Pumpkin Spice Donuts

     I am a firm believer that goodies are meant to be shared. This is for two reasons, number one is the obvious, I can't (or shouldn't) eat them all myself. The second reason is everyone loves them but can't always make them for themselves. Because of these (and a few other reasons like houses are expensive but I really want one) I decided to open a home bakery!

    I have so far only sold caramel corn because that's one of the very few recipes I have consistently made more than once. However, I would love to expand to donuts, cookies, scones, and more! In order to do that I have to come up with more easy recipes that I can multiply and will turn out good every time. I also want to come up with things that people wouldn't necessarily make for themselves or can't always get fresh from the store. 

    One of the things that is always a crowd pleaser and a great goodie to make while my business is in its infancy is cake donuts! Once you get the hang of them they're super easy to make and I am also able to double, triple, or even quadruple my recipes without sacrificing the turnout. 

     The first recipe I put together was the fall favorite apple cider donut. However, that wasn't enough fall for me. As the weather is getting colder and the trees are loosing their colors I want to suck everything I can out of these fall flavors. So, of course, I came up with a pumpkin spice cake donut recipe! 

    This recipe only took me 5 minutes to mix, 10 minutes to cook, and another 2 minutes to top, but I was also in a rush to get these done for a women's retreat so it probably will take you a little longer. I started by  beating my wet ingredients in a stand mixer while I combined all of my dry ingredients in a separate bowl.  

    I then dumped my dry into my wet. You have to be really careful not to over mix your batter or else you will get super dense donuts. That is not necessarily a bad thing but I, personally, like mine as fluffy as possible. So, instead of using the stand mixer to mix my wet and dry, I like to fold them together using a rubber spatula.

     I stop mixing when there are hardly any more dry spots, but there are still a few lumps. Then, I grease a donut pan and spoon in my batter. I have learned that when I fill the donut pans too much, the holes close up a bit and they aren't quite as pretty. So, I fill each spot to just under the edge of the middle part. Also because the batter is so thick it will not even out while baking. To remedy this you can pipe your batter into each spot. I don't enjoy piping very much, I find it to be a bit of a hassle. If you agree with me or just don't have any piping bags you can also bang your pan on the counter a few times to even out the batter distribution in each spot. 

This is a good example of too much and the right amount of batter. 

    Once the pans are filled I put them into the oven for 10-12 min at 350 degrees F. Personally, I have never had to keep my donuts in for more than 11 minutes. They are almost always fully cooked at 10 but I like my donuts to have that pretty brown color so I keep them in for closer to 11. After my donuts are cooked you can put them onto a cooling rack straight out of the oven but that can make lines on your donuts because they come out of the oven a little soft. 

    Once my donuts were cool enough to handle, I brushed plenty of melted butter on each donut and coated them in pumpkin pie spice mixed with sugar. I like to use salted butter for the topping rather than unsalted because of the extra flavor but that is just a personal preference. I also like to coat both sides of the donut, not just the top, so that every side is coated in sugary deliciousness! 

    These were the best warm however I saved a few and they continued to be amazing the next day! You can also freeze them and thaw in the microwave when you are ready to eat and they keep their moisture amazingly well so they won't be super dry or hard when reheated.

    What kind of donut should I make next? Leave a comment with how this recipe works for you!