These baked Pumpkin Donut Holes are actually cinnamon coconut sugar topped mini cupcakes. The pumpkin cake donuts are baked in a mini cupcake tin to make a perfect bite-sized healthier fall treat. Made from coconut flour they are gluten free, grain free, paleo friendly and clean eating.
First published October 2016
You all know how much I love everything pumpkin. And it is also no secret that I have a special affinity for all things baked with coconut flour. After all, I wrote an entire ebook with coconut flour treat recipes.
Today's gluten free donut holes are based on my first-ever coconut flour success - these pumpkin spice flavor muffins. I adjusted this super popular recipe into a smaller batch of batter to be baked in a mini muffin tin pan instead.
The warm mini cupcakes are then tossed in a sugar and spice mix to give that that sugar donut hole effect. These little mini pumpkin muffin poppers are a great healthier fall breakfast snack or midday dessert. Their cute bite size also makes these a fantastic additions to school lunch boxes.
Ingredients
- Coconut flour
- Tapioca starch - optional but makes for a better crumb texture
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Pumpkin pie spice - store-bought or use my homemade mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, allspice
- Eggs
- Pumpkin puree
- Coconut oil - melted
- Maple syrup - or sugar free liquid sweetener
- Vanilla extract
- Coconut sugar - brown sugar or granulated sugar-free sweetener
See recipe box for details.
Instructions
- Preheat oven and line mini muffin pan.
- Mix coconut sugar and pumpkin spice for topping.
- Whisk dry ingredients together.
- Whisk wet ingredients together.
- Combine dry and wet mixtures until smooth.
- Fill muffin pan, top with spiced coconut sugar.
- Bake until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Optionally, coat warm muffins in remaining cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Tools
I find coconut flour muffins tend to stick to the baking pan quite a bit. Greasing the pans with melted butter only helps a little, so for best release I use these mini parchment liners. Paper liners are also very sticky with coconut flour batter.
Storage
Store the cooled pumpkin donut holes in an airtight container to keep from drying out. They will last 3-4 days. To store for longer, move them to the fridge for up to 1 week.
Random Questions
These pumpkin doughnut holes are actually mini muffins, not traditional donut holes cut from donuts.
The origin of the donut hole is often credited to Hanson Gregory, a 19th-century American sea captain. According to legend, Gregory invented the hole-in-the-middle design while aboard his ship in 1847. The story goes that he was dissatisfied with the center of the fried cakes being raw and greasy, so he punched a hole through the dough with a tin pepper box, allowing the dough to cook more evenly. This innovation led to the creation of the donut hole, which eventually became a popular treat in its own right. However, there are various versions of the story, and the exact origin remains a mix of fact and folklore.
Yes, these pumpkin donut holes are suitable for a paleo diet as they are made with coconut flour and natural sweeteners. They are also grain-free and do not contain processed sugars, aligning well with the principles of the paleo eating plan.
Related
More pumpkin recipes you will love:
Recipe
Pumpkin Donut Holes
Ingredients
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- 2 tablespoons tapioca starch
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup pumpkin puree
- ¼ cup coconut oil melted
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Topping:
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- ½ tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C. Line a mini muffin pan with mini parchment liners. Whisk together coconut sugar and pumpkin pie spice for the topping and set aside.
- In a bowl whisk together coconut flour, tapioca starch, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices.
- In another bowl whisk together remaining (wet) ingredients until smooth and combined.
- Add the flour mix to the wet mixture and stir until all lumps are gone. (Alternatively, you can also blend all ingredients in a food processor or blender.)
- Divide batter into 18-20 mini muffin cavities. I like using a 1 tablespoon sized cookie scoop per mini muffin. Top each with a little spiced coconut sugar. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- If you have any cinnamon coconut sugar remaining, you can toss the warm mini muffins (liner removed) in it to coat from all sides.
Nutrition
Pin this Gluten Free Pumpkin Doughnut Holes recipe for later?
Autumn
Has anyone tried these with arrowroot? They sound so yummy but tapioca doesn't agree with me. I know the starches are a little different so I'm not sure if it would turn out.
Jennifer @ Leelalicious
Hi Autumn! This recipe hasn't been tested with arrowroot but it could be worth trying. Generally, you can replace tapioca starch with arrowroot at a 1:1 ratio.
Tabitha
Delicious!! I made these with light baking olive oil vs the coconut oil, and used cream of tarter and baking soda to replace the baking powder and added the additional baking soda as the recipe called for. My pumpkin pie spice was a mix of cinnamon, mace, ginger and allspice.
Jennifer @ Leelalicious
Thanks for your wonderful review, Tabitha!
lynn @ the actor's diet
What a perfect fall breakfast/snack/who am I kidding dinner.
Regina
Haha... yup we are not beyond snack food for dinner around here either 🙂