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Grandma’s famous melt-in-your-mouth homemade donuts are utterly addicting and absolutely worth the effort!!
We Love Grandma’s Famous Donuts!
This donut recipe is an ALL-TIME family favorite!!
Whenever it gets cold or rainy, one of us kids is bound to text or call Mom and kindly ask if she’s up for making some homemade donuts.
She’s made them for decades and luckily passed down her famous recipe! There is no donut we love more – none. They are soft and fluffy with the perfect hint of sweetness. The signature glaze is PERFECTION!
Whether for breakfast or just a treat, these are sure to knock off anyone’s socks! Best served warm, these goodies are right up there with our Homemade Cinnamon Rolls!
WHY WE LOVE IT:
- Easy steps. There are several steps to make these donuts, but we promise you they are still quite simple.
- They are beyond delicious! They’re soft, warm, covered in a tasty glaze and just melt in your mouth.
- FAMOUS! These donuts are famous in our family, and they are so good. We love to make them in the winter, especially around Christmas (along with our Old Fashioned Donuts)!!
Ingredients
PREP TIME: 20 minutes RISE TIME: 3 hours COOK TIME: 30 minutes
Dough
- 2 tablespoons rapid rise yeast – Since you bloom the yeast in water, you can also use active dry yeast.
- ¾ cup lukewarm water (110-115 degrees F) – see How to Activate Yeast
- 2 cups milk – 2% or whole milk
- ½ cup vegetable shortening, room temperature – regular or butter-flavored shortening
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon – or an equal amount of Pumpkin Pie Spice
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 4 large eggs – Room temperature eggs will incorporate best.
- 7-7½ cups all-purpose flour – see How to Measure Flour
- vegetable oil, for frying – canola oil or peanut oil. You’ll need enough to maintain ½-1 inch of oil in the frying pan.
Glaze
- 7 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- ⅔ cup water – For a thicker frosting, replace the water with milk and reduce the amount to the desired thickness.
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract – or lemon, orange, or almond extract
- optional chocolate – Add a bit of cocoa powder to this glaze for a chocolate version.
- optional cinnamon sugar – Coat both sides in a cinnamon sugar mixture.
How to Make Homemade Donuts
- YEAST. Dissolve 2 tablespoons yeast in ¾ cup lukewarm water. Set aside. Heat 2 cups milk in microwave for 2-3 minutes.
- DOUGH. While milk is heating add ½ cup shortening (room temp) to a large bowl. Pour hot milk over it and whisk until mixed (there will still be some clumps).
- Add 2 teaspoons salt, ⅔ cup sugar, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, and ½ teaspoon cinnamon. Stir well with a wooden spoon. Add 4 eggs and mix well.
- Add yeast mixture to the batter and mix. Add 2 cups of flour and mix with a wooden spoon. Mix well. Add 2 more cups and mix. Add 2 more cups and mix. The batter should not be runny and resemble dough. Add 1 more cup of flour, give or take ½ cup.
- Mix just until the dough is smooth.
- RISE. Gently knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until it is not sticky to the touch.
- Place the soft dough into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover the bowl and let rise for 1 to 1½ hours (about double in size when done).
- Do not over-proof the dough! It can create more air bubbles than the structure of the dough can sustain and it will collapse. A warmer environment will cause the dough to rise faster so watch for the dough to rise to about double in size.
- 2ND RISE. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and roll out to about a 1-inch thickness. Cut the donuts out using a doughnut cutter as closely as possible. Save the middles for doughnut holes.
- Move donuts and holes to a clean surface. Cover and let rise for 1 to 1½ hours.
- FRY. Once the donuts and holes are done rising, fry them in a large frying pan, deep fryer, or Dutch oven with vegetable oil until golden brown. Let drain on a cooling rack.
Glaze
- Combine 7 cups powdered sugar with ⅔ cup water and 1 tablespoon vanilla. Add donuts to glaze as soon as they are done frying and make sure both sides are covered.
- Place on a plate or wire rack to let the excess vanilla glaze drain.
Cooking Variations
- Bake. Place on a lightly greased cookie tray and brush the tops with melted butter. Bake in a preheated oven at 375°F for 10-12 minutes, rotating donuts halfway in between, and bake until golden brown.
- Air fry. The finished texture may be different from an oil-fried donut. Working in batches, place some donuts into the basket making sure they are not touching. Close the air fryer, set to 350°F. Fry for 6-10 minutes. The length of time will depend on the size of your donuts. For donut holes fry for 3-5 minutes.
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Homemade Donuts
Grandma's famous melt-in-your-mouth glazed homemade donuts are utterly addicting and absolutely worth the effort!!
Video
Ingredients
Dough
- 2 tablespoons rapid rise yeast
- ¾ cup lukewarm water, (110-115°F)
- 2 cups milk
- ½ cup vegetable shortening, room temperature
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 4 large eggs
- 7-7½ cups all-purpose flour
- vegetable oil, for frying
Glaze
- 7 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- ⅔ cup water
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the dough. Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water. Set aside.
- Heat milk in the microwave for 2-3 minutes.
- While milk is heating, place shortening in a large bowl. Pour hot milk over it and whisk until mixed (there will still be a few shortening clumps).
- Add sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix well with a wooden spoon or the mixer whisk attachment. Add eggs and continue to mix, then stir in the yeast mixture.
- Add 2 cups of flour and mix with a wooden spoon. Continue to add flour 1-2 cups at a time until the batter is no longer runny and is smooth.
- Place dough on a clean, lightly floured surface and gently knead dough until the surface is not too sticky to the touch. The dough should be very soft, but not so sticky that you cannot handle it fairly easily. Place the soft dough into a lightly greased bowl. Cover the bowl and let rise for 1-1½ hours at room temperature. The dough should be about double in size when it's ready.
- Place dough on a lightly floured surface and roll out to a 1-inch thickness. Use a 3½-inch donut cutter to cut donuts out, cutting as closely as possible together and saving the middles for doughnut holes. Move donuts and holes to a clean surface, cover, and let rise at room temperature for 1-1½ hours.
- Make the glaze: Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Once the donuts and holes are done rising, fill a large frying pan with 1½ inches of vegetable oil and heat to 365-380°F. Working in batches, fry the donuts and holes until golden brown, 2-3 minutes per side for donuts and about 2 minutes per side for donut holes.
- Remove each donut from the oil and immediately transfer to the bowl with the glaze. Turn to make sure both sides are coated, then place on a wire rack over parchment paper to let the excess glaze drain. Repeat to make the remaining donuts.
Notes
Prep ahead. Shape the dough into donuts, cover, and refrigerate until the next day. When ready to fry, let them come to room temperature and rise for an hour.
Make filled donuts. Instead of using a donut cutter that creates the signature doughnut hole, use a large round cookie cutter. Rise and fry as directed. Once cool, use a piping tool to add your filling of choice (pudding, jelly, Nutella) through the side of the donut.
Store loosely covered at room temperature for 1-2 days, in the refrigerator for 5-6 days, or in a freezer Ziploc and freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Serving: 1donut, Calories: 396kcal, Carbohydrates: 79g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.5g, Cholesterol: 24mg, Sodium: 172mg, Potassium: 101mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 33g, Vitamin A: 58IU, Vitamin C: 0.004mg, Calcium: 34mg, Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
How to make filled donuts?
Instead of using a donut cutter that creates the signature doughnut hole, use a large round cookie cutter. Rise and fry as directed. Once cool, use a piping tool to add your filling of choice (pudding, jelly, Nutella) through the side of the donut.
Prep ahead of time?
Shape the dough into donuts, cover, and refrigerate until the next day. When ready to fry, let them come to room temperature and rise for an hour.
How to store homemade donuts?
Homemade donuts will dry out if not stored properly but can become soggy if completely sealed. Store loosely covered at room temperature for 1-2 days, in the refrigerator for 5-6 days, or in a freezer Ziploc and freeze for up to 3 months.
Can you substitute butter for shortening? Or anything else?
Hi, I don’t mean to offend but i sincerely need help troubleshooting this recipe. I made these and they came out inedible. I was very excited, the dough looked phenomenal but after I fried a couple I taste tested them and had an issue I’ve never had before. They had a very bitter, acrid taste which left the roof of my mouth feeling dry for the rest of the day I was extremely disappointed. As a side note I also felt the dough wasn’t sweet enough although I think the texture was good. I thought it was the oil at first so I tried heating up a different brand of vegetable oil very carefully to not exceed the smoke point but that was not the issue. I also tried to bake some but encountered the same issue. One thing I did wrong was let the milk boil slightly while heating it. I checked the dates on all my ingredients and everything was well within range. Have you ever experienced this? Was it too much yeast? It seems like the majority of people had a positive experience so it must be something I did or did not do, please let me know if you’ve ever had a similar issue, thanks!
So I haven’t ever had this happen with the donut recipe. Sorry to hear they didn’t taste how you were hoping! I’m guessing that either a) too much yeast was added or b) it could have been when the milk boiled. I have heard of that bitter taste/dry mouth happening with excess baking soda or powder, but there aren’t any in this recipe, so I’m no 100% sure what caused that reaction. But that would be my best guess. If you give them another try sometime, you’ll have to let us know if the same thing happens or not!
I don’t know what happened but when I picked them up to fry they totally collapsed
Oh no! I’m so sorry to hear that! Might have been something to do with the yeast or the proofing. In the post, there are a few tips/ideas of why they might have been flat. Maybe that can help for next time. Thanks for giving the recipe a try!!
Wow! These were great, and according to my kids, I should open up a bakery to sell these donuts😂.
Thank you for making donuts so easy to make! I had never attempted before, and now there is no going back!
I really didn’t know I could make donuts at home, as good as our bakery! These were delicious!
Amazing donuts, when I get on death row my last meal would be theas donuts with olive oil with a hint of rum to drink👍👌I will recommend theas to my prison mates😏.
I haven’t made these yet but they look and sound delicious. I’ll update my review after. Your recipe calls for shortening but the video looks like stick butter. What do I use exactly? If it’s butter is it salted or unsalted? Thank you.
It’s just the butter shortening 🙂 Let me know what you think!
What temperature is best for the oil ?
I’d say anywhere from 365-380 degrees Fahrenheit.
Bro the time said 15 minutes but you have to let the dough rise for 1 hour and a half… the kids are gonna be waiting too long for this. Maybe change the time so your people who don’t have time will know.
Thanks for pointing that out!
This recipe sounds great but way too much.
Thease donuts were amazing definitely worth my time 💯! I have never made home made donuts before and i am 20 years old and wanted to bake something and this recipe was the right choice i made them for my friends and family and they loved them ! Thank u so much ! This guy is now happy lol i will do this again ! I will try some more of your recipes too 💯😍✨
I’m so glad they turned out so well and that your friends and family loved them so much! Thanks so much for trying it! It makes me happy to hear it was such a success!
We are trying this recipe for the first time. It sure makes a lot. Next time I will need to half the recipe. In the meantime, May I use the other half of this recipe to make your mini cinnamon rolls?
I have not tried that, so I can’t say for sure. One way to find out 🙂
Recipe turned out perfect (Besides flour was still way too sticky prolly added a additional3 cups of flour. And I ended up with like 5 dozen donuts lol.I stopped at #5 the night before took it out of the fridge a few hrs in the am to warm up the dough some.Then kneaded a lil more with my hand also to warm it up.Rolled out the donuts. And noticed it has no temperature to cook on so started at med high wasnt hot enough so went to 375 .Fried for 2 minutes then flipped them..Then Made the original glazed ,chocolate glazed,caramel glazed and cinnamon and brown sugar.Will definitely use this recipe again .Thanx
Love all the glazes you made!! Thanks for sharing that!
Love the donuts!!!
Thank you so much!
Yayyyyy say my taste buds!!First time making donuts !! love it and so does everyone else!!!( just ate 10 of them)- and I’m a gourmet eater!! 10 stars!!!
LOL..love this!! Thank you so much for trying them 🙂
really good but i had to make a couple revisions. The glaze was way to thick, more like icing, i added more water until i could dip the donuts easier.
It wasn’t enough flour when making the donuts, i had to add more. Not sure why they came out differsnt for me, but they’re still delicious! And the recipe is so simple and easy to follow, even for someone like me who sucks at cooking!
Lol..you’ll get it! Not sure why that happened either! Glad you liked them! Thank you!
Lovely and very helpful
Thank you so much 🙂
These doughnuts are amazing! It’s true, they take some time, but my kids will tell you it’s worth the wait:) I used coconut oil to fry the doughnuts and added maple syrup to the glaze. Delicious!
Thank you so much for saying that! I am so glad you tried them 🙂 They are our favorite fall treat!
You say To make glaze mix 7 cups powdered sugar with ⅔ cup water and 2 tsp. vanilla. Then you say if you want more of a frosting we recommend using less milk. But the glaze says to use water…im confused.
It is with water, but if you want more of a frosting use milk, but less than the water amount. It just makes it thicker.
Wow,it came out very well as I tried it at my home. Very delicious recipe, would like to get more recipes like this from here.
I hope you find more to try! Glad you liked them! Thank you!
Made these yesterday with my 12 yr old daugHter. All went well except after cutting into DOUGHNUT shapes and letting rise, the middles of the DouGhnUts rose sO much they closed up and looked like bagels 🙁
The glaze wAs also Pretty thick, following this reCipe to a T, so i would watch that when mixing. It all depends on the humidity and temp and your likIng. 🙂
Great taste and texture and a big hit otherwise! First time using yeast for My daUghter and first time frying anytHing as well!
I am sorry they rose so much..haven’t had that happen before. I would add a tad more water to the glaze recipe, to get it the consistency you like. Glad you tried them! You’ll get it! 🙂
Love this recipe! I have never made homemade donuts before, but i decided to give it a shot. My family devoured these and they were awesome! i let the dough rise for an extremely long time, as i was busy and wasn’t able to make them exactly after the recommended rise time, but I think that helped. Definitely will be making again!
That makes me so happy to hear! They go fast! Thanks for sharing that!
Hi,
Can i make the dough sitting over night nad make the donuts in the morning?
Thanks!
Yes. You can make them up until step 5. Then cover and refrigerate until the next day. When ready to make, let come to room temp and let rise for an hour. Enjoy!!
This recipe was delicious. I made several variations (glazed, raspberry filled, lemon curd filled, brown sugar & Cinnamon bear claw) for different members of the family and all were a hit.
Perfect!! Happy they were a hit! Thank you!
Hi LUNA,
Thanks so sharing your recipe! Looks delicious and would love to try to make it. However, when I watched your video, I didn’t not see that you have added the eggs in your Dough, but there should be ADDED 4 EGGS in your recipe. So, could you please clarify if we need to add eggs or not?
Thank you very much! Hope you and your family stay healthy during the pandemic crisis!
Take care,
Hosuni
Yes, you do..so sorry…add the eggs after the sugar, cinnamon, salt, & nutmeg 🙂 Enjoy!!
What can we use to substitute for the shortening?
I haven’t tried using anything else, but you could try butter or see what google would suggest.
At first when I mixed together the shortening and milk, the shortening curtled. Is that normal? anyway, when I finished mixing the dough together, It turned out just fine. It is totally worth the wait for these AWESOME doughnuts. I will totally use this recipe again!
Not usually, but I am glad they turned out 🙂 Thank you!
Holy Moly these are good! Thanks for the recipe. Sometimes you just need a good donut!
You will love these homemade donuts. They do take a little more time but truly worth the wait. Theres nothing like a fresh homemade donut!
This looks like the saMe recipe my MIL uses and my husband LOVES! Seriously, he’ll eat 10! I think ill use all your tips to try them here at home and SURPRISE him. Thanks for posting!
These are the best doughnuts ever!!!
Ok, I could eat way more than I should of these! They are so good & soft & that glaze is perfect!
I don’t see what temp to fry these at? Am I completely missing it somewhere? I don’t fry very often, so have no clue on my own.
No worries. You can fry them on medium low to medium. If they start browning too fast, you can always lower the temp 🙂 Good luck!
I am so glad that you wrote about making these in an air fryer because i was going to ask you about that! This was so helpful and makes me less scared about making my own doughnuts.
These are the funnest and tastiest!
I made these and they disappeared in record time!
These are literallY tHe best donuts ever! ThEy are one of my favorite treats!
THIS IS VERY SIMILAR TO THE RECIPE MY MOM USED TO MAKE WHEN WE WERE GROWING UP. THE NUTMEG MAKES THEM EXTRA YUMMY!!
My wife has been craving home made donuts for a couple of Days now, so got the stuff and made them, although i screwed up and had the oil much too hot the first time around the second round turned out great! Thanks for the recipe!
Glad you tried them!! You are nice for making them for her!
This recipe sounds PRETTY easy! Let’s hope I can do a great job! ??
It is!! I bet you can 🙂 Good luck!
I’m going to try making these but 1/2 everything since they make so many. I’d be the one eating them and I’m pre diabetic.
LOL…yes, it is easy to do! I sure hope you like them!
Beige pants with sneakers, okay? Depends on what color matching sneakers, like this is part of a light beige, and preferably also with a light-colored sneakers, looks better, the overall look will look stylish and elegant, If you also want to do it, choose a pair of truly suited to their sneakers to match, it will be better. About this beige pants with sneakers, in fact, not too consider, and will definitely look good, if not look good if the color is fresh, with them, it will be more obvious fashion sense.
Have you ever made “Apple Cider Donuts” by adding apple cider as the liquid in the recipe. We used to live in Albany, New York and out in the countryside was the Indian Ladder Farm. One could go pick apples and they had a little country store. Whenever I’d get a hankering for those yummy donuts, I would pack the kids in the car and go get some for us and some to surprise my husband at work. They were the foundation of some special memories our family shares <3
I can’t wait to try these, but I was wondering how many inches of veggy oil and what temperature? Thanks.
Just about 1/2 inch. 🙂
I made these two nights ago. The time it takes is worth the end result. I have never made donuts, so I really didn’t know what to expect. Delicious!!! My family thanks you, I’m sure. I didn’t have any powdered sugar for glaze (which made me sad), so I improvised and made half of them with sugar/ little cinnamon mixture and I dipped the others in chocolate frosting and put sprinkles on. Next time I definitely am trying the glaze. Just one question…storage for these? I put them in plastic containers and everything is soaking in/melting off. How do you store them. Also – this recipe made so many that I thought it would be nice if BF brought some in to work to share. Well, he refused because he wanted them for himself. So, thank you for sharing this. Haha. They have been enjoyed!
Your comment totally made my day, Jessica!!! I love that it was a hit! Unfortunately, we have never really had any leftovers (we usually make them when all the family is together which means they don’t last long). I would maybe put them on a plate with paper towels and then cover with saran wrap or put in a gallon bag. 🙂
How many donuts does this recipe make?
It makes about 1 1/2 dozen. 😉
Should I use instant or active dry yeast? Thanx for your
I use active dry yeast 🙂
HI!!!! I just made these and OMGOODNESS! I was a little worried that I did not make them right, but oh they turned out WONDERFULLY!!! Super easy! Thank you soooo much for sharing!
YAY!! Aren’t they SO yummy?! Thanks for stopping by Courtney!
They were! I hope you dont mind but I did share with my friends and family! I gave them the link to this recipe! Going to make them again tomorrow for work! Oh I also made half with cinnamon/ sugar coat instead of glaze! Yum!
Is it ok to sub almond milk for Cows milk? Trying to maKe this vegaN. 🙂
I personally have not tried, but you sure could. It will change the taste a little.
it’s hard to make ittttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
I”m very excited to try this tomorrow! I’m new to donut making, but a pro at donut eating! Just wondering when it says to fry in a frying pan with vegetable oil, does this mean they are to float in oil, so do I need lots? Or do they really just fry like an egg? THanks!!!
They’re pretty much floating in oil… it’s not just a few TB. Let me know how it turns out… I think you’ll love them! 😀
Turned out great! Easy as pie! haha! I used my kitchen aid mixer to mix it all and it worked wonderfully! I don`t know how people can do it all with a wooden spoon! Thanks for sharing the great recipe!
These look yummy! Can you start the process the night before? Just scanning the recipe I see 3 hours of rising time (as when I make anything it takes the longest time!) and I am not a morning person 🙂
To be honest, we’ve never made these the night before. It’s always been a “whole-afternoon” kind of project. If you do try the night before let me know how it goes so I can be sure to tell others if it worked or not. 🙂
I LOVE donuts. They are totally my guilty pleasure and we make them way too often 🙂
You HAVE to try PW’s recipe because it is change-your-life-good. Do it~
http://www.blessthismessplease.com/2012/07/pioneer-womans-glazed-donuts.html
Good to know!! I will definitely add this to the must-make list. Thanks, girl! XO
So yummy!! I’m hungry for doughnuts now. I think I will try these tomorrow afternoon since it will be cold and rainy here. Thanks for the awesome recipe!!
Let me know how these turn out!! 😀
Oh Yum!
Oh, darn…I am so sorry they did. I wish I knew what happened. I haven’t had that happened. Thanks for trying them, though 🙂