A donut hole (also doughnut hole) is a type of
donut formed out of small round pieces of
dough
Dough is a malleable, sometimes elastic paste made from flour (which itself is made from grains or from leguminous or chestnut crops). Dough is typically made by mixing flour with a small amount of water or other liquid and sometimes includes ...
. Donut holes can be plain, or coated in a topping such as
glaze, and are a popular
dessert
Dessert is a course (food), course that concludes a meal; the course consists of sweet foods, such as cake, biscuit, ice cream, and possibly a beverage, such as dessert wine or liqueur. Some cultures sweeten foods that are more commonly umami, ...
in the United States. The name comes from the idea that the
hole
A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid Body (physics), body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in m ...
in a ring donut could be filled in by an appropriately sized ball.
History
Origins
There are several purported origins for donut holes and the "ring" shaped donut. The concept of forming donuts with a hole in the center is commonly attributed to Captain Hanson Gregory, who claimed to have invented the first ring donut after cutting the center of his mother's donut out in 1847.
Many early recipes called for the donut to be formed in the shape of a jumble, a circular cookie with a hole in the center. It has also been suggested that this was invented because donuts cook more quickly when they have a hole in the center.
Popularity
In 1973,
Dunkin' Donuts
DD IP Holder LLC, doing business as Dunkin', and originally Dunkin' Donuts, is an American multinational coffee and doughnut company, as well as a quick service restaurant. It was founded by Bill Rosenberg in Quincy, Massachusetts, in 19 ...
added "Munchkins" to their menu, selling them in the various flavors of their donuts as a way to use up the dough cuttings taken from the center of their ring donut. The name reportedly stems from the miniature "Munchkin" characters from the 1939 film
''The Wizard of Oz''.
The chain had previously unsuccessfully attempted to market them as donut holes before changing their strategy to appeal to younger consumers. However, as of 2021, the company produces donut holes separately from full size donuts. This is common for most donut producers in the 21st century. In 1976, Canadian coffee chain
Tim Hortons
Tim Hortons Inc., known colloquially as Tim's, Timmies, or Timmy's, is a Canadian multinational coffeehouse and restaurant chain with headquarters in Toronto; it serves coffee, Doughnut, donuts, sandwiches, Breakfast sandwich, breakfast egg mu ...
introduced donut holes called "
Timbits
Timbits is the name of a bite-sized dough confection sold at the Canadian-based franchise Tim Hortons. Timbits are almost an exact equivalent to the American " donut hole", however, they are baked, rather than fried. They were introduced in April ...
" to their menu.
Description
Like regular donuts, donut holes can come in many varieties. The dough itself can fall under the categories of either cake or yeast style. The main difference between the two is that cake style donut holes use a leavener like
baking soda
Sodium bicarbonate (IUPAC name: sodium hydrogencarbonate), commonly known as baking soda or bicarbonate of soda (or simply “bicarb” especially in the UK) is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is a salt (chemistry), salt compose ...
or baking powder to bring rise to the bread, while a yeast style donut uses yeast.
References
{{reflist
American doughnuts