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Pumpkin Ginger Donuts with Maple Glaze

October 25th, 2011

Pumpkin Ginger Donuts with Maple Glaze

I really hope you aren’t totally tapped out to death on pumpkin. If you are, I understand. All of the pumpkin recipes in the universe this fall are sort of taking “seasonal eating” to a whole new level.

But honestly, the over saturation doesn’t really bother me- I just love the sweet, spicy flavor, and it is honestly one of my very favorite things about this season. So I hope you won’t be annoyed by “another” pumpkin recipe- especially when you see what I made it into.

Doughnuts. Baked doughnuts. I sold out and bought a donut pan. (technically not sure if I sold out, or just got really lazy? Or maybe just got really smart?) In the last few years, I have continued to fry em’ up- much to the delight of my family, and frankly myself!

But all this time, I have had to admit that there was something super alluring about the idea of mixing up a no-rise batter that didn’t depend on yeast rising correctly, the weather, or a messy batch of deep frying oil. Not to mention that they are lower in calories so you can eat twice as many. Oh wait, I’m not sure if that last part is real or just in my mind.

So I bought a 10 dollar pan at my local grocery store (Met Market for Seattleites looking to pick one up), and for the first time, I made a batch. I have to say- while I can’t pretend that they tasted like a krispy kreme- they were pretty good. Like really pretty good.

They only took about 15 minutes to make (from batter to finished product), and I could have licked the bowl on this maple glaze which as far as I am concerned tasted just like the maple bars I used to eat from Borracchini’s Bakery (in Seattle) when I was a kid.

I also added ginger to the doughnuts because I love the subtle spiciness combined with the nutmeg and the pumpkin.

These are a great weekend treat, but are easy enough to make on a week morning before school. (The first batch I made was before school, and I (Coco) just shook a little powdered sugar over the tops for the girls breakfast.)

Pumpkin Ginger Donuts with Maple Glaze, makes 12
(adapted from the recipe on the Wilton’s pan)
-2 cups cake flour
-¾ cups sugar
-2 tsp baking powder
-1 tsp salt
-1 tsp ginger
-½ tsp cinnamon
-¼ tsp nutmeg
-½ cup buttermilk
-¼ cup pumpkin puree
-2 eggs
-4 TBS melted butter

-Cooking spray

Maple Glaze
-1 cup powdered sugar
-4 Tbs cream
-1 ½ tsp maple extract
-sprinkles (optional)

1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a doughnut pan with baking spray.

2) In a medium bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients.

3) In another bowl, combine the pumpkin, buttermilk, eggs and butter.

4) Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into the well.

5) Combine them well and form an even batter.

6) Spoon into the doughnut pan so that each mold is a little over half-way full. (I found this easiest to do with a pastry bag, or Ziploc with the corner cut off.)

7) Bake the doughnuts about 12 minutes or until they are golden and baked through.

8) Plop the doughnuts out onto a cooling rack.

9) (While the doughnuts are baking, mix the glaze.)

10) For the glaze, mix together the powdered sugar, cream and extract until smooth and without lumps.

11) When the doughnuts have cooled, dunk them into the maple glaze. (I like to double or triple dunk them to get a good thick coating!)

12) Then, if you like, dunk them into a bowl of sprinkles.

Enjoy!