By Kris Galicia Brown from Craftsy

Savor the fall season and its warm flavors with this scrumptious recipe for butternut squash doughnut holes, topped with a browned-butter-and-maple glaze. Learning how to make doughnuts is easy and fun. Read on to enjoy a free fall recipe and tutorial!

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Recipe for butternut squash doughnut holes

Makes about 50 pieces

Ingredients

• 1 egg

• 1 tablespoon melted butter

• 2 tablespoons milk

• ¼ cup granulated sugar

• ¼ cup brown sugar

• ½ cup roasted and mashed butternut squash

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1¾ cup flour

• ¾ teaspoon baking soda

• ½ teaspoon baking powder

• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

• pinch of ground ginger

• pinch of allspice

*The dough can be made a day ahead of time.

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine egg, butter, milk, sugars, butternut squash and vanilla.

2. In another bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients.

3. Thoroughly combine flour mixture into the wet mixture in batches. The dough will be very soft and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

4. Turn out dough onto a heavily floured surface. Pat down to ½-inch thickness. With a knife dipped in flour, cut the dough into 1-inch-width logs, then cut the logs into 1-inch pieces. Don’t worry too much about the shape of the pieces. They’ll puff as they cook.

5. Heat 1 inch of oil in a electric fryer to 360 degrees, or in a saucepan over medium-low heat.

6. Fry doughnut holes for 3 minutes, turn them as necessary to get an even deep golden brown color. Remove doughnut holes from fryer and let drain on paper towels.

Yum! Dip each doughnut hole into the browned butter maple glaze (recipe below) and let dry on a wire rack.

Recipe for browned butter maple glaze

Makes about 1 cup

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 1½ cups powdered sugar

• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

• ¼ cup, plus 1 tablespoon maple syrup, preferably Grade B

Directions

1. Brown the butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, watching carefully that it doesn’t burn. Little brown bits will form on the bottom.

2. Place powdered sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat in the melted butter and add vanilla. Then, slowly beat in the maple syrup. When it’s completely incorporated, beat on high speed for 30 seconds to smooth completely.

3. Immediately dunk each doughnut hole halfway into the glaze and set on a wire rack to dry.

What are your favorite sweet treats to make for fall?

About the Author

Kris Galicia Brown, a graduate from the Art Institute of California–San Diego, is the author of Pop Art: Decorating and Shaping Custom Cake Pops. When it comes to cake pops, her originality, addiction to precision and eye for detail are what set her apart. She resides in San Diego with her husband and two daughters.