These easy donuts are made with canned biscuits for a super easy treat, and packed with zesty flavor from a homemade lemon glaze. Yum!
Ok, I know what you're thinking. Homemade donuts are way too much trouble. Right? Well, let me introduce you to the idea of biscuit donuts.
These homemade donuts use one big hack - a can of biscuit dough - so you can make these fried donuts in a flash!
These biscuit donuts are:
- Made with canned biscuit dough
- Made with just 5 ingredients.
- Drizzled with a homemade lemon glaze!
- Sprinkled with lemon zest for a fun finish.
- Great for breakfast or dessert!
How to Make Biscuit Donuts
- Heat oil in a deep pan over medium high heat until it reaches 350°F.
- Cut the centers out of each biscuit to make a donut shape.
- Fry each biscuit donut in the hot oil.
- Place donuts on a cooling rack to drip off excess grease.
- Whisk together the lemon sugar glaze.
- Dip each donut in the glaze and place back on cooling rack.
- Garnish with more lemon zest and serve.
More detailed directions and ingredient measurements are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Tips & Tricks
Shaping and Cutting the Donuts: Before you cut out the center, make sure to stretch and flatten the biscuits a little bit. This will give you a thinner donut that is easier to cook. You can cut out the center using a special donut cutter, sharp knife, or another circular object like the top of a skinny drinking glass.
When you fry the donuts, use a deep-sided pan. This will keep the oil from splattering everywhere when you go to flip the donuts while frying.
Optimal oil temperature for frying donuts is 350°F. Getting the oil to this temperature is important, because if the oil gets too hot, it will overcook the outside of your donuts and leave the centers doughy. It's best to use a thermometer like this for the oil.
Storing Leftover Donuts: Donuts are best served fresh. If you happen to have leftovers, they will store at room temperature for 1 - 2 days. You can rewarm them in the oven before eating.
Fun Variations
Mix up the glaze. You can use any flavor of glaze you want for your donuts. Mash up some strawberries for a pink strawberry glaze, whip up a zesty lime glaze instead of lemons, or try the cardamom glaze from this scone recipe.
Add sprinkles! After you dip your donuts in the lemon glaze, add some fun colored sprinkles. This is an especially fun addition for kids.
Bake the donuts: Instead of frying, you can opt to bake the biscuits in the oven. Arrange on a non-stick baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. They won't have the crunch of fried donuts, but are a bit healthier.
Air fry the donuts: You can also opt to air fry the donuts. Set you air fryer to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and air fry for 5-7 minutes, flipping over halfway through cooking. You will need to work in batches to fit the donuts in the air fryer.
Make it Vegan: This recipe can be made vegan by choosing a vegan friendly brand of canned biscuits. Annie's makes a good one!
More Tasty Recipes
If you love these easy biscuit donuts, be sure to check out these other delicious ideas:
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 oz canned biscuits, typically 10 biscuits
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 lemon, zested; optional
- oil, for frying (see note)
Instructions
- Place a cooling rack over top of a baking tray and set aside.
- On a flat surface, lay out the biscuits. Cut out the center of each biscuit and then stretch each biscuit a bit wider (stretch by about ½").
- Pour your frying oil into a large deep-sided pan and heat over medium-high heat. Use a candy thermometer to ensure you bring the oil to 350F, for best results. Once oil is hot, fry each donut individually for about 1 minute per side, until they are golden brown.
- Set each fried donut on the cooling rack to allow excess oil to drip off.
- Sift the powdered sugar into a large bowl.
- Whisk in the lemon juice.
- Then add in most of the lemon zest (reserve a little zest for garnishing).
- Dip each donut into the lemon glaze.
- Then place back on the cooling rack.
- Garnish with additional lemon zest. Allow to sit until glaze is set, about 30 minutes.
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