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Easy Shortcut Yeast Donuts

Perfectly puffy yeast donuts made from frozen dinner rolls
Prep Time3 hours
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time3 hours 10 minutes
Course: Breakfast, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: easy recipe, kid-friendly, vegan, vegetarian
Servings: 20 Donuts

Ingredients

  • 20 Frozen dinner rolls
  • Oil for deep frying vegetable or canola
  • Sprinkles (optional)

Vanilla Glaze

  • 1 cup Powder sugar
  • ½ tsp Vanilla extract
  • 2 Tbsp Milk

Cinnamon Sugar

  • ½ cup Granulated sugar
  • 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
  • ½ Tbsp Nutmeg

Chocolate Coating

  • cup Semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

  • Place the frozen dinner roll doughs on a greased sheet pan 2 inches apart. Cover the rolls with plastic wrap and let them rise for 4 hours at room temperature, until each roll is about 3 inches in diameter. To speed up the rising process, you can heat a cool oven for 5 minutes, then place the dough in the warm oven. The higher temperature will allow the yeast to work quicker and rise the dough in just 1 hour.
  • Flatten the dough into a 1/2-inch thick circle. Using a knife or a narrow cylinder, cut out a hole in the center. Save the donut hole to make munchkins.
  • In a skillet, pot, or deep fryer, add vegetable or canola oil to a depth of at least 1 inch. Over medium heat, heat the oil to 370°F and gently place the doughnuts in the oil. Fry them for 2 minutes, flip, then fry for one additional minute, until puffy and golden brown. Fry the donuts and donut holes in batches. Place the fried donuts on a sheet pan with wire rack to let the excess oil drip. Let the donuts cool. (you can make the coatings below as the donuts cool)
  • Spread the chocolate coating and vanilla glaze over the donuts. Optionally, add sprinkles to the donuts before the glaze or chocolate coating harden. For cinnamon sugar donuts, simply coat the entire doughnut with cinnamon sugar.

Vanilla Glaze

  • Stir together powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk until the powdered sugar is melted.

Cinnamon Sugar

  • Mix together granulated sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Chocolate Coating

  • Place chocolate chips in a bowl and microwave them at 50% power for three minutes, stirring the chocolate every minute.