Healthy Pumpkin Spice Donuts (+Video)

Name: Healthy Pumpkin Spice Donuts
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 1¼ cup almond flour ((finely ground)); ½ cup granular sweetener ((1:1 sugar ratio, we used allulose)); 2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder; 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice; ¼ teaspoon salt; ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum; 2 large eggs; ⅓ cup pumpkin puree; ¼ cup melted butter; ½ teaspoon vanilla; 2 ounces cream cheese; 4 tablespoon powdered sugar; ¼ teaspoon vanilla; 1 tablespoon pumpkin puree; 2 tablespoon whipping cream; ¼ cup granular sweetener (1:1 sugar ratio, we used allulose); 1 teaspoon cinnamon

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These Healthy Pumpkin Spice Donuts are so tasty, moist, and delicious. Get ready to usher in Fall with a guilt-free sweet treat! So good you'll be surprised these are healthy donuts. This recipe is gluten-free, low-carb, sugar-free, and keto.

Pumpkin spice donuts stacked on top of each other on a white wooden board. A pumpkin is in the background

Healthy Donuts (Baked)

"I know. As soon as I said these were healthy donuts you probably thought they couldn't possibly taste good. Oh contraire my friend - they are AMAZING. They manage to be moist, tasty, AND sweet with the perfect balance of pumpkin and spices." 🙂 -Kori

Here's why you'll LOVE these healthy pumpkin spice donuts:

Moist & Delicious

Unless you forget they were in the oven, and you overcooked them - these are going to be moist donuts!

Remember to test with a toothpick. As soon as the toothpick comes out clean - they're done.

They're Baked

Hooray for baked donuts. I really despise frying stuff in oil. While fried stuff tastes great - it's always so hot, messy, and stinky! These are so easy to bake I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Healthy Gluten Free Keto Donuts

These healthy donuts are gluten-free, low carb, keto, and sugar-free.

By the way, these donuts have 6 grams of net carbs and fit nicely into the keto diet.

How did we manage to make these donuts so much healthier? The two main reasons are that almond flour is used instead of regular flour, and a sugar substitute is used for traditional sugar.

Eggs and xanthan gum are what binds the recipe together. I often make muffins with flaxseed or xanthan gum depending upon the texture I'm looking for. Try these Strawberry Banana Flaxseed Muffins

There are only 1.4 grams of sugars in this recipe, and it's mainly from the pumpkin.

What You'll Need

Here are the ingredients and tools you will need to make these pumpkin spice donuts:

Ingredients

Almond Flour
Allulose or Monkfruit Sweetener - I tested several sweeteners in this recipe. both sweeteners in this recipe and both worked great.
Gluten Free Baking Powder
Canned Pumpkin Puree - use only 100% pumpkin puree with no added ingredients.
Butter
Pumpkin Pie Spice
Eggs
Vanilla Extract
Salt
Xanthan Gum - used as a binding agent. Xanthan gum is often used in low carb, gluten free, and keto recipes as a thickener or binding agent.

Equipment

Measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Large mixing bowl
Medium mixing bowl
Mixing spoon
Cooling rack
9-cup donut baking pan - I used a metal pan. You can also use (2) 6-cup donut pans and only fill up what you need. If you use a silicone pan you may need to adjust the time in oven. Keep testing with a toothpick.

Substitutions and Variations

Substitute coconut oil for the butter in this recipe.
Drizzle or spread pumpkin cream cheese frosting: in a small bowl mix 2 oz very soft cream cheese, 4 tbsp powdered sweetener, 1/4 tsp vanilla, 1 tbsp pumpkin puree, and 2 tbsp heavy cream.
Sprinkle with cinnamon "sugar". Mix 1/3 cup granular sugar substitute with 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon. Spinkle the tops of the muffins with this mixture.

How To Make Pumpkin Spice Donuts

Mix Dry Ingredients

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and prepare the pan for baking.

Stir together sweetener, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and xanthan gum in a medium bowl.

Mix Wet Ingredients

In a second bowl, whisk together eggs, pumpkin puree, melted (but not hot) butter, and vanilla.

Combine All Ingredients

Add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined.

combining dry and wet ingredients into a bowl

Pipe Batter into Pan

Using a plastic bag or a pastry bag with a small hole cut in the end

Line a 9-cup donut pan with paper liners. Spoon 1/4 cup of batter into each cup.

Bake Donuts

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool the donuts for 5 minutes, then carefully loosen and remove from the pan. Place muffins on a cooling rack.

fresh baked pumpkin donuts right out of the oven

Frost or Sprinkle, and Eat

Once cooled, enjoy plain, drizzled with pumpkin cream cheese frosting, or dipped in cinnamon sugar. (See the recipe card for ingredients)

Store any extras in an airtight container.

Serve and enjoy!

drizzling pumpkin cream cheese frosting over the donuts

Kori's Tips

Do not overmix the batter
Remove donuts from pan while they are still warm. Cool on a rack.
Test the donuts for doneness by using a toothpick inserted in the middle. If the toothpick comes out clean, they are done.
Enjoy these for breakfast, a snack, or even dessert.
Make extra and freeze in batches.

FAQ's

Is pumpkin gluten free?

Yes, pumpkin is gluten-free. Be careful if you buy pumpkin pie filling; however, some brands contain ingredients that have glutens.

How many carbs are in keto donuts with pumpkin?

This keto donut recipe has only 5g carbohydrates, 1g dietary fiber, and 4g net carbs for each donut.

Can I make these dairy-free?

Yes! To make these donuts dairy-free, use melted (but not hot) coconut oil or plant-based vegan butter in place of regular butter. Also, you would want to use a plant based substitute if you want to make the cream cheese drizzle - otherwise just make the sugar sprinkle.

How do I store these donuts?

Store these donuts in an air-tight container after they have thoroughly cooled.

How long will these donuts keep?

These donuts will keep for up to 4 or 5 days if stored in an air-tight container.

Can I freeze these donuts?

Yes, absolutely. You can freeze these baked pumpkin donuts. I will often make a large batch, then once cooled, I place them in an airtight container or freezer bag. Then freeze for up to 3 months. They never last that long, of course. 🙂

Can I use pumpkin pie filling?

Do not use pumpkin pie filling in this recipe as it may already be sweetened and contain pumpkin spices. Use only pumpkin puree for this recipe.

Which sugar substitute should I use?

Yes, for sure! You can use any granulated sweetener as long as it has a 1:1 sugar ratio. I tested both granulated monk fruit and allulose, and both came out great.

If you tried this recipe, let me know! I'd love for you to come back and give the recipe a 5 star rating and leave a review in the comments! 🙂 Let's stay connected, so please follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest! Subscribe to my newsletter to get healthy fresh recipe ideas every week!

Healthy Pumpkin Spice Donuts