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Old-fashioned glazed buttermilk donuts are an absolute classic. Here’s how to make them great, with flavor variations.
Why we love this recipe
These tender, lightly sweet old fashioned buttermilk donuts are a dream. They make wonderful, honest comfort food but with a welcome measure of restraint that sometimes gets lost in the modern world. These are basically cake-style donuts, but the buttermilk also creates characteristic crags on one of the faces.
And while deep-frying at home can feel the slightest bit intimidating if you’re not used to it, I think you’ll find this recipe quick and easy to make — with seriously crowd-pleasing results.
I first published a version of this recipe here back in 2016, for Celestial Seasonings Tea. I’ve since updated the post for clarity and make some tweaks to the recipe itself.
What you’ll need
Here’s a glance at the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe.
For the donuts
- Good old all-purpose flour yields a nice, tender texture in these cake-style donuts.
- The acidity of the buttermilk contributes to both flavor and tenderness.
- A combination of baking powder and baking soda creates a nice even rise and gentle browning while allowing a bit of the buttermilk’s flavor to shine through.
- If possible, use a good cultured, salted butter from grass-fed cows. It sounds posh but doesn’t have to be — Kerrygold is my go-to brand at the supermarket and isn’t overly expensive. The wildly superior taste is really worth seeking out. If you’re using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt to the dough.
- Use a high-quality pure vanilla extract for the best flavor.
- Safflower oil is my high-heat, neutral-tasting vegetable oil of choice. You can use that or sunflower, canola, peanut, vegetable oil blend, or any other refined oil with a neutral taste and very high smoke point.
For the glaze
- I go back and forth between using good old powdered sugar from the grocery store and buying organic powdered sugar. The latter tends to be processed with tapioca starch instead of cornstarch and have a smoother, more powerful thickening capacity. Either one is fine in this recipe. Whichever you choose, you’ll give it a sift to ensure smoothness.
- A little bit of whole milk thins out the glaze to a perfect dipping consistency that behaves well and dries quickly.
How to make it
Here’s an overview of what you’ll do to make a great batch of old fashioned glazed buttermilk donuts. You can see the steps in action in the video that accompanies this post, and get all the details in the recipe card below.
- First you’ll stir together the dry ingredients, then incorporate the wet ingredients.
- Roll out the dough and cut into rings.
- Fry until puffed and golden.
- Stir together the glaze and dip each donut. You can decide whether to dip the smoother face as shown or the craggier face, which will capture a bit more glaze. That’s it!
Suggested flavor variations
This flexible recipe is happy to accommodate additional flavors if you like. Here are some easy suggestions. Incorporate all of the ingredients called for in the original recipe plus the following, except where noted.
- Gingerbread spice — add to the dough: 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger + 1/8 teaspoon each of ground cloves and allspice. Add to the glaze: 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon.
- Cinnamon sugar — add to the dough: 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Instead of glaze, mix together 1/2 cup granulated sugar + 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Dredge donuts through cinnamon sugar right after frying.
- Meyer lemon — In the dough, replace the nutmeg with 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom, and add 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest. In the glaze, replace the milk with freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice and replace the ground nutmeg with ground cardamom.
Expert tips and FAQs
Can I make this recipe in advance? What about leftovers?
As with virtually all donuts, this recipe is best on the day it’s made. Feel free to prepare it in the morning to serve any time of day. Leftovers will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or two if necessary.
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Old-Fashioned Glazed Buttermilk Donuts
Old-fashioned glazed buttermilk donuts are an absolute classic, and they're easier to make at home than you may think. Here's how to make them great, with flavor variations.
Ingredients
For the donuts
- 5 tablespoons (70 grams) salted butter
- 4 cups (480 grams) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- ½ cup (100 grams) sugar
- 2 teaspoons (10 grams) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon 2.(4 grams) baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup (237 ml) buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ quarts 1(420 ml) safflower oil, for frying
For the glaze
- 1 cup (120 grams) powdered sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) whole milk
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Melt the butter on half power in the microwave or in a small pot set over low heat. Set aside to cool slightly while you proceed.
- In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and nutmeg.
- Into the center of the bowl, crack the eggs and pour the buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla.
- Using a fork, beat the eggs a bit and then gently incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet to form a rough dough. Don’t overmix or donuts will be tough.
- Sprinkle a little flour on your work surface. (I sometimes like to roll out dough on a nice big piece of parchment — flour the parchment if you go that route.)
- Place the dough on the work surface and knead just a few times to bring it all together. Lightly flour the top of the dough and a rolling pin, and roll out to about 1/4-inch thickness.
- Using a 3 1/2-inch donut cutter with a 1-inch hole (or similarly sized cookie cutters, biscuit cutters or even an overturned water glass and shot glass) cut out as many donuts and holes as you can.
- Gather and re-roll the dough one time to make more donuts.
- In a Dutch oven or similar heavy pot with high sides, heat the oil over medium-high heat until it reaches 350°F. During cooking, you will adjust the heat as necessary to maintain the temperature as best as possible.
- Fry donuts in batches, about four at a time depending on the size of your pot. It should take about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side until donuts are golden brown and cooked through. Some cracking on the top before you flip each piece is a characteristic of this style of donut.
- Cool donuts on a wire rack set over a baking sheet lined with paper towels.
- Into a wide, shallow bowl, sift together the powdered sugar and nutmeg.
- Pour in the milk and vanilla and stir until a nice smooth glaze forms.
- Dip one face of each full-sized donut into the glaze and return to rack. You can choose whether to dip the flatter face (as shown here) or the craggy face, which will capture a bit more glaze.
- When you've dipped all of the full-size donuts, add the donut holes to the bowl all at once and gently move them around with a spoon to coat with the remaining glaze, then return to rack. The glaze will dry within a few minutes.
Notes
- If possible, use a good cultured, salted butter from grass-fed cows. It sounds posh but doesn't have to be — Kerrygold is my go-to brand at the supermarket and isn't overly expensive. The wildly superior taste is really worth seeking out. If you're using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt to the dough.
- Safflower oil is my high-heat, neutral-tasting vegetable oil of choice. You can use that or sunflower, canola, peanut, vegetable oil blend, or any other refined oil with a neutral taste and very high smoke point.
- As with virtually all donuts, this recipe is best on the day it's made. Feel free to prepare it in the morning to serve any time of day. Leftovers will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or two if necessary.
Suggested flavor variations
This flexible recipe is happy to accommodate additional flavors if you like. Here are some easy suggestions. Incorporate all of the ingredients called for in the original recipe plus the following, except where noted.- Gingerbread spice — add to the dough: 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger + 1/8 teaspoon each of ground cloves and allspice. Add to the glaze: 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon.
- Cinnamon sugar — add to the dough: 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Instead of glaze, mix together 1/2 cup granulated sugar + 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Dredge donuts through cinnamon sugar right after frying.
- Meyer lemon — In the dough, replace the nutmeg with 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom, and add 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest. In the glaze, replace the milk with freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice and replace the ground nutmeg with ground cardamom.
Special equipment
Nutrition
Serving: 1donut, Calories: 364kcal, Carbohydrates: 50.7g, Protein: 6.1g, Fat: 15.4g, Fiber: 1.4g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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