Old-fashioned doughnuts or "donuts" as Americans call them, are deep-fried cake doughnuts. What makes old-fashioned doughnuts different from regular doughnuts is that the texture is cake-like more than bread-like. Moreover, old-fashioned doughnuts are made without any kneading method, instead, it’s similar to making a butter-type cake.

The name "old-fashioned" comes from the fact that these doughnuts were first made in 1829 in the United States. This recipe came about when there was an increase in baking powder and the demand for cake doughnuts increased. Since this old-fashioned doughnuts recipe is made with baking powder, it’s considered a type of quick bread.

The original recipe for these old-fashioned doughnuts usually has sour cream but here in Indonesia, it’s a bit harder to find so I used greek yogurt which works just as well.

What’s special about my recipe is; it has only a few ingredients and it’s fairly easy to make. I also added maple syrup to the recipe because maple syrup is such a great pairing when it comes to sweets and baked goods. These also don't require any fermentation but it does need to rest for 24 hours so that the flavours develop more.

This old-fashioned doughnuts recipe does not require the use of an oven but instead, a deep-fryer just like regular yeasted doughnuts. The appearance is slightly different once they’re fried as they have a very rough textured exterior that is the signature of an old-fashioned donut. They’re also a lot more sweet and crumbly, just like a cake.

While regular doughnuts are a staple, there’s nothing wrong with trying something a little bit different once in a while. The crispy exterior and crumbly interior make the perfect snack and side dish for any time of the day. Make these the day before you want to serve them so that you get fresh hot doughnuts for you and your guests! Depending on how many people you are serving, this specific recipe yields up to 4 people but you can adjust the recipe to as much as you can.

Additional Notes from Author:

• It’s better to use a candy thermometer to measure the heat of the oil. The more accurate the temperature is, the less you will undercook/overcook your doughnuts.
• Adding the doughnuts to maple syrup while it’s hot helps the syrup to stick more to the doughnuts.
• Fry only 3-4 pieces at a time to prevent the oil from cooling down and slowing down the cooking process.
• You can use doughnut cutters or use a cookie cutter and piping tip to cut out your doughnuts. Make sure the size is about 7.5cm in diameter on the outer edge of the cutter and the inner cutter is about 3cm in diameter.
• Fry the excess doughnut balls too so that the dough doesn’t go to waste.
• Old-Fashioned Donuts are also a form of quick-bread since it’s made with baking powder and not yeast.
• You can substitute greek yogurt with sour cream.

Some terms you might need to know:

• Submerge