Pumpkin Spice Glazed Doughnuts

How to Make Pumpkin Spice Glazed Cinnamon Roll Doughnuts

If you have ever made doughnuts from scratch, you will know it takes a few hours to make, knead, shape and let the dough rise before you can even start to fry them. You will be amazed at how much easier these pumpkin spice cinnamon roll doughnuts are to make.

Using Pillsbury™ Cinnamon Rolls as the base for these doughnuts slashes the prep time and makes these sweet treats ultra-easy to pull together. Take a look at our step-by-step overview and then follow the recipe for the full list of ingredients and instructions.

Heat the Oil

Pour the oil into a heavy saucepan, and heat the oil to 350°F.

Cut Out the Doughnut Holes

Take the cinnamon rolls out of the can, flatten them out, and cut a circle out the middle of each with a 1-inch round cookie cutter or paring knife to make doughnuts.

Fry the Doughnuts

Working in batches, so you don’t crowd the pan, fry both the doughnuts and the holes, then let stand on paper towels to absorb excess oil.

Make the Icing

Using the canned cinnamon roll icing as the starting point, mix it with pumpkin pie spice, powdered sugar, and milk, and warm the mixture to make the icing.

Dip the Doughnuts

Dip the doughnuts into the glaze and drizzle the remaining glaze over the holes.

How to Store Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Roll Doughnuts

At their best, pumpkin spice glazed cinnamon roll doughnuts are served warm and eaten the day they’re made, which is true for any doughnut. There’s nothing like biting into a warm, fresh doughnut. Sometimes, though, serving them straight out of the fryer isn’t possible, so if you want or need to serve yours at a later time, just keep them uncovered at room temperature for up to 8 hours.

Of course, you can still eat them the next day, but while they are delicious, they are not as fresh. Store completely cooled doughnuts loosely covered at room temperature for up to 1 day. Pop them in the microwave for 5 to 10 seconds on HIGH for a warm treat.

How to Check the Temperature of the Oil

One of the keys to making a good doughnut is frying them at the right temperature. If the oil is too hot, the doughnut will brown on the outside before it’s cooked on the inside. Too cool, and the doughnut will retain too much moisture and come out soggy.

To make sure the oil is at the right temperature, you need a thermometer. There are many types of cooking thermometers on the market, but the two main types are instant read and candy. An instant read thermometer can tell you what the temperature is on the inside of a food item. If you want to check the temperature of meat or other proteins, or see how hot a casserole is, you’ll want to turn to an instant read thermometer. 

Candy thermometers are made of glass and are used for measuring much hotter temperatures. That’s important when it comes to testing the temperature of molten hot sugar. 

It's critical to check the temperature of oil when you’re deep frying, as we are for this recipe. To check the oil, place the tip either an instant read or candy thermometer into the oil. Let the thermometer read the temperature for about 30 seconds. When the oil temperature reaches 350°F, you’re ready to fry.