Fluffy Glazed Donuts are light, fluffy and truly the best donuts ever. If you’re new to donut making, this is the perfect donut recipe. 

There’s just something about the fluffy and light, yet sweet richness to them that is positively addicting, in the very best way. And these donuts are actually better than any store- or bakery-bought glazed options I’ve ever tried. They are worth the effort.

Serve these donuts with a farmhouse egg bake or a breakfast casserole, some seasonal fruit, and you have the perfect brunch.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Homemade donuts are the freshest and most delicious donuts you can find.
• You can get creative with the flavor of your glaze. 
• More affordable than buying donuts at a store or bakery. 

Recipe Ingredients

For the donut dough you’ll need:

• Whole milk
• Sugar
• Instant or active dry yeast
• Eggs
• Unsalted butter
• All-purpose flour
• Salt
• Shortening or oil for frying

For the hot donut glaze you’ll need:

• Butter
• Vanilla extract
• Powdered sugar
• Cream or milk
• Salt

See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Popular Substitutions and Variations

• Chocolate Donut Glaze: Add 2-3 tablespoons of cocoa powder when you add the powdered sugar. You’ll need to increase the milk by a bit too to form a smooth glaze.
• Maple Donut Glaze: Replace the vanilla extra in original recipes with 1/2 teaspoon maple flavoring (you can use up to 1 teaspoon, adjust to your liking).
• Colored Donut Glaze: Simply add a few drops of food coloring to the glaze.

How to Make Doughnuts

Step 1: Make the Donut Dough

Warm the milk until about 105 degrees F. Yeast is actually alive and if you put it in milk that is too hot, you’ll kill it, which means no fluffy donuts.

Once your milk is warm, add it to your a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the sugar and stir to dissolve, then add the yeast and let everything rest for 5 minutes.

Add the beaten eggs and melted butter to your yeast mixture and stir to combine. Then, with the mixer running slowly, add the flour and salt. Mix until the dough comes together. If you don’t have a mixer you can also do this by hand.

If using a stand mixer, switch to your dough hook attachment and knead the dough for a full 5 minutes. If you are making the dough by hand, turn it out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. The dough should be thick and soft, but slightly sticky.

Let the dough rest for 10 minutes then transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic saran wrap. Refrigerate the dough for 2-8 hours or overnight.

Step 2: Shape the Donuts

Now it’s time to shape the donuts! Remove your dough from the fridge and roll it out using a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface until it is 1/2 to 1/3 of an inch thick. Then use a three-inch donut cutter to cut out the rounds.

Place the cut donuts and holes on a lightly greased baking sheet. Cover them with a kitchen towel and let rise until they are doubled in size. This will take about one hour. When the donuts are ready for frying they will be very puffy and airy looking.

Step 3: Fry Your Donuts

To fry your donuts, heat a few inches of oil or shortening in large cast iron skillet, dutch oven, or fryer over medium heat. Use a candy thermometer to monitor the temperature of the oil. When it reaches 365F to 375F you’re ready to fry.

Line a baking sheet with paper towel and set aside. Prepare your glaze in a medium bowl by combining all the glaze ingredients and mixing well. The glaze should have the consistency of school glue. Set aside.

Carefully add the donuts a few at a time to the oil. Do not drop them in the oil or it will splash and you can get burned. Depending on how big your pan is, you can probably fry 3-4 donuts at a time. Don’t overcrowd the donuts or they will be hard to flip and the temperature of your oil will decrease too much from cooler dough being added.

Fry the donuts until golden brown, about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Use a metal slotted spoon or metal tongs to gently flip the donuts when ready. Once they are golden on each side, remove the donuts one at a time to your prepared baking sheet. The paper towel will help soak up the excess oil.

Step 4: Glaze the Donuts

Let the donuts drain and cool slightly. Move them to a plate. Put a cooling rack on top of your baking or cookie sheet already lined with paper towel.

When the donuts are just cool enough to touch, use your fingers or a fork to dip each side of each donut in the glaze. Place on your cooling rack.

Once you have glazed all your donuts, it’s time to dig in! (Unless of course your kids have already started digging in while you were glazing all those donuts – make sure to snag some for yourself!)

Frequently Asked Questions

Expert Tips

• These donuts are the best eaten fresh. They store about as well as most grocery store donuts.
• Be sure to use accurate measurements, especially for flour and liquid ingredients, and consider using a kitchen scale for greater precision – because making donuts is a science.
• Don’t overcrowd the frying pot. Fry donuts in batches, making sure there’s enough space for them to expand and float freely in the oil.

Why do I need to chill the dough?

The chilling time is a must for these donuts. The butter needs a chance to solidify in the fridge which makes the dough much less sticky than when it went in the fridge. They also keep their shape so much better, and gets them nice and fluffy. Don’t skip this step.

However, you can be flexible with the chilling time. If your dough has firmed up after 2 hours, you can use it! You can also wait as long as overnight. Let the timing work for you.

And, if you don’t have time to chill the dough, Beth’s Famous Glazed Yeast Donuts turn out almost just like these and it does not need the chilling time that this recipe does. I’d recommend making that recipe if you are in a hurry to get donuts in your belly.

Video How to Make Donuts

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