These Pumpkin Bites are moist, soft in the center, covered with cinnamon sugar, and crispy on the edges. It’s a delicious almond pumpkin recipe to celebrate fall.
When the fall season starts, I love to make everything pumpkin in my kitchen. I generally buy several cans of pumpkin puree to allow me to make all my favorite pumpkin desserts, like my 5-Ingredient Pumpkin Bread, Pumpkin Donut Holes, or No-Bake Pumpkin Cookies.
These pumpkin bites are something new, something different. They are a bit like mini donuts, but they are slightly moister with a borderline cakey texture inside. It’s a great simple dessert or snack that goes very well with a tea or coffee.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Almond Flour – Use finely ground blanched almond flour for the best texture. Almond meal can be used but will result in a darker color and grittier texture.
- Pumpkin Puree Use pure pumpkin puree, either canned or homemade. Ensure it’s not pumpkin pie filling as that is loaded with sugar.
- Maple Syrup – Choose pure maple syrup. Any liquid sweetener like agave nectar or date syrup can be substituted.
- Sugar (for coating) – Use any granulated sweetener such as raw cane sugar, coconut sugar, or even sugar-free alternatives like allulose.
- Pumpkin Spice (for coating) – Use a pre-made pumpkin spice mix or create your own with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Ground cinnamon also works well on its own.
How to Make Pumpkin Bites
This is a super easy recipe as it consists pretty much into combining the dough and rolling it in the sugar coating.
Pour all the dough ingredients in a mixing bowl.
Work the dough with a spatula until it form a large sticky ball.
Roll small balls and place them in an oiled mini muffin tray. Bake the balls for 12 minutes.
Brush the balls with maple syrup and roll them in the cinnamon sugar mixture.
Expert Tips
- Ensure your pumpkin puree is well-drained to prevent excess moisture in the dough.
- For uniformly sized bites, use a small cookie scoop or measuring spoon to portion the dough.
- If the dough is too sticky to roll, refrigerate it for 15-20 minutes before shaping.
- Watch the baking time closely, as almond flour can brown quickly. The edges should be golden but not dark.
- Allow the bites to cool completely before coating to ensure the sugar mixture adheres well.
- For a protein boost, add a tablespoon of vanilla or pumpkin spice protein powder to the dough.
More Pumpkin Dessert Recipes
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Pumpkin Bites
Ingredients
- 1 cup Almond Flour - (note 1)
- 3 tablespoons Pumpkin Puree - (note 2)
- 3 tablespoons Maple Syrup - (note 3)
- 1 teaspoon Pumpkin Spice - (note 5) optional
Optional Pumpkin Spice Coating
- ½ cup Sugar - (note 4)
- 1-2 teaspoon Pumpkin Spice - (note 5)
- 2 tablespoons Maple Syrup
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F (180 °C). Line a mini-muffin pan with mini paper liners, or line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Grease them using cooking oil spray. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, stir almond flour, pumpkin puree, maple syrup, and pumpkin spice, if used (recommended if you don't coat them with pumpkin spice sugar). Stir until it forms a sticky, firm dough.
- Roll it into small balls and place it on the prepared baking sheet or tray.
- Bake the bites for 12-14 minutes at 350 °F (180 °C) until the edges are golden and dry.
- Let the bites cool down on the tray for 5 minutes, then gently transfer them to a cooling rack. I used a teaspoon to remove them gently from the muffin pan without breaking. They are still a bit soft and firm up as they cool down.
- Cool them down for 30 minutes and eat them plain or use the optional coating in the next steps.
- In a small bowl, stir sugar and pumpkin spices.
- Lightly brush all the sides of a pumpkin bite with maple syrup and roll it into the pumpkin spice sugar. Repeat until all bites are coated.
I can’t have Almond flour because it also has coconut. Is there another flour, that’s still gluten free, you would recommend? I thought maybe rice flour, but not sure if the consistency will be right
Pure almond flour is made from 100%finely grounded almonds, there’s no coconut in it. Other option with same ratio, that deliver same texture are sesame seed flour or pumpkin seed flour. Rice flour will make it chewy and gummy.
Can you use Cup for Cup instead of almond flour?
I think cup for cup is suitable to swap all-purpose flour for their blend, but it won’t deliver the same result for almond flour. Almond flour has more fat than cup for cup blend, and the keep the pumpkin bites moist and soft. However, I never baked with cup for cup, so I could be wrong, feel free to try and let me know how it turns out. Thank you.
anyone ever make as gluten-free? if so, which flour did you use?
they look geart.
I followed the recipe but they are wet and mushy inside. I baked 13 minutes. It seemed like it didnt cook thru. I was afraid to bake longer in case they burned. Otherwise I love this.
Really good given how simple and nutritious they are! Will make these again.
Can I freeze and ship them?
Probably, but not sure how they would stay frozen
May I use an egg in addition for binding purposes? I may add meltedbutter to the tops and sprinkle generously the cinnamon sugar onto that whilst they are still in the baking pan cooling.
You absolutely don’t need to add an egg to bind the ingredients together, the dough stick very well. If you want to add any eggs, you will need way more almond flour or the dough will be liquid.
Looked so good had to make sadly no almond flour, so I tried oat flour. So many people were curious I thought what the heck. As Carine thought they were a little dry. I read the reviews first so I added 3 heaping T of pumpkin and only baked 10 min. I still thought they were tasty if you have to use oat flour add more pumpkin which in my opinion you can’t go wrong.
We have a child with a strong NUT & EGG ALLERGY in our family what other FLOUR could be safely used instead of Almond flour???
Would love to make and share these with him.
It might work with sunflower seed flour.
Could you roll them in the pumpkin spice/sugar mixture before baking?
You can do both, but it makes the result quite different. Before baking will make more of a crust, a bit caramelized and the bites will be darker. You won’t have the crystalline texture on the bites.