Baked Spelt and Spiced Pumpkin Doughnuts with Cinnamon Sugar

I have a rule in my head that says baked doughnuts aren't real doughnuts.  To my mind, the only real doughnut is the fried, yeasted variety.  This recipe might just blow that theory out of the water.   These ravishing beauties have all the moreishness of the hot little numbers that come out of the deep-fat fryer, but without all the messy fandango.  Not only that, they are full of ancient grains and vegetables.  Health!!!




Baked Spelt and Spiced Pumpkin Doughnuts with Cinnamon Sugar
slightly adapted from here
Makes 12 regular doughnuts or 18 mini doughnuts

For the Doughnuts:
150g white spelt flour
80g wholemeal spelt flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 whole nutmeg, finely grated
1/3 cup grapeseed oil
1/2 cup rapadura sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup buttermilk

For the Cinnamon Sugar:
1/3 cup rapadura sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Make the Doughnuts:
Preheat the oven to 180C and grease a doughnut pan with cooking oil spray.  Set aside.

Put both flours, baking powder, salt and spices into a large mixing bowl and whisk them to mix and break up any lumps.  Set aside.

Put the oil, rapadura sugar, egg, vanilla, pumpkin puree and buttermilk into a medium mixing bowl and whisk to combine.  Gradually add the dry ingredients, a tablespoon at a time, and mix until just combined.

Pour the batter into a disposable pastry bag and pipe the batter into each doughnut up until they are half full.  Bake 15 minutes for regular doughnuts and 10 minutes for mini doughnuts, or until doughnuts spring back when gently pressed.  Turn the doughnuts out onto a wire rack placed over a baking tray to cool slightly.

Make the Sugar:
Mix the rapadura sugar and ground cinnamon together.  Sprinkle over the still-warm doughnuts.