Gluten-Free Pumpkin Donuts with Maple Glaze

This no-fuss gluten-free pumpkin donut recipe is one of my favorite fall recipes. The donuts are baked soft and tender and topped with a delicious maple syrup glaze. The recipe is entirely dairy-free, too! This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosures.

You’ll love these delicious cake donuts if you’re a donut fanatic like me. They’re packed with nutrient-dense pumpkin puree and flavored with cinnamon and pumpkin spice. They scream fall is here!

The pumpkin puree gives these donuts their classic orange hue and intensely moist texture. And the sweet maple syrup glaze adds sweetness and beauty to this classic fall recipe.

You’ll love these gluten-free pumpkin donuts if you love a cakey and spongy treat. And best of all, they are easy to make and hard to mess up.

Step #1: Make Your Donut Batter

To make your pumpkin donut batter, gather the following ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups (222 grams) Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups (340 grams) pumpkin puree
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) vegetable oil (I used avocado oil)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) brown sugar
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar

Combine the flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk the dry mixture together and set it aside.

Add the pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, and vanilla in a second large bowl and whisk together until well combined. Add the brown and granulated sugar and mix until smooth.

Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and mix well with a spatula until smooth. The batter will have a bright orange hue.

This recipe makes 12 donuts, so you’ll need two six-cavity donut pans to make this recipe. Spray the donut pans with cooking spray and set them aside.

Add the donut batter to a piping bag or zip-top bag. Cut a small slit at the bottom of the bag, and pipe the batter into each donut cavity. You’ll have enough to fill all 12 cavities, so fill them up!

Step #2: Bake the Donuts

Place the donuts in a preheated 375º F oven and bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the donuts comes out clean. Allow the donuts to cool for 5 minutes in the pan before transferring them to a wire rack to cool fully.

Step #3: Glaze the Donuts

Once the donuts are cool, after about one hour, it’s time to glaze them. Combine the following ingredients in a large bowl and mix until smooth:

• 2 cups (160 grams) of confectioner’s sugar
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (optional)
• 8-10 tbsp maple syrup

You want a smooth consistency that isn’t too thick or too thin. It will be challenging to cover the donuts if the glaze is too thick. If it’s too thin, it will be too watery.

Before glazing the donuts, place a piece of parchment paper underneath the wire rack. This will catch the glaze that drips off of the donuts.

Now dip the top of each donut into the glaze and allow some of the glaze to drip off before placing each donut (glaze-side up) back onto the wire rack. Repeat until all the donuts are covered in the maple glaze.

Step #4: Decorate the Donuts (Optional)

You can top the donuts with crushed nuts (of choice) or chocolate chips. You could also sprinkle a little cinnamon on top. All these toppings are optional, but they make your pumpkin donuts look pretty.

Be sure to add any toppings before the glaze sets in place. You’ll want to work quickly as the glaze sets fast!

Allow the glaze to set on the donuts for about 30 minutes to one hour before handling. Then enjoy these flavorful pumpkin-spiced donuts.

Why We Love Gluten-Free Pumpkin Donuts

We love these donuts for so many reasons!

Feels like Fall: These donuts are bursting with all the classic fall flavors, including pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and maple syrup.

Intensely Moist: These gluten-free pumpkin donuts are insanely moist thanks to a considerable infusion of pumpkin puree. And look at the gorgeous orange hue! This picture has not been retouched; this is the actual color of the donuts.

Unbeatable Texture: If you’ve been gluten-free long enough, you crave that cakey, soft texture, and these donuts deliver the exact texture you miss minus the gluten. I dare to say that you won’t even know the gluten is missing!

Easy to Make: Who doesn’t love an easy recipe? Everything comes together fast and bakes up quickly.

Pumpkin: While these donuts are far from healthy, they contain pumpkin, which is packed with Vitamin A, Vitamin C, potassium, and fiber, as well as immune-boosting and cancer-fighting properties.

FAQs and Substitutions

Below are answers to some of your most pressing questions about these gluten-free pumpkin donuts:

Storing the Donuts: Store the donuts in a zip-top bag in your fridge. The glaze will melt and incorporate into your donut if you don’t keep the donuts cool.

Egg-Free Version: I have not tested this recipe without eggs.

Dairy-Free Version: I recently updated this recipe to make it dairy-free. If you add chocolate chips on top (see Step #4), use dairy-free chocolate chips.

No Donut Pan: I highly recommend investing in two donut pans to make this recipe, which you can repurpose when you make these delicious chocolate glazed donuts and these 5-ingredient gluten-free bagels. A donut pan is an essential kitchen tool if you stick to the gluten-free diet for the long haul.

Alternative Flours: I’ve only tested this recipe with Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour (in the blue bag). It includes xanthan gum. You can swap the flour for another gluten-free flour blend. If the mixture doesn’t contain xanthan gum, add 1/4 tsp to your dry ingredients. You cannot use almond flour to make this recipe because almond flour isn’t a one-to-one substitute for any flour.

Pumpkin Puree: Make sure you use pumpkin puree, which is unsweetened. Do not use canned pumpkin pie filling.

More Pumpkin Recipes

Check out my 16 Incredibly Easy Gluten-Free Pumpkin Recipes!