Homemade Donuts | Kitchen At Hoskins (2024)

Why will you love this recipe?

• Ultra soft, light and airy as a cloud.
• Made using pantry ingredients.
• Supremely popular donuts recipe

Few reader feedbacks

"Tried out your recipe today and it was absolutely delightful. So light and fluffy, ever so slightly crispy exterior and really flavorful even though I didn’t use the nutmeg. Anyone leaving a bad comment here definitely did something wrong along the way. It’s fab, thank you!"

"I made these today and got rave reviews! Then I forgot to save it to Pinterest! So after searching the internet for nearly an hour….Yay!…I fond it! Saved to Pinterest….even started a donut board with this as the first one posted! They turned out perfect. The key is following exactly as the recipe is printed"

"I am a huge Krispy Creme doughnuts, buy I live in Brazil! I’ve been trying several recipes until this (very last) one. Today was the 5th time I mixed the dough (by hand). Result is always fluffy and airy doughnuts. Since I am from Spain, I have compared the spices and I prefer to infuse the milk wit crashed cardamon seeds and I filter them out. Depending on how many people we are, I sometimes freeze the doughnuts after the second rise due to superb Sunday treats for lazy rainy days. Thank you for this great récipe"

"Omg!!!! This recipe was awesome!!! The donuts were so light, fluffy and soft!!! First time I made them. They were just perfect 😍 I will be looking at more of your recipes"

Ingredients

Scroll down to the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and amounts.

1. Milk - The amount of milk is key. During frying, the moisture turns into steam, creating hollow pockets as the moisture tries to escape. I like to use full fat whole milk for it's richness.
2. Butter - Butter is fat and water. When it's heated, the water turns into steam., which then lifts the dough and helps in creating a light and airy texture.
3. Yeast - Make sure that the yeast is fresh. Yeast is a living organism and is best stored in the freezer.
4. Eggs -It's crucial to have the eggs at room temperature. Cold eggs will hinder the yeast's ability to activate.
5. All purpose flour - It provides structure and texture in the homemade donuts recipe. It has 10 to 11 percent protein when compared to 12 to 14 percent protein in bread flour. Lesser protein all purpose flour minimizes gluten formation and thus creating super tender yeast doughnuts.
6. Nutmeg - Do not buy pre ground nutmeg. Buy whole nutmegs and grate fresh for this homemade donuts recipe.
7. Oil - I like to use neutral oils, such as vegetable oil, canola oil or sunflower oil, because it has a high smoke point. Peanut oil will also work great! If you use an oil with a low smoke point, the oil will burn as the fat breaks down, imparting an unpleasant taste.

Glaze Variations

1. Chocolate - Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder along with confectioners sugar.
2. Sprinkle - Stir in fine colored sprinkles into the glaze.
3. Maple - Replace vanilla extract with maple flavoring.
4. Flavorings - Use orange zest, bourbon or rum instead of vanilla.

1. Make a sponge- Add milk, butter, yeast, eggs, sugar, salt, nutmeg and 2 cups of flour into a stand mixer and mix to create a very soft and sticky dough. This is secret in achieving a fluffy crumb! This method is usually adopted in making making Asian style breads that is very light and airy.

Pro tip: Use the right amount of liquids! Excess liquid creates a looser dough, which allows the steam bubbles expand more quickly, whereas less liquid will result in a drier dough. The gas bubbles then have a harder time forming and are more likely to collapse.

Tip: Use the right measuring cup! Liquid measurements should be made in liquid cup measure and not a dry cup measure.

2. Add remaining flour and knead to a soft dough, using the dough hook. The dough should stick to the bottom and little bit to the sides. Don't worry - This is due to high moisture content and this is essential in creating a best homemade donut recipe.

Pro tip: Soft dough equals soft doughnuts. Do not be tempted to mix in more flour!

3. Let dough rise for about 1 and ½ hours, until doubled in volume. Find the warmest spot in your kitchen , like a sunny window, near the stove top or in a luke warm oven.

Pro tip: I found that this homemade donuts recipe benefits remarkably when kneaded in a stand mixer. It resists the temptation to add extra flour to tame the very sticky dough, which can make the doughnuts denser and not that amazing soft and fluffy texture!

4 & 5. Shape the dough - Dump the homemade donut dough onto a floured kitchen counter, Roll ½ inch to ¾ inch thick, dusting the top with flour as well. Cut doughnut shapes and place on floured cookie sheets. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and place again in the same warm spot for about 30-60 minutes, until they almost double in size.

Tip: Don't have a donut cutter? Use a 3-inch round cookie cutter (a wide mouth canning ring would also work) and the fat end of a large piping tip to cut the holes.

Deep fry homemade donuts in moderate heat, until pale golden on both sides. Drain on paper towel. Remove when they are light golden in color and not get dark in color.

Tip: How do you know if the oil is ready? Pinch a small piece of dough and add into the oil. It should take about a minute to get golden in color.

The best temperature to deep fry is 330-340 degrees F. If you own a deep fry thermometer then this is great time to use. Hotter oil will get the outside brown fast before the doughnuts have a chance to rise, whereas cooler oil will cause them to absorb oil and might make them greasy.

Pro tip: Yeast releases carbon dioxide gas, forming thousands of tiny air pockets inside the cut donut dough, causing it to rise. When the risen dough hits the hot oil, those air pockets expand further giving a high rise.

Tip: Don't overcrowd! Adding too many donuts will cause the oil temperature to drop rapidly and your doughnuts might absorb some oil, making them greasy.

Did you know? When you drop the homemade donuts in the hot oil, the rapid change in temperature causes the air bubbles inside the dough, to expand bringing in lightness to the doughnuts.

Make glaze - Stir confectioners sugar, water, salt and vanilla extract, until you get the drippy consistency. Dip the tops or both sides in glaze and place on a wire rack for glaze to set.

Helpful tips

• Oil temperature - Magic temperature is 330-340 degrees F. Hotter will get the outside brown fast before the homemade donuts have a chance to rise fully in the oil. If you own a deep fry thermometer then this is great time to use. If not, medium heat is perfect and test one doughnut - it should take about a minute on each side to get golden. Adjust heat accordingly.
• Color, color, color - Pale golden and not any darker. Letting the homemade donuts brown will form a crusty outside, but not the light texture we are aiming for.
• Measure flour correctly - Adding too much flour to the homemade donut recipe is the most common mistake and will make your glazed donuts dense. The best way to measure -fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off.

Trouble shooting

Not fluffy - There could be several reasons for this:

1. Yeast not active - Yeast is a living organism that, when activated with liquid, it creates air bubbles that gives the homemade donuts its rise and fluffy texture. Yeast needs to be tested to ensure it’s still alive and ready to work as intended.
2. Dough did not rise enough - If the yeast was expired or the liquids was too hot or cold, then it will kill the yeast.
3. There was more flour - Measure your flour and other ingredients correctly. More than needed flour will cause the homemade donuts to become dense.

How to store leftovers?

These homemade donuts are absolutely best when fresh! However, unglazed donuts can be refrigerated, in an air tight container for up to 4 days (warm in the microwave for few seconds before eating). It can be stored in a sealed container at room temperature, beyond that the glaze begins to get sticky.

Can I cut the recipe in half to make less donuts? Or is it going to affect the end result?

Absolutely! However, the only issue is that half the recipe might be too less for the stand mixer. Otherwise, it does not affect the result in any way.

Can use self-raising flour instead of all purpose flour?

Self raising flour has rising agents, like baking powder or baking soda in it, So, this will not work when combined with yeast.

Does the active dry yeast require more rise time than instant yeast?

I have not tried this recipe with instant yeast. However, the general rule is if that if a recipe calls for 1 ¼ teaspoons of active dry yeast, use 1 teaspoon of instant yeast.

Does the yeast not have to be proofed separately?

When working with active dry yeast, you don’t have to proof it separately. It works just as well however you will have to make sure the temperature of ingredients are exactly as mentioned in the recipe.