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.
My family loved this!
I’ve made double batches of these in a week. Very tasty and just a few morsels are enough to hit the savory sweet craving.
I have a question, instead of using Almond flour could I use regular AP flour?
No, this recipe wouldn’t work with normal flour without changing also the liquids.
Delicious. I’m cooking several batches and freezing them for thanksgiving breakfast/snacks.
absolutely delicious
Looking forward to trying these amazing pumpkin bites.
So excited about this recipe because I’ve been looking for a recipe where I could use the almond pulp after I make almond milk. Today I successfully used the pulp instead of flour to make these bites and they came out great. I didn’t make any other changes to the recipe.
Thanks for sharing your lovely feedback with me, I never made the recipe with almond pulp so I am glad your reported it works! it will help others for sure.
Sounds yummy. Can these be sent in mail(5 days) to my grandson in the Air Force without spoiling ?
I don’t think they will taste good if not refrigerate for so long. I recommend eating them within 4 days and keep them in the fridge.
finally! other humans who don’t want to eat food and treats made with animal products or yeast! What a beautiful recipe! I send you my love and Happy Holiday wishes!
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.