In The Kitchen: Homemade Spiced Pumpkin Doughnut Holes

Homemade Pumpkin Puree

3 Easy Steps for Homemade Pumpkin Puree:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Place a whole 2-3 pound sugar pumpkin on a parchment lined baking sheet or in a glass dish. Pierce the pumpkin 5-6 times with a fork.
2. Roast in the oven until darkened and easily pierced with a fork, about 45-60 minutes. Remove, cut in half, and let cool for about 30 minutes.
3. Remove seeds (save for another use if you’d like), scoop out the flesh with a large spoon, and transfer to a food processor or blender to blend until smooth. Use immediately or store in an airtight container in the freezer for convenient future use!

Pumpkin Spiced Doughnut Holes

Just in time for Halloween, these sweet, baked doughnut holes will be a hit with your little ghosts, goblins, and super heros. They come together quickly, and bake for just 12 minutes!

12 Servings (2 doughnut holes per serving)

For the Doughnut Holes:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour

• ¾ cup unbleached all-purpose flour

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

• ½ teaspoon sea salt

• 1 ½ cups pumpkin puree

• ¼ cup oil

• ½ cup packed brown sugar

• 1 large egg

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the Coating:

• 3 tablespoons butter, melted

• 5 tablespoons granulated sugar

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Make It:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray or coat lightly with oil.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt.
3. In a blender, combine pumpkin, oil, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla. Stir into dry mixture until thoroughly combined.
4. Roll one heaping tablespoon of dough between the palms of your hands to make a doughnut hole. Add one doughnut hole to each mini muffin cup and repeat with the remaining batter. Wet hands with water as needed to prevent sticking. Bake for 12 minutes.
5. While doughnuts bake, combine sugar and cinnamon in a quart or gallon size plastic bag.
6. While doughnut holes are still warm, coat in melted butter using a pastry brush. Add doughnut holes to bag and shake until evenly coated in cinnamon and sugar. Serve warm, or place on cooling rack then store in an airtight container.

Kids in the Kitchen:

Have your kids wash their hands and join you in the kitchen. Yes, they will get a little sticky and messy, but your kids will enjoy rolling the doughnut hole batter in their hands. They can also shake the doughnut holes in the sugar mixture after baking.