Few baked goods are more synonymous with Amish cooks and bakers than homemade doughnuts (okay, and cinnamon rolls!). Amish doughnuts (or is it Amish donuts? I guess both spellings are OK.....whatever, these are the best donuts!) are made using the baking basics of butter, flour, sugar, milk, and sometimes yeast. The Amish do basic baking very, very well and that's why doughnuts are so ubiquitous in Plain kitchens.
Some of the best Amish glazed donuts I've had were at a tiny bakery in an Amish settlement in western New York. The Conewango Valley of western New York is home to a beautiful, sprawling Amish settlement that is pretty conservative. One of the nicest people I met on that journey was Barbara Miller who runs a bakery on Route 62 outside of Cherry Creek. The Miller bakery is known locally for its spare-tire-sized maple-dipped doughnuts, coffeecakes, whoopie pies and other confections. Like many of the Amish businesses in the area, the bakery doesn’t have a name. You can find homemade doughnuts at most Amish bakeries.
“Oh, we’re just called the `bakery on Route 62’,” Barbara Miller says, matter-of-factly when asked the bakery's name.
🍩 Quick and Easy Amish Doughnuts
The spring and summer seasons bring plenty of tourists into the Cherry Creek area, many stopping by the bakery for one of Barbara’s doughnuts. But a second busy season occurs at the bakery in the weeks prior to Thanksgiving when her pies are the prize.
The Amish doughnut recipe that Barbara uses is your pretty standard doughnut recipe. Below is a recipe from Emma Raber, an Amish woman in Pennsylvania. Barbara’s maple glaze recipe is below so you can make your own at home! Some of you may notice that Barbara uses maple extract in her doughnut glaze as opposed to pure maple syrup. Does anyone have any guesses as to why? If you suggested expense, you are right. Pure maple syrup as an ingredient would probably make the doughnuts too cost-prohibitive, but you can use it at home.
I've made homemade doughnuts before and there really is nothing like them. I remember making them about 30 years or so ago. I don't think I actually used a doughnut cutter, so my doughnuts were kind of funky-shaped, but when it comes to doughnuts, who really cares what they look like (a local bakery to me makes a doughnut called an "Ugly" and, true to its name, it's nothing to look at, but tastes amazing!)
📜 The History of Amish Doughnuts
Doughnuts and the Amish are a logical match. An Amish doughnut recipe is simple, but can be adjusted in so many ways: yeast, cake, caramel, cinnamon, oatmeal, and on and on. The varieties of Amish doughnuts are literally endless and some have passed into legend.
In 2001, Orvin and Viola Bontrager started selling cinnamon caramel crunch doughnuts, using one of Orvin's old family recipes. They sold the doughnuts from their cedar chest shop and the doughnuts quickly became the star attraction, which eventually gave rise to the Rise N Roll Bakery chain.
And Peachy's is known for their Amish doughnut truck which goes from place to place selling amazing confections.
The history of Amish doughnuts is a long and storied one, as evidenced by Orvin and Viola's success. The Amish have been making doughnuts for centuries, and their recipes have been passed down from generation to generation. Amish doughnuts are made with simple ingredients, such as flour, sugar, eggs, milk, and yeast. They are then fried in oil until they are golden brown. Amish doughnuts can be glazed, frosted, or topped with a variety of toppings, such as sprinkles, nuts, or chocolate chips.
The first Amish doughnuts were likely made in Europe, where the Amish originated. When the Amish immigrated to America in the 1700s, they brought their doughnut-making traditions with them. Amish doughnuts quickly became popular in America, and they are now enjoyed by people of all cultures.
Amish doughnuts are a popular treat at Amish markets and fairs. They are also often made at home for special occasions, such as weddings, birthdays, and holidays. Amish doughnuts are a delicious and traditional treat. I've even seen heart-shaped doughnuts on Valentine's Day's in an Amish kitchen and they are popular to sell at Amish benefit auctions.
Here are some of the most popular types of Amish doughnuts:
- Glazed doughnuts: These doughnuts are coated in a simple glaze made with powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract.
- Frosted doughnuts: These doughnuts are coated in a thick frosting made with powdered sugar, butter, and milk.
- Cinnamon doughnuts: These doughnuts are coated in a cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Chocolate doughnuts: These doughnuts are coated in a chocolate glaze.
- Sprinkled doughnuts: These doughnuts are topped with a variety of sprinkles, such as rainbow sprinkles, chocolate sprinkles, or sugar sprinkles.
✅ Tips To Making Amish Doughnuts
Here are some tips for making Amish doughnuts:
- Use a kitchen thermometer to ensure that the oil is at the correct temperature (350 degrees Fahrenheit) before frying the doughnuts. If the oil is too hot, the doughnuts will brown too quickly on the outside and be doughy on the inside. If the oil is too cold, the doughnuts will absorb too much oil and be greasy.
- Fry the doughnuts in batches of 2-3 at a time to prevent the temperature of the oil from dropping too much.
- Once the doughnuts are golden brown, remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
- While the doughnuts are still warm, glaze them with your favorite glaze recipe.
- Let the doughnuts cool completely before storing them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Here are some additional tips:
- For a richer flavor, use buttermilk instead of regular milk in the dough.
- Add ½ cup of chopped nuts or chocolate chips to the dough for a fun twist.
- Serve the doughnuts with a side of your favorite coffee or tea for a delicious breakfast or snack.
📋 Step-By-Step Guide to Making Amish Doughnuts
Start with the basics and build from there. This recipe is so simple but you can add flavors. I love to add a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract, for instance.
Get your ingredients in order first for a project like doughnuts. Always helps. Above is the doughnut ingredients, below are the glaze ingredients.
What I like about glazed doughnuts is you can add any sort of flavoring you want to it and not go wrong: maple, caramel, I've even added a splash of orange juice. Gives it a nice flavor meld.
A good doughnut cutter or biscuit cutter will allow for a great-shaped doughnut, look at these batter beauties! After the initial kneading, let the doughnuts rise for an hour, then punch down the dough and knead again. Let rise an hour and then punch down, roll out and cut into doughnuts like below.
When I have fried doughnuts before, it's always just been in a deep oil-filled large pot, so a little messy and takes a lot of oil, so make sure you have plenty on hand! (safety tip: wear gloves, an apron, and even goggles to protect yourself from any splattering hot oil...keep a roll of paper towels nearby). I just use vegetable oil, but you can use canola, corn, or coconut oil.
If you have a deep fryer, have at it. Deep frying in a fryer isn't something found in most Amish kitchens, but you definitely can do it that way. Either way, you get wonderful warm donuts that are golden brown.
Once you have your warm doughnut, time to roll it in the glaze, that is my favorite part! Often I'll double and triple-dip it so that it has a nice thick glaze.
Now, the above is where you can REALLY get into trouble, while the glaze is hot, you could roll it into crushed Oreos, Lucky Charms, brown sugar, or basically anything sweet to make it even sweeter.
So, let's get started with this and move onto the recipe for these delicious homemade donuts.
🙋 Amish Doughtnut FAQ
Vegetable oil works great, but so does corn, coconut, or canola!
Yes, these actually make the best doughuts if you have access to lard!
Yes, you'll get a better, fuller doughnut. Buttermilk is the absolute best or a buttermilk whole milk blend!
The legendary doughnut chain was started by an Amish husband and wife in 2001. Their doughnuts became so popular that they sold their bakery, which is now a chain run and owned by non-Amish using the original reicpes.
🍩 More Tasty Amish Doughnut Recipes
Amish Homemade Yeast Doughnuts
Gallery of Amish Donuts & The Big Daddy Doughnut
🖨️ Full Recipe
Amish Doughnuts
Ingredients
Doughnut Batter
- 1 1 /2 cups whole milk scalded
- 1 /2 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 /2 cup margarine
- 1 1 /2 cup warm water
- 1 /2 tablespoon sugar
- 2 packages of yeast
- 2 eggs
- 8 – 10 cups bread flour
Maple Glaze
- 3 cups confectioners’ sugar
- ¼ teaspoon maple extract
- ½ cup milk
Instructions
Doughnuts
- Add sugar, salt, and margarine to hot milk.
- Cool to lukewarm.
- Add yeast and sugar to warm water.
- Let rise for 5 minutes.
- Pour both liquids together plus eggs and add flour,
- After last flour has been added knead for 10 minutes.
- Let rise 1 hour and knead again.
- Let rise 1 hour and punch down and roll to 1 /2 inch and cut.
- Put on floured pan, let rise and deep fat fry at 350. Glaze while still warm
Maple Glaze
- In a small bowl, combine confectioners’ sugar, maple extract and milk; stir well.
- Add additional milk, if needed, to reach desired consistency.
- Drizzle over donuts.
Theresa Szeman
So why can't I copy the doughnut recipes, it sounds really good and would like a copy of it. If you have it on facebook then I click on it to see it then I should be able to copy it. could you please let me know how to copy it, without hand writing it all down.
Thank you very much !
Theresa Szeman
Kevin
Theresa, try again, I made it so that you should now be able to easily print it out!
Bev
You can copy and paste by highlighting the text you want to copy. Hold down the Alt key and press C. This will copy the text. Go to your writing program ( I use Word) and while holding down the Alt key press V. This will put it into your program.
You can copy pictures by left clicking it with the mouse and a small window will open. Click on copy
I hope this helps you.
Kevin
Thanks, Bev!
Marianne Quesnelle
I highlight the recipe then right click & select copy. Then I go to my e-mail acct and hit compose new. In the message box I right click again and select paste. Then I send it to myself! I have a folder that is labeled " E-mail Recipes". They are all in one place where I can easily look it up!
Robert Folz
I bought some of these today. I am ADDICTED and now MUST find a place in PA that sells them!
Mary
Hi Kevin,
I would love to try this recipe for LIGHT AS A FEATHER DOUGHNUTS however you do not say how many donuts it will make. Judging by the amount of flour it calls for, I must be many. Would you mind letting me know? Thank you! Mary Jaeger, [email protected]
Sandy
Could you please do a break-down of this recipe so I can make up to (one-two) dozen doughnuts!!!
Sincerely yours,
Sandy
Thank you so much!!!
Earl
FYI — The recipe calls for scalded milk. For the Amish this is requirement because they use their own raw milk. However, you get your milk from the store the homogenizing process has already been done for you, so you can skip this step.
Recipe looks great. Can't wait to try it.
Thanks!
Earl
Kevin
That is a good point Earl, that'll save people a step, thanks for stopping by!
Barbara
The warm milk activates the yeast.
Pricilla
I cant wait to try this recipe out!!
Linda
Aren't there any recipes for doughnuts that are not deep fried?
Kevin
Linda, I should have a baked doughnut recipe to post soon!
vernell
plan to bake in my air fryer
Karan
If this is an Amish recipe, why with all the butter they have, would they use margarine?
Kevin
You can use either, you'd be surprised how much margarine and other spreads have made inroads into Amish kitchens. Amish cooking is slowly changing....olive oil and canola oil are showing up on the shelves of Amish bulk food stores...lard is no longer the shortening of choice for many Amish cooks....the perception is that margarine is "healthier" so some Amish cooks have embraced it, but, again, either can be used. Thanks for stopping by Amish365, Karan!
Kevin
Cindy, I sent you an email about this, please get back to me when you can! - Kevin
Diane
Kevin
Maple extract is that what you call home made maple syrup?
Kevin
Diane, I asked the Amish baker the very question you did and, honestly, extract is just used because it is cheaper. An Amish baker selling large quantities of maple cookies would incur a lot of expense if they used pure maple syrup, but you can use either. As far responding to comments, I apologize..I do almost always respond, but it may take me a few days. I am trying to get faster, but I have a lot on my plate now. Thank you, though, for your comments and interest!
John
Hi Kevin - a couple of questions: (1) what size cutters did you use to cut-out the donuts? How long was the rise after cutting out? What oil did you use to deep-fry? And lastly - how many doughnuts does this make?
Kevin
Sorry, John, I am behind on comments...They were like a 2" wide cutter, not very big, but you can use any. This makes two dozen depending on size and fry in canola oil, hope that helps!
Patti
What type of oil should the dough be fried in? Thank you.
Kevin
Most Amish would fry in shortening....
HOPE FAKKEMA
May I put in a recipe request for Amish Spelt-Oatmeal Bread. As we were leaving our family in Evart, Michigan I stopped into their Dutch Pantry -- found the most amazing loaf of this bread and enjoyed it for many days in or motorhome. I have never found it since that time.
We have no Amish communities in western Washington. I miss those talented people.
Kevin
Hope, I am going look through my archives on that...I know some Amish spelt farmers in Ohio who have wives thst make amazing spelt bread, so stay tuned, I'll try to get a recipe for you!
Joanne
Hello, I am new to this Amish site and I'm loving it so far. We have a small Amish grocery store about 30 miles from here but I don't get to go there too often. I'm loving the recipes posted here. This recipe, I see someone asked about the margarine instead of butter. And Kevin told the person that margarine is considered "healthier" than butter. Sorry to disagree, I've read many articles on the unhealthiness of margarine, saying it's one molecule away from plastic, something I wouldn't want to digest, as would others. I am not rich by any means, a 76 y/o retiree on Social Security, but I use BUTTER exclusively. It really IS healthier than the alternative. I'm looking for the light and fluffy doughnut recipe now, would love to find it too. Thanks for posting these great recipes. God bless ya'll...
Kevin Williams
Thanks, Joanne, for stopping by Amish365 and hope you stick around. What Amish grocery is near you? I've been to, well, I won't say most, but many! On the butter, I actually agree with you, I use butter any time over margarine, I guess I should have worded it that there is a perception among some Amish that margarine is "healthier" than butter...but, yeah, I'd definitely go for the butter. I'll look for that doughnut recipe!
Joyce
Your recipe listed used packaged yeast...can you put that into measurement, many of us constant bakers buy it by the pound package at the local bakery. I buy rapid rise. Not enhanced (conditioned). So many kinds of yeast on the shelf and the owners don't know when you ask for help with them. My son used to call me and ask for suggestions, answers wen customers asked him for certain things. Often goes by another name.
Debra
Hi Kevin!
Just a note on the glazing process from someone with an Amish donut making background. If you warm your milk before mixing it with the powdered sugar and flavoring, you'll have a smoother, glossier finish to your donut.
Kevin Williams
Thank you for the tip!! Any cooking/baking tip from a Slabaugh I consider gospel!