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What Are Donut Holes?
Donut holes (spelled as doughnut in England and Commonwealth countries) are small, bite-sized donuts that were traditionally made from the dough taken from the center of ring donuts.
The “holes” are deep-fried just like regular donuts. They are then glazed with sugar, or dusted with fine sugar or powdered sugar.
These donut holes are round in shape but much smaller than regular donuts, making these dainty fried dough balls such a delight to the palate.
How Do You Make Donut Holes?
Homemade donut holes are made by dropping a small ball of dough into hot oil. The round shape can be achieved through the use of a small ice cream scoop or a spoon.
For this easy donut holes recipe, I used the former, which yields beautiful, round and spherical shape of these bite-sized sweet treats.
Yeast or No Yeast?
There are two versions of recipe for donut holes, one with yeast, and one without yeast. This recipe is without yeast, making it the easiest recipe ever, with the following basic ingredients:
- All-purpose flour
- Egg
- Whole Milk
- Baking Powder
- Butter
- Sugar
Tips for Frying Donut Holes
- The perfect oil temperature for frying is 375F.
- Fry the donut holes for about 1-2 minutes on both sides, turning only once.
- Fry them in batches of about 5-6 at a time.
- After frying, drain them on paper towels.
For the toppings, you can dust with powdered sugar, regular fine sugar, or with a sugar glaze. I personally love regular sugar as there is a bit of texture to the surface, plus you can control the sweetness by adding or reducing the amount of sugar. Other ideas include:
- Strawberry Jam
- Chocolate Sauce
- Sprinkles
- Sweet Coconut Flakes
This recipe is adapted from Taste of Home. It’s easy and fail-proof. If you love fried dough balls, for examples: beignets or malasadas, you are going to love them. Enjoy!
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Easy Donut Holes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted)
- oil (for deep-frying)
- 1/4 cup sugar (for rolling)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and ground nutmeg. In a small bowl, combine the egg, milk and butter. Add to dry ingredients and mix well.
- In a pot or deep skillet, heat oil to 375°F (190°C). Drop the dough by using a small round ice cream scoop, five or six at a time, into oil. Fry until browned, about 1-2 minutes, turning once.
- Drain on paper towels. Roll warm doughnut holes in sugar. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
Very good!
Has anyone tried this recipe in an air fryer? Will it work?
Hey is it possible to make this recipe but use a donut cookie cutter and make them into the shape of mini donuts first then deep fry them?
You can try. I am not sure because I didn’t try it.
Can you fill with raspberry peraerve
Yes you can!