Round, fried pastries with a hole in the middle, often covered with sugar or glaze and sometimes filled with jam or cream.
From Dutch 'oliebollen' (oil balls) brought to America by Dutch settlers; the 'dough' comes from the dough-based pastry, and 'nut' originally referred to a small rounded lump before it became associated with the hazelnut shape.
The iconic hole in the middle wasn't always there—it was invented around 1847 to help doughnuts cook evenly all the way through, solving a real problem that bakers faced with dense, undercooked centers.
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