Baked Pumpkin Cake Doughnuts or Muffins w/ Cream Cheese Frosting
These are really good. You can just toss these in cinnamon sugar
or frost with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
Butterscotch frosting would also be good.
Bake the donuts in a Norpro type donut pan (mini size or regular), or muffins in a regular or mini muffin pan.
Doughnuts or Muffins
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups pumpkin purée (SOLID PACK canned pumpkin - not pie filling mix)
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, (or 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon plus heaping 1/4 teaspoon each ground nutmeg and ground ginger)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 3/4 cups + 2 tablespoons Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
Frosting Topping
Betty Crocker Rich and Creamy Cream Cheese Frosing
or see homemade pumpkin cream cheese frosting below.
Cinnamon-Sugar Topping
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Mix well in small bowl or cup.
1.) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease two standard doughnut pans. If you don’t have doughnut pans, you can bake these in a standard muffin tin; they just won’t be doughnuts.
2.) Beat together the oil, eggs, sugar, pumpkin, spices, salt, and baking powder until smooth.
3.) Add the flour, stirring just until smooth.
4.) Fill the wells of the doughnut pans about 3/4 full; use a scant 1/4 cup of batter in each well. If you’re making muffins, fill each well about 3/4 full; the recipe makes about 15, so you’ll need to bake in two batches (unless you have two muffin pans).
5.) Bake the doughnuts for 15 to 18 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of one comes out clean. If you’re making muffins, they’ll need to bake for 23 to 25 minutes.
6.) Remove the doughnuts from the oven, and after about 5 minutes, loosen their edges, and transfer them to a rack to cool.
7.) While the doughnuts are still warm (but no longer fragile), gently shake them in a bag with the cinnamon-sugar. If you’ve made muffins, sprinkle their tops heavily with cinnamon-sugar. Or frost with cream cheese frosting and then dip frosted dounut/muffin in cinnamon sugar.
8.) Cool completely, and wrap airtight; store at room temperature for several days.
Yield: 12 regular size doughnuts or 15 regular size muffins.
Source: Adapted from King Arthur Flour recipe
Pumpkin Cream Chesse Frosting
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
1/3 cup pumpkin purée (SOLID PACK canned pumpkin - not pie filling mix)
INSTRUCTIONS
1.) Place the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl and whisk to combine; set aside.
2.) Place the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and
beat on medium speed until fully combined and smooth, about 1 minute.
3.) Reduce the speed to low, slowly add the powdered sugar mixture, and beat until fully incorporated and
smooth, about 3 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the paddle and sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
Turn the mixer to medium speed, add the pumpkin, and mix until fully incorporated and smooth, about 1 minute. Use immediately.