Pumpkin spice adds an extra dose of mouthwatering flavor to homemade fried churros. Served with a rich chocolate dipping sauce, these pumpkin spice churros are dangerously addicting!
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I had been wanting to learn how to make churros for ages, and this recipe - after lots of research and recipe testing - is a total winner. Like all fried foods, churros take a little bit of time to prepare, but I think you'll be surprised by how uncomplicated they are to make at home. And the sweet reward is so, so worth the effort!
What are churros?
Churros originated in Spain before making their way to Mexico. In Spain, these deep-fried sticks of dough are commonly eaten for breakfast or as an afternoon snack sprinkled with sugar (or left plain) and dipped in a thick chocolate sauce. In Mexico, churros are more commonly rolled in sugar (or cinnamon sugar). They may be filled with chocolate, jam, or pastry cream and served with chocolate sauce or dulce de leche.
Traditional churros are made from a very simple dough using just flour, water, and salt. However, most modern-day recipes are made using pâte à choux (choux pastry), which includes butter, water, flour, and egg. This is the same dough used to make cream puffs and éclairs (and many other pastries), and it uses steam from the dough's high moisture content (rather than baking soda or baking powder, yeast, or other leaveners) to puff up when cooked.
I do not claim that this recipe is authentic; I am simply a doughnut lover appreciating different varieties of sweet, fried dough from around the world.
Why This Recipe Works
Like any good churro, you'll find that these pumpkin spice churros have a perfectly crisp outside with a deliciously chewy inside for a perfect blend of texture in every bite. Unlike classic churros, which are rolled in cinnamon sugar (or plain sugar), pumpkin spice churros are rolled in a mixture of pumpkin pie spice and sugar for extra spice flavor. There's even a bit of spice in the dough, too!
This recipe took some extra effort to get just right, but it was so worth it! I did all the recipe testing and made all the mistakes so that you don't have to. I tested several methods and ingredient ratios to get the texture and flavors just right, and this recipe is the result of that labor of love. Plus, I learned tons of tips and tricks along the way, so this post is full of helpful tips to guide you through making homemade churros perfectly on the first try.
Oh, and don't forget about the dreamy chocolate ganache for dipping the churros. Their sweet-spiced coating pairs beautifully with the rich chocolate flavor. The recipe makes about 28 pumpkin spice churros, which sounds like a lot, but I could easily have eaten them all in one sitting!
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
Water - Some choux pastry recipes use milk instead of water to hydrate the dough, but this makes the dough more susceptible to browning, making it more difficult to cook the churros fully without overcooking the exterior. For this reason, I recommend water for the dough.
Eggs - As I mentioned above, although traditional churros were made without eggs, many modern recipes do include them. Eggs include both fat and protein, which gives the dough its necessary texture and ability to puff up when cooked, creating a more foolproof dough. Some recipes include as many as 4 eggs, but I found 2 eggs to be enough to yield the eggs' benefits without creating an eggy tasting dough.
Pumpkin Pie Spice - This ingredient is used in place of cinnamon in the cinnamon sugar coating, and I've also added a little bit to the dough. It's not traditional but gives these churros an extra dose of spice flavor, which I love! Feel free to replace with cinnamon in the coating for a more classic flavor, and you can either replace with cinnamon when adding to the dough or leave it out of the dough completely.
A store bought spice blend can be used, or you can make your own by whisking together 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, ¾ teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon ground allspice, and ¼ teaspoon ground cloves. Add 1 teaspoon of this mixture to the churro dough and use the rest for the spiced sugar coating.
See recipe card at the bottom of this post for full ingredient list and measurements.
Special Equipment
In addition to essential baking equipment (like a mixing bowl and spatula), I recommend some special tools for making this recipe.
- A stand mixer or electric hand mixer for beating the eggs into the choux pastry.
- An open star piping tip (I recommend Wilton 1M) to create churros classic, ridged shape. (See FAQs below for more information.)
- A pastry bag for piping churro dough. (See FAQs below for more information.)
- A large, deep pot for heating oil and frying churros. A Dutch oven works great!
- A candy or instant-read thermometer to monitor the temperature of your oil when frying. An instant read thermometer also comes in handy when preparing the choux pastry (see Recipe Tips below for more information).
- Fry tongs or spider whisk for turning the churros as they fry and removing them from the hot oil when finished cooking.
Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions
Step 1: Prepare the pumpkin spice sugar topping. Add the sugar and pumpkin pie spice to a shallow dish. Stir to combine and set aside.
Step 2: Make the churro dough. In a medium saucepan, combine water, butter, sugar, and salt. Heat the mixture over medium-high heat until the butter melts and the mixture comes to a boil. Then reduce heat to medium-low and remove the pan from the heat.
Step 3: Sprinkle flour and pumpkin pie spice over the liquid in the pan and stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until a dough begins to form.
Step 4: Return the pan to the heat and continue to stir vigorously until the dough is smooth, forms a ball, and stops sticking to the sides and bottom of the pan as you stir.
Step 5: Transfer the dough to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes.
Step 6: Add one egg and beat the dough using a mixer (handheld electric or stand) on medium speed until blended. Add the second egg and vanilla to the dough and beat again on medium speed until blended. Then beat the dough for another minute.
Step 7: Transfer the dough to a pastry bag fitted with a star piping tip
Step 8: If you want your churros to be straight, briefly freeze the dough before frying. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and pipe 6 inch strips of dough onto the parchment, using a clean pair of kitchen scissors to cut each strip of dough away from the piping tip. Place the baking sheet in the freezer and chill dough for 30 minutes before frying.
Step 9: In a Dutch oven or large skillet with deep sides, add about 2 inches of vegetable oil and heat the oil over medium-high heat until it reaches 350°F to 375°F.
Step 10: Carefully pipe the dough into the oil in 6-inch strips, using a clean pair or scissors to cut the ends of each strip. Cook no more than 5 churros at once so that they don't become overcrowded in the oil.
Step 11: Cook the churros until golden brown, about 4 minutes, carefully turning with fry tongs or a spider whisk so that they brown evenly on all sides. Then, quickly transfer the churros to a plate lined with a paper towel to blot any excess oil before coating the churros.
Step 12: Carefully roll the hot churros in the pumpkin spice sugar mixture. Place the coated churros on a wire cooling rack.
Step 13: Repeat this process with the remaining dough until all churros are cooked and coated with the pumpkin spice-sugar.
Step 14: Make the chocolate dipping sauce. Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan until hot but not boiling. Pour the hot heavy cream over the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl and let sit for one minute to let the chocolate melt. Gently stir the mixture until smooth.
Step 15: Serve the churros immediately, while still warm, with the chocolate dipping sauce.
Allison's Top Tips
Be sure to read the recipe all the way through before you begin. This is always a good idea, but it's especially important for recipes that may have unfamiliar or time-sensitive instructions. Reading the recipe through will help to ensure that you have all the necessary equipment ready to go and there won't be any surprises mid-recipe.
When cooking the choux pastry on the stovetop before adding the eggs, you can confirm that the dough is ready for the next step by checking its temperature. Stick an instant read thermometer into the center of the ball of dough. The temperature should be between 165°F and 175°F.
Be sure to let the dough cool sufficiently before adding the eggs so that they don't coagulate when added to the dough. You can be certain that the dough is cool enough by testing its temperate with an instant read thermometer and making sure it's below 140°F. Or press your finger into the dough and if you can comfortably leave your finger in the dough for a few seconds it should be cool enough.
Be sure to add the eggs one at a time as the recipe states and then blend really well after the final egg is added, until it becomes smooth, thick, and sticky (see process photos above for reference). Under beating the eggs will lead to churros that don't puff up when fried, and you'll end up with thin, crispy churro sticks.
When you're ready to fry, start by test frying just one churro. Let it cool slightly, then split it open to check doneness. This will help you to be sure that you're cooking the churros properly so you don't under fry the whole batch.
The chocolate sauce will thicken as it cools, so you'll want to prepare it immediately before serving. If it cools and you'd like to soften it, add ½ teaspoon vegetable oil to the mixture and heat (on the stove or in the microwave) very briefly on low heat until the mixture is smooth again.
Troubleshooting Homemade Churros
Your churros should have a nice, crispy outside and a soft, fully cooked inside. The temperature of your oil makes a big difference in the texture of your churros.
- If your churros are golden on the outside but gummy and undercooked on the inside, your oil is too hot, causing the outside to cook quickly without giving the inside a chance to cook properly. In this case, reduce the heat of your oil.
- If your churros are chewy, they need to be cooked a bit longer so that the outside has time to crisp up. You may need to reduce your oil temperature slightly if cooking the churros longer so that the outsides don't burn.
- If your churro is crispy throughout, it's overcooked. Try cooking your churros for a shorter time or reducing the temperature of your oil.
Churros will puff up and expand as they cook, but if you find that yours are exploding or splitting open on one side then they are too thick. The most likely culprit here is that you're not using the right piping tip (or you're not using a piping tip at all). Check out the FAQs below for more info.
Recipe FAQs
An open star tip is ideal, since it will give your churros their signature ridges, but don't just use any star tip. I tested several and found Wilton 1M to be the best for piping churros. The large piping tip has fewer deep spikes, which creates deeply ridged churros that cook evenly. Star tips with many short spikes, like Atecco 8B, create churros that are too thick and likely to explode when baking, and difficult to cook through without over cooking the exterior.
If you don't have a 1M piping tip, I recommend purchasing one. They're affordable and great for lots of uses, like piping frosting or meringue in a simple rose shape. Check out my Strawberry Meringue Roses to see it in action!
Can you make churros without a piping bag? Honestly, I don't recommend it. This is a very popular question, and there are lots of recipes and videos out there showing you how to make churros without a pastry bag. Most recommend either rolling the dough into a log in your hands or piping sticks using a plastic bag with the corner cut off.
I tried both methods, and neither worked very well. Without their signature ridges, the churros were more dense, and it was more difficult to cook them evenly and avoid an undercooked center. If you're going to put in the effort to make homemade churros, make the most of your time and effort by using the proper equipment.
If you absolutely insist on making churros without a pastry bag, your best bet is to put the dough into a gallon-sized plastic bag and snip off one corner to create a hole with a half inch diameter. You will not be able to use a piping tip with a plastic bag, since the thick dough will pop the bag's seams open. Pipe the dough straight out of the bag into the oil and proceed with the rest of the recipe.
A neutral oil with a high smoke point is necessary for frying churros. Canola oil and vegetable oil are both great options because they are neutral-tasting, have a smoke point of 400°F (205°C), and are readily available at your local grocery store.
Both! Churros should have a crisp, golden exterior with a soft center. See "Troubleshooting Churros" above to learn how oil temperature and fry time affect texture and help you achieve the perfect texture.
Churros will lose their crispy exterior and become soft relatively quickly (within a day) after frying as they absorb the sugar coating. If you're storing churros and want to keep them crispy for as long as possible, add a slice of bread to your air-tight container to keep them fresh longer.
Storage Instructions
Churros are best enjoyed fresh, which is not a problem since they're deliciously addictive! But if you do have leftover churros that you want to store, here's how to do it.
Room Temperature: The best way to store churros is in an airtight container for up to 1-2 days. Adding a slice of bread to the container will help keep them fresh.
Refrigerator: Do not refrigerate churros, as it will dry out the dough.
Freezing: Other than briefly freezing the piped dough before frying (if you want straight churros), I do not recommend freezing the dough or the fried churros.
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Recipe
Pumpkin Spice Churros with Chocolate Dipping Sauce
Special Equipment
- Stand mixer or electric hand mixer
- Open star piping tip (I recommend Wilton 1M)
- Large, deep pot (a Dutch oven works great)
- Fry tongs or spider whisk
Ingredients
Pumpkin Spice Sugar Topping
- ¾ cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (4 grams) pumpkin pie spice*
Churros
- 1 cup (237 grams) water
- 6 Tablespoons (84 grams) unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- 1 Tablespoon (12 grams) granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon (1.5 grams) salt
- 1 cup (125 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon (2 grams) pumpkin pie spice*
- 2 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon (2 grams) vanilla extract
- vegetable oil or canola oil, for frying
Chocolate Dipping Sauce
- 4 ounces (113 grams) chocolate baking bar semisweet or bittersweet, chopped
- ½ cup (119 grams) heavy cream
Instructions
Prepare the pumpkin spice sugar topping.
- Add the sugar and pumpkin pie spice to a shallow dish. Stir to combine and set aside.
Make the churro dough.
- In a medium saucepan, combine water, butter, sugar, and salt. Heat the mixture over medium-high heat until the butter melts and the mixture comes to a boil. Then reduce heat to medium-low and remove the pan from the heat.
- Sprinkle flour and pumpkin pie spice over the liquid in the pan and stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until a dough begins to form.
- Return the pan to the heat and continue to stir vigorously until the dough is smooth, forms a ball, and stops sticking to the sides and bottom of the pan as you stir. This should take about 30 to 60 seconds. (If you want to be sure that the dough is ready for the next step, check its temperature by sticking an instant read thermometer into the center of the ball of dough. The temperature should be between 165°F and 175°F).
- Transfer the dough to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. (The goal is to let the dough cool enough that the eggs won't coagulate when they're added in the next step. You can be certain that the dough is cool enough by testing it's temperate with an instant read thermometer and making sure it's below 140°F. Or press your finger into the dough and if you can comfortably leave your finger in the dough for a few seconds it should be cool enough.)
- Add one egg and beat the dough using a mixer (handheld electric or stand) on medium speed until blended. Add the second egg and vanilla to the dough and beat again on medium speed until blended. Then beat the dough for another minute. The dough should be smooth, thick, and sticky.
- Transfer the dough to a pastry bag fitted with a star piping tip (I recommend using Wilton 1M).
- If you want your churros to be straight, briefly freeze the dough before frying. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and pipe 6 inch strips of dough onto the parchment, using a clean pair of kitchen scissors to cut each strip of dough away from the piping tip. Place the baking sheet in the freezer and chill dough for 30 minutes before frying. (Tip: Hold the piping tip an inch up off of the parchment so that the dough falls down to the parchment when it's piped. If you pipe directly onto the parchment the way you would onto a cake the churros will end up flat on one side.)
Fry the churros.
- In a Dutch oven or large skillet with deep sides, add about 2 inches of vegetable oil and heat the oil over medium-high heat until it reaches 350°F to 375°F. Use an instant read thermometer or candy thermometer to monitor the temperature of your oil, and adjust the heat as necessary while cooking to maintain an oil temperate between 350°F and 375°F.
- Carefully pipe the dough into the oil in 6-inch strips, using a clean pair or scissors to cut the ends of each strip. Cook no more than 5 churros at once so that they don't become overcrowded in the oil.
- Cook the churros until golden brown, about 4 minutes, carefully turning with fry tongs or a spider whisk so that they brown evenly on all sides.
- When finished cooking, quickly transfer the churros to a plate lined with a paper towel to blot any excess oil before coating the churros.
Coat the churros.
- Carefully roll the hot churros in the pumpkin spice sugar mixture. It's important to roll the churros in the sugar mixture immediately, while the oil is still hot, so that the sugar sticks to the churros. Place the coated churros on a wire cooling rack.
- Repeat this process with the remaining dough until all churros are cooked and coated with the pumpkin spice-sugar.
Make the chocolate dipping sauce.
- Place the chocolate in a medium, heat-proof bowl. Set aside. Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until hot but not boiling. Pour the hot heavy cream over the chocolate and let sit for one minute to let the chocolate melt. Gently stir the mixture until smooth.
Serve the churros.
- Serve the churros immediately, while still warm, with the chocolate dipping sauce.
Notes
References:
Authentic Churros from Mexico in My Kitchen
How to Make Choux Pastry from Serious Eats
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