You have my son to thank for this recipe, as he’s been asking me to make “healthy donuts” for the last two weeks. We’ve been explaining to him how sometimes certain foods don’t make us feel very good when we eat them too often (like deep-fried donuts), so it’s important to eat them in moderation, with plenty of healthy food, too.
His solution is that I just need to make healthy donuts so he can eat them more often. Ha! These healthy pumpkin donuts are made with gluten-free oat flour, pumpkin puree, coconut sugar, and coconut oil, for a naturally-sweetened treat. The batter can be stirred together in just minutes. (If you’re looking for a grain-free donut, try my Paleo Pumpkin Spice Donut recipe instead.) I used to be intimidated by making donuts, but they’re almost as fast as making muffins– the extra step is simply pouring the batter into a piping bag of some sort (I simply use a plastic bag with a tip cut-off) so you can pipe the batter into the donut mold easily.
These donuts are lower in sugar than the kind you might buy at a shop, and their texture is a little lighter, too, since I tried to keep the use of oil to a minimum. Think of them as a cross between a muffin and a donut. If you want a sweeter treat, you can sprinkle the tops with extra coconut sugar or even drizzle some Maple Pecan Glaze over the top for something a little more decadent. I hope you’ll enjoy them!
Recipe Notes:
If you’d like a sweeter donut, I think you could add an extra 1/4 cup of coconut sugar into the batter without changing anything else. I’m not sure how other sweeteners, like maple syrup or honey would work, so please leave a comment below if you try those out. I’d guess maybe 1/3 cup of honey would produce similar results? The temperature of your ingredients will affect the thickness of your batter, but the final results will be the same either way. In the picture above, my pumpkin puree had been chilled in the fridge, so the batter was thicker than it would have been if the pumpkin puree had been warm or at room temperature. Rest assured that the results are perfectly fine either way! I have a feeling applesauce or mashed banana could be used instead of the pumpkin puree with delicious results. Let us know in the comments below if you try something different!
— Reader Feedback: Do you have a favorite donut flavor? Our local donut shop makes an Apple Spice Donut that melts-in-your-mouth, so that’s next on my to-do list! SaveSave
