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Pumpkin Spice Latte Doughnuts

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Looking for an easy, bite-sized breakfast for your busy fall mornings? Look no further! These pumpkin spice latte doughnuts are sure to get your day off to a sweet start.

Plate of doughnuts on a white napkin with a knife, jar of milk and bowl of glaze around it

It has officially started feeling like fall here in the Pacific Northwest… The days are getting noticeably shorter, the mornings are cool enough to require a jacket and the skies seem to be more clouds and rain than anything else these days.

I say, bring it on! I am SO ready to break out the sweaters, cozy boots and stock my pantry to the brim with all things pumpkin. ESPECIALLY these pumpkin spice latte doughnuts!

How to make pumpkin spice latte doughnuts

If you’re not a morning person, good news: These doughnuts are SO easy to make! And they don’t even require fancy kitchen equipment. Just a whisk and some good ol’ fashion elbow grease.

There are just 3 steps for making these doughnuts:

First, combine the dry ingredients in one bowl, wet ingredients in another, and then whisk together. Pour your batter into a greased doughnut pan and bake for 8-10 minutes.

Second, whisk your glaze ingredients together in a small saucepan over low heat until the glaze begins to form a crust. Whisk to break up the glaze and then start dippin’!

Third, whisk your espresso powder and a little extra water into the remaining glaze and drizzle it over your doughnuts.

How to make the perfect pumpkin spice latte doughnuts

Never made these doughnuts before? No worries! Here are some tricks and tips to help you make the perfect batch the first time around.

  • Use a piping bag to pipe your doughnut batter into your doughnut pan. This is a lot easier and less messy than trying to pour from the bowl.
  • Doughnuts are easiest to remove from the pan while they’re still warm. The sweet spot seems to be about 2 minutes after they come out of the oven. Simply turn the pan over and gently shake it until the doughnuts come out (hot-pads are a good idea).
  • Be sure not to over-cook the glaze. Over-cooked glaze loses too much liquid and becomes too hard and thick to work with. The best way to make sure your glaze doesn’t get over-cooked is to cook it over low heat and remove it immediately once a crust starts to form. If your glaze becomes over-cooked, simply add more water in 1/2 tsp increments until the glaze breaks up enough to use.
  • Why we cook the glaze: You may be wondering why we’re cooking the glaze. After all, there are lots of doughnut recipes on the web that don’t require this step. Here’s why: cooking the glaze causes a chemical reaction that results in a glaze that hardens quickly and becomes a shell (rather than a soft glaze). It’s perfect for locking in moisture and making life easier if you need to pack these doughnuts.
  • Leftovers: Baked doughnuts don’t keep well and tend to dry out faster than the fried variety. If you end up with leftovers, the best way to store them is in a paper bag. Whatever you do, don’t refrigerate them or put them in plastic.
  • Reviving stale doughnuts: If you wound up with leftovers and they’ve gotten stale, no worries! You can soften them back up by microwaving them in 5-10 second increments until soft. Just watch out for melting icing.

Did you make this recipe? I’d love to hear how it went in the comments below. Better still, snap a photo and tag it on Instagram with #thesimplesweetlife. I love seeing your creations!

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Pumpkin Spice Latte Doughnuts

Plate of doughnuts on a white napkin with a knife, jar of milk and bowl of glaze around it

★★★★★

5 from 13 reviews

Looking for an easy, bite-sized breakfast for your busy fall mornings? Look no further! These pumpkin spice latte doughnuts are sure to get your day off to a sweet start.

  • Author: The Simple, Sweet Life
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 12 1x
  • Category: Breakfast
  • Cuisine: American
Scale

Ingredients

For the pumpkin doughnuts:

  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup pumpkin puree

For the glaze:

  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 5 tbsp water
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

For the espresso drizzle:

  • 2 tsp espresso powder
  • 2 tsp water

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients for the doughnuts (flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda and baking powder).
  2. In another bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients (melted butter, egg, vanilla extract and pumpkin puree) until just combined. Whisk in dry ingredients.
  3. Use vegetable shortening and a paper towel to grease your doughnut pan. Fill a piping bag with the doughnut batter and pipe it into the doughnut pan until each cavity is about 2/3 full.
  4. Bake the doughnuts at 350F for 8-10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the doughnuts comes out clean.
  5. Allow to cool in the pan for 1-2 minutes before turning them out onto a baking rack.
  6. In a small saucepan, combine the powdered sugar, water and vanilla extract for the glaze.
  7. Cook over low-medium heat, whisking occasionally, until the glaze is warm and starts to form a crust on top. Remove from heat.
  8. Dip each doughnut into the glaze, gently shaking it to allow any excess glaze to drip off. Be sure to stir the glaze between each doughnut so it doesn’t form a crust.
  9. Once all of the doughnuts are glazed, add the espresso powder and 2 tsp of water to the remaining glaze. Stir the glaze until all of the espresso powder has dissolved.
  10. Pour the espresso glaze into a piping bag, cut the tip, and drizzle over the doughnuts (preferably with a piece of parchment paper under them).

Notes

  • Use a piping bag to pipe your doughnuts into your doughnut pan. This is a lot easier and less messy than trying to pour from the bowl.
  • Be sure not to over-bake the doughnuts. Over-baked doughnuts tend to be dry and hard. To bake the perfect doughnuts, I recommend checking them at the 7-8 minute mark. If they’re still uncooked inside, pop them in for another minute. Repeat each minute until baked all the way through.
  • Be sure not to over-cook the glaze. Over-cooked glaze losing too much liquid and becomes hard. The best way to make sure your glaze doesn’t get over-cooked is to cook it over low heat and remove it once it starts forming a crust. If your glaze becomes over-cooked, simply add more water in 1/2 tsp increments until the glaze breaks up enough to use.
  • Leftovers: Baked doughnuts don’t keep well and tend to dry out faster than the fried variety. If you end up with leftovers, the best way to store them is in a paper bag. Whatever you do, don’t refrigerate them or put them in plastic.
  • Reviving stale doughnuts: If you wound up with leftovers and they’ve gotten stale, no worries! You can soften them back up by microwaving them in 5-10 second increments until soft. Just watch out for melting frosting.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 doughnut
  • Calories: 210
  • Sugar: 36g
  • Sodium: 53mg
  • Fat: 2.7g
  • Saturated Fat: 1.5g
  • Carbohydrates: 45.5g
  • Fiber: .8g
  • Protein: 2.1g
  • Cholesterol: 20mg

Keywords: pumpkin spice latte doughnut, pumpkin doughnut

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Well look at you making it all the way to the bottom of the post! You deserve some doughnuts. But since I can’t send you any (you know, ’cause no amount of microwaving could undo that level of staleness), please accept this photo of our cat wondering how long I’d have to look away for him to make off with one of these. Nice try Odie, nice try…

Update Notes: This post was originally published in September of 2014 but was republished with step by step photos and tips in September of 2018.

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Comments

  3. I love pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin, and I know I will love, love, love these 🙂 I’m going gluten free for a couple of weeks, except for my birthday, which is next week. I think my birthday calls for pumpkin doughnuts.
    XOXO
    Find you via Wine’d Down Wednesday <3

    Reply

    • Happy early birthday! 🙂 And I definitely think birthdays should be allowed to operate outside the rules of diets. 😉

      Reply

  7. Those look great, love the glaze! Thanks for linking up to Sweet and Savoury Sunday, stop by and link up again. Have a great day!! Laura@Baking in Pyjamas

    Reply

  10. Now these certainly sound like the perfect fall breakfast! Pumpkin spice latte combined with doughnuts? Absolutely delicious! I’m a pumpkin lover so definitely need to test these out!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  14. YES, YES, YES…pumpkin donuts. I was just saying to my husband I need to make some pumpkin donuts. I know my grandson will LOVE me to the moon and back when I bake some for him!! Printing it off right now!!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  15. I can’t blame Odie for trying to run off with a doughnut, they look really tasty. I love the flavors of pumpkin spice during the fall months and this looks like the perfect way to enjoy them!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  17. Okay, this is the perfect donut! I love pumpkin and the spices you used. And don’t get me started on the glaze because this comment would be way too long. I can’t wait to make your delicious pumpkin spice donuts!

    Reply

  19. What a great way to start the Fall season — with pumpkin donuts!! I can smell the aroma now — certainly making my mouth water as I sip on my coffee!! I’ve got to get one of those pans — they make perfect donuts. I’m pinning right now.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  23. Love this post! Such pretty, petty photos (and OMG all the Odie cuteness!), and really great tips about things like piping the doughnuts and why you cook the glaze – so helpful! Plus … just so much yumminess that’s much healthier since it’s baked instead of fried! Total win!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  25. Those look delicious! I love using pumpkin in baked goods – it keeps them beautifully moist,and tastes so good!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

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