Ring-shaped fried pastries, typically sweetened and often glazed or filled. American spelling variant of 'doughnuts.'
Shortened from 'doughnut,' literally meaning a small ball of dough. The 'nut' suffix referred to the small, round shape rather than actual nuts. The simplified 'donut' spelling was popularized by Dunkin' Donuts in the 1950s.
The hole in the middle of donuts wasn't just decorative - it solved the problem of uneven cooking, ensuring the center would cook through. Dutch settlers brought the concept to America, but the modern ring shape is an American innovation from the 1940s.
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