioners’ style erythritol online here, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine too! If you prefer, you may substitute ½ cup (60g) of regular powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar) in the glaze. However, omit the milk to start since regular powdered sugar is much more absorbent than erythritol!
I buy my vanilla bean paste online here. If you prefer not to use vanilla bean paste, then substitute 1 ½ teaspoons of regular vanilla extract.
VEGAN OPTION: If you’d like to make a vegan version, then use non-dairy milk in place of the nonfat milk. Replace the Greek yogurt with 6 tablespoons of your favorite non-dairy yogurt OR additional pumpkin purée, but remember… Since these don’t contain as much protein as Greek yogurt, your donuts may collapse a bit while cooling and turn out slightly denser.
If you seal leftover glazed donuts inside of an airtight container and refrigerate them, the glaze tends to dissolve, especially if made with regular powdered sugar. Hence why they’re best if served the same day they’re glazed!
These are the donut pans that I use! They’re made of silicone and a little flimsy, so I just set them on top of a large light-colored metal cookie sheet to bake.
If you prefer, this recipe will yield 12 standard sized donuts. The baking temperature remains the same. Begin checking on them after about 18 minutes. The donuts will be done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the tops feel firm to the touch.
NO DONUT PAN: Don’t own a mini or standard-sized donut pan? Not to worry! You can use a mini muffin pan (you’ll get about 28 mini muffins) or a standard-sized muffin pan (you’ll get 12 muffins).
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low sugar, vegan option}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Scones with Maple Glaze
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Muffins
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Pancakes
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Waffles
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy pumpkin recipes and healthy donut recipes!
And now for some exciting news… I’m giving away a set of brand new mini donut pans so you can make these pumpkin donuts! To enter, just follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter box below. It sometimes takes a few minutes to load, so be patient! After logging in with your email address or Facebook account, enter using as many options as you’d like.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
*Donut Pan Giveaway will be open until 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time on October 14, 2019. Open to the US only. Must be 18 years or older and have a valid email address to enter. Winner will be emailed and will have 48 hours to respond, or else a new winner will be selected.
Blueberry cake is my favorite flavor, but these sound amazing too! I love that you give options for ingredients people might not have. That’s so helpful. Thanks!
It’s my pleasure Tricia! I’m always happy to help in any way I can! 🙂 Blueberry donuts are definitely delicious… I’m thinking I just might have to create a baked version of those next! 😉
I’m torn between Blueberry Cake and Boston Cream doughnuts. I don’t ever use stevia or any other “sugars like erythritol, which I do use to spray my fruit garden to ward away the new SD fly. This makes them sterile. So now I don’t use it it in baking. Yup I know it’s a sugar, believe me I did a lot of research on it. I loved your spices and your blog but I think differently on the topic of “healthy”. Thank you for letting me post
Two very delicious options! 🙂 I understand not everyone is a fan of stevia or erythritol, which is why I always try to share alternative sweetener options in the Notes sections of my recipes (located directly underneath the Instructions!) whenever possible. If you decide to try one of those alternative sweetener options, then I’d love to hear what you think of these donuts!
NEED to try this!!!!
NEED to try this yummy recipe!! Donuts are one of my favorites!!
I’d love to hear what you think of these pumpkin donuts if you end up trying them Jayme! 🙂
These look so yummy!! I love pumpkin anything!
Thank you so much Courtney! So glad I’m not the only one who loves pumpkin anything and everything! 😉
I’m definitely an apple cider donut kind of girl!
Yum! Thanks for sharing Ally! 🙂
Mine is anything spicy with pumpkin flavour! And now I can enjoy them guilt free. I also love cheesecake flavours.
I’ve never had a cheesecake-flavored donut, but now I think that has to change ASAP! 😉 Thanks for sharing Mariska!
Apple cider donuts hands down but I think you’ve convinced me to give these a try! Love your tip about adjusting/making your own spice blends! I find that I don’t always have the pre-made mixes but I usually have all of the components so this is perfect.
I’m so glad you found that tip useful Alex! I’m the same way — I almost always have the individual spices on hand! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think of these pumpkin donuts if you decide to give them a try!
Sour cream glazed!!
Thanks for sharing Nat! 🙂
My favorite donut flavor is anything with apples or cinnamon!!!
Thanks for sharing! I can never turn down either of those too! 😉
These were delicious! They were dense and really moist so it reminded me more of a pumpkin bread than a spongy cake donut but it was exactly what I wanted with a cup of tea. It had a good amount of pumpkin and warming spices. A lot of recipes skimp on one or the other so it’s nice that both came through. I used monk fruit sweetener instead of stevia just because that’s what I had and they worked out perfectly. Thanks!
I’m so glad you loved these donuts, Alex! I love your idea of pairing them with a cup of tea. That sounds like the perfect cozy fall treat! 🙂 Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know too — that really means a lot!
Hey these look great, but i was wondering if i could substitute regular flour for equal parts oat-flour? Please let me know, I’d love to give this recipe a try!!!
It means a lot that you’d like to try this recipe of mine as well, Eliza! I typically don’t recommend that substitution in my donut recipes, including this one. This is because gluten is the protein in wheat-based flours that helps baked goods rise and maintain their shape while cooling. Oat flour lacks that, so when you substitute it for wheat-based flours in my recipes that rise (like cupcakes, cakes, muffins, donuts, quick breads, etc!), your baked goods will often turn out denser and may collapse while cooling. Does that make sense?
However, if you don’t mind that texture difference with oat flour (where your donuts may collapse and turn out denser), the flavors will still remain the same! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you decide to try making these pumpkin donuts!
Hi there,
I was excited for this recipe – I tried it and followed every thing to a t (i did the gluten free version with the recommended flour) and I weighed everything but i was left with really wet and chewy donuts that would not cook through and tasted heavily of rice flour. I am wondering if you think it’d work with oat flour and the addition of eggs?
I’m honored that you tried my recipe, Natalie! That sounds disappointing and not like how these donuts are supposed to turn out at all, so I’d love to work with you to figure out what happened. 🙂 In order to do so, I have some questions for you!
Did you use your kitchen scale to measure everything, including the milk? Or did you only use it for the ingredients with gram measurements?
Which gluten-free option did you use? I actually gave two! Was it the homemade blend with 3 gluten-free flours and xanthan gum? Or the exact store-bought blend I linked to and recommended?
Did you use the same size donut pans that I did (the ones I linked to!), and how long did you bake your donuts? Did they collapse while cooling?
Did you use a hand-held mixer or stand mixer to make the batter? If not, what did you use instead?
Did you make any other modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but I’ll have a much better idea of the culprit once I know your answers to all of them!
Those are such great questions – I appreciate you reaching out!
i used the scale for everything except for the milk! For the milk, I used a glass measuring cup which has millileters on the side.
I used the store bought GF blend – the same one you recommended!
I didn’t use the same pan – so perhaps that’s the culprit! I used a standard sized donut pan and baked them for upwards of 30 minutes
I mixed by hand- and was careful to not overmix!
I did not make any other modifications! Thanks so much for your help!
sorry, I just checked and it does look like i use the same size donut pans – only mine are aluminum. And also, to clarify – I checked the donuts at 17 mins and they were completely soggy in the middle – and that’s why i baked them for longer, but they just never baked through!
It’s my pleasure, Natalie! Thank you for taking the time to share your answers. They’re really helpful! I have a few more, now that we’ve narrowed down the potential culprits. 🙂
Have you used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-for-1 Baking Flour before (aka are you familiar with its flavor)? Or was this your first time?
How were your donuts’ flavors? Were they sweet enough, and could you taste the spices?
Did you use the same liquid stevia that I did?
What did you use to make the batter? A whisk, a spoon, a fork, a spatula, or something else?
After 30 minutes of baking, were your donuts still raw? Or were they just really moist? (These are supposed to be on the denser side, rather than light and airy like angel food cake or yeast donuts, if those texture comparisons make sense!)
Would you mind doing a super quick experiment for me? I want to check to see how the size of your donut pans compares to the ones I used! How many tablespoons of water can you fit into each donut cavity of your donut pan? (Just put your donut pan on the counter, and add 1 tablespoon of water at a time to a single cavity until it’s filled all the way to the brim!)
Thanks for your patience, Natalie — we’re getting really close to solving the mystery!