by Mike Dalley

Created on: February 07, 2011   Last Updated: December 06, 2011

Doughnuts have a history as disparate and varied as the toppings and fillings they now hold.  There is little argument that the sweet treat has Dutch origins; they were either brought over to what is now called New York (then New Amsterdam) or they were conceived in the Dutch homeland in the mid- 19th Century and formed part of a ‘Dutch Colonial invasion’ of desserts, including apple pie and even cobbler.  In fact it is also argued that the Dutch discovered the idea of ‘fried cake’ (an urban legend tells of a time when a cow kicked a pan of hot oil onto some uncooked pastry).  This gave rise to the name ‘olykoeks’ – or ‘oily cakes’ which were considered to be a food with good lifespan for the harsh winters on the Eastern Seaboard.

♦ What’s in a name? ♦

Again, the name is shrouded in mystery.  A whimsical tale tells of a particularly talented olykoek maker called Elizabeth Gregory who used to bake walnuts into the centre of her cakes as the pastry would not cook through.  Another theory is that contemporary recipes would recommend that cooks form their dough into nut shapes, ready for frying.

♦ What’s with the shape? ♦

The Elizabeth Gregory legend strikes again; this time with her son (a merchant captain) jamming the doughnut onto his ship’s wheel so he could ‘eat and drive’.  A variation suggests that he disliked walnuts and poked the centre out.  Whatever the truth, ring doughnuts cooked far better and the distinctive shape may have added to the burgeoning popularity of the snack.

♦ Onwards and upwards ♦

The American love affair with doughnuts continued to the point that U.S. soldiers fighting in Western Europe during the Great War were served doughnuts by French civilians; as a thank-you and a reminder of life back across the pond.  It wasn’t just Model T fords that were being mass-produced at the time; the first doughnut production machine was opened in New York City in Adolph Levitt in 1920. 

Soon, the popularity of doughnuts exploded to the extent that the 1934 World’s Fair in Chicago dubbed doughnuts ‘The hit food of the Century of Progress’.  As doughnuts became big business, the industry as we recognise it today took shape.  Famous franchises like Krispy Kreme and Dunkin’ Donuts were founded in 1937 and 1950 respectively and soon all kinds of varieties such as filled doughnuts (another way to overcome the riddle of the uncooked centre) and even bacon and peanut butter doughnuts were being sold.

The inevitable consequence of this was that as time went on, doughnuts became known as super-high calorie junk food.  However even this has done little to stem the meteoric rise of these little deep-fired bites of heaven.  Doughnut shops are found all over the world as are regional variations; Spain has the churro, Germany has the Berliner.  Homer Simpson has turned the doughnut into a modern icon and they are even sold in nightclubs.  Like the traditional deep-fried ring of days gone by, the rise of the doughnut will most likely be endless.

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