Recipe(tried): Baked Pumpkin Cake Doughnuts or Muffins with Cream Cheese Frosting

BAKED PUMPKIN CAKE DOUGHNUTS OR MUFFINS WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

These are really good. You can just toss these in cinnamon sugar or frost with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
Butterscotch frosting would also be good.

Bake the donuts in a Norpro type donut pan (mini size or regular), or muffins in a regular or mini muffin pan.

DOUGHNUTS OR MUFFINS:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups pumpkin pur e (SOLID PACK canned pumpkin - not pie filling mix)
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, (or 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon plus heaping 1/4 teaspoon each ground nutmeg and ground ginger)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

FROSTING TOPPING:
Betty Crocker Rich and Creamy Cream Cheese Frosting
or homemade Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

CINNAMON-SUGAR TOPPING:
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease two standard doughnut pans. If you don't have doughnut pans, you can bake these in a standard or muffin tins; they just won't be doughnuts.

Beat together the oil, eggs, sugar, pumpkin, spices, salt, and baking powder until smooth.

Add the flour, stirring just until smooth. Fill the wells of the doughnut pans about 3/4 full; use a scant 1/4 cup of batter in each well. If you're making standard-size muffins, fill each well about 3/4 full; the recipe makes about 15, so you'll need to bake in two batches (unless you have two muffin pans).

Bake the doughnuts for 15 to 18 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of one comes out clean. If you're making muffins, they'll need to bake for 23 to 25 minutes.

Remove the doughnuts from the oven, and after about 5 minutes, loosen their edges, and transfer them to a rack to cool.

While the doughnuts are still warm (but no longer fragile), gently shake them in a bag with the cinnamon-sugar. If you've made muffins, sprinkle their tops heavily with cinnamon-sugar. Or frost with cream cheese frosting and then dip frosted donut/muffin in cinnamon sugar.

Cool completely, and wrap airtight; store at room temperature for several days.

Makes 12 regular size doughnuts or 15 regular size muffins.
Source: Adapted from King Arthur Flour recipe

PUMPKIN CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
1/3 cup pumpkin pur e (SOLID PACK canned pumpkin - not pie filling mix)

Place the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl and whisk to combine; set aside.

Place the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until fully combined and smooth, about 1 minute.

Reduce the speed to low, slowly add the powdered sugar mixture, and beat until fully incorporated and smooth, about 3 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the paddle and sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

Turn the mixer to medium speed, add the pumpkin, and mix until fully incorporated and smooth, about 1 minute. Use immediately.