Maple-Glazed Pumpkin Donuts

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There’s something about homemade donuts that feels especially good when fall rolls around. Nothing will quite beat the taste of fresh, hot homemade donuts right off the line. And when fall rolls around the sound of glazed fried bread is so delightful!

These soft maple-glazed pumpkin donuts are packed with pumpkin spice and maple flavor and finished with a sweet maple glaze. The dough is a soft brioche-style pumpkin donut dough that puffs up as it fries. Each bite is warm and fluffy with a little crisp around the edges. 

While the donuts are still hot, they are dipped into a pumpkin spice maple glaze that drips down the sides to coat all the nooks in glaze. 

They are a little bit of a project, but that is part of the fun in making these. Fall is the season for slowing down, taking your time, and maybe frying up something delicious while you’re at it. The smell of the pumpkin spice and maple in your kitchen as you are cooking these will make you glad you took the time to make a batch of these donuts homemade instead of running to the store. 

Whether you’re baking for a fun weekend baking project or craving something warmly spiced for breakfast, these donuts are worth it. The melt-in-your-mouth texture and the sweet, warmly spiced dough will make it very difficult to stop at just one.

Why You’ll Love These Maple-Glazed Pumpkin Donuts

• They’re hot, fried dough dipped in sweet glaze! Who doesn’t love that?! The soft, fluffy insides are full of pumpkin flavor. Each bite has a slight crispiness on the edges and is coated in a pumpkin-spiced glaze for a deliciously sweet finish…YUM!
• Fun for the whole family! Although they may take some time to make, the dough recipe itself is fairly simple to make. Donuts are a fun recipe if you have a few extra hands in the kitchen; everyone can get involved cutting the shapes. You may need to take over the frying part, but you can have some more fun glazing and decorating.
• They taste just like they came off the line. If you’ve never made donuts homemade before, there is nothing quite like the flavor of a donut fresh off the line. The donuts are warm and super soft and perfectly sweetened with the maple glaze.

How to Make These Maple-Glazed Pumpkin Donuts, Step By Step

Step 1. Make the pumpkin donut dough.

Donut dough is surprisingly easy to make – especially if you are using a stand mixer. The hardest part of the recipe is being patient while the dough rises.

In the microwave or over the stovetop, start by heating milk over medium heat until it reaches a temperature of about 105-115°F. Remove the warm milk from the heat and immediately whisk in sugar and yeast. Let the yeast activate for about 10 minutes. You’ll know it’s activated when it creates a bubbly foam on top.

Pour the bubbly yeast mixture into a stand mixer with a hook attachment, then add the remaining dough ingredients. Mix in eggs, pumpkin puree, softened butter, salt, pumpkin pie spice and flour. Mix on medium for a couple of minutes until a dough forms. 

Step 2. Knead the dough and let it rise for the first rise.

If the dough is too sticky, add 1 tablespoon of flour until it reaches a workable dough. 

Increase the speed of the mixer to medium-high and knead the dough for 8-10 minutes. 

Transfer the dough to a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise for 1 hour, or until it’s doubled in size.

Tip: Use a candy thermometer to check the milk temperature before adding the yeast. If the milk is too hot, it could kill the yeast. If it’s too cold, it won’t activate.

Step 3. Roll the dough out, cut into donut shapes, and let it rise for 30 more minutes.

After the first rise, your dough should have doubled in size. Gently punch down the dough to release any extra gas that has built up inside the dough. 

Now for the fun part: rolling and cutting the donuts! First, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and roll it out into a large rectangle that is about 1/2-inch thick. 

Then, use a donut cutter or round cookie cutters to cut out the donut rounds. Place each donut round on small squares of parchment paper. Let them rise on the parchment squares for 30 minutes.

Tip: Cut out squares of parchment, just larger than the donut rounds. This will keep the donuts from sticking to the countertop, and you can also transfer them more easily to the frying oil that way.

Step 4. Heat oil in a Dutch oven and fry donuts.

In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the vegetable oil. As soon as it reaches 350°F, you’re ready to start cooking the donuts. 

Place 2-3 donuts in the oil at a time. Cook the donuts on each side for 3-4 minutes until they are golden brown. Transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool a bit before glazing.

Repeat these frying steps until all the donuts are cooked. You should have 4-5 sets of donuts to fry. 

Tip: Keep the oil at 350°F for the perfect donut fry!

Step 5. Glaze the donuts while they’re warm!

This spiced maple glaze is such a cozy finish on these pumpkin donuts! While the donuts are still hot, glaze them. It’s important to do this when they are hot so that the glaze creates a nice glossy finish on the outside.

Dip the tops of the donuts in the spiced maple glaze and return the glazed donuts to the wire rack to cool for several minutes. Once they no longer piping hot, you can enjoy them warm!

Tips for Making Maple-Glazed Pumpkin Donuts

• Use lukewarm milk to activate the yeast. The milk should be about 105-115°F. You can use a candy thermometer to check the temperature of the milk. If the milk is too hot, it could kill the yeast. If it’s too cold, it won’t activate. 
• Give the dough time to rise. It can be hard to wait for the rise, but you want to give the dough enough time to rise, so that the donuts have an airy, light texture. Make sure the dough doubles in size on the first rise, and then the shaped donuts rest for another 30 minutes to puff up. 
• Keep frying oil at 350°F. Use a thermometer to temporarily check the temperature of the oil. If the oil is too hot, it can brown the outsides before the centers cook. If the oil cools down too much, they could cook in the oil for too long and become greasy. Don’t overcrowd the pan with donuts to keep the temperature up.
• Glaze the donuts while they’re warm! After you’ve fried the donuts, let them cool for a few minutes before dipping them in the glaze. It helps to have extra hands in the kitchen for this step. But if you don’t, we recommend glazing the cooked donuts after you flip them for the second 4-minute baking increment.

Fry these Pumpkin Donuts in an Air Fryer

If you don’t want to deal with the potential mess of frying oil, an air fryer is a great option for ‘frying’ these donuts. 

Here’s what you need to do: 

1. Prep the donut dough according to the directions: Make dough, first rise, cut into shapes, and rise one more time.
2. Brush or spray the surface of the donuts with some cooking oil or butter. 
3. Heat the fryer to 360°F and fry for 5-6 minutes on each side until they are golden brown.

How to Store Pumpkin Donuts

These are best enjoyed fresh and are at peak freshness for the first 24 hours. Store leftover donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.  Don’t store the cooked donuts in the refrigerator. They will develop a dry texture.

More fall recipes to try:

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