Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe
This one is for all my people who like a sweet breakfast to start the day. My Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe are made by taking Grands Flaky Layers Biscuits and shaping them into donuts. Then drop them into hot oil, and fry until golden brown and fluffy. Then they are dipped into cinnamon sugar while still hot for the perfect amount of sweetness and spice!
These donuts are ideal for breakfast on Saturday mornings and will impress your kids. Once you realize how easy it is to make fresh donuts at home, you will think twice next time about piling everyone in the car and driving a good way to satisfy your craving. (Especially early in the mornings.) Instead of all that fuss, and wasted gas I might add, get the kids in the kitchen to help you make this easy donut recipe.
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I think it’s very important to get your kids into the kitchen and to help them develop a love for cooking, experimenting, and tasting new things. And easy recipes with simple ingredients like this one are perfect for that very reason. (Actually, some of the best recipes that I make are very kid-friendly and are made with very “approachable” ingredients and directions.)
Now, having said that I would be extremely careful around hot grease and frying things. A small mistake around boiling grease could be catastrophic and life-altering. For this reason, I don’t allow my kids to be around the stove when I am frying things. But they are capable of shaping the donuts. And they love to dip biscuits in the cinnamon sugar. (Which are two of the most fun parts of this recipe anyway!)
When I was growing up, I remember eating fried canned biscuits at the Chinese buffet with my dad! (HA) We used to dip them in sweet and sour sauce. I don’t indulge in those little store-brand biscuits anymore and I’m not a fan of buffets anymore either, for good reason (think low-calorie diet), but I couldn’t get over how tasty, fluffy, and crispy those cheap little canned refrigerator biscuits were after being deep fried.
I’m pretty sure that it was soon after that I made the connection between these Chinese buffet biscuits and homemade donuts. Essentially, that’s what they were, fried dough. The only thing lacking was the hole in the middle and a glaze. And those two things are easy to accomplish.
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Tips for Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe:
* If you are making a lot of donuts and are worried about them being cold when everyone is ready to eat, heat the oven and place fried donuts on a baking sheet with a wire rack to keep them warm until ready to serve.
* For best results (keeping the donuts crispy), a wire rack is very handy. Letting the donuts sit on a flat surface can affect the texture of the side that is down.
Make Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe with me on YouTube!
Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 can Pillsbury Grands Flaky Layers Biscuits
- 1 1/2Tablespoons cinnamon
- Vegetable oil for frying
Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe Instructions:
- First, pour vegetable oil into a deep pot and turn the heat on medium-high.
- Second, open the can of Grands Flaky Layers Biscuits and separate the biscuits into 8 even portions.
- Third, make donuts out of them by making a hole in the middle of the biscuit and stretching the dough. (You can see this better in my video below) You could also take a sharp knife and use it to cut a hole in the middle of the dough and then fry the doughnut holes at the very end.
- Next, place the donuts into the hot grease and let the first side get golden and crispy.
- While the donuts are frying, get the cinnamon sugar coating ready in a small bowl. Place 1/2 cup of sugar and 1 1/2 tablespoons of cinnamon in a dish and mix well.
- Also, get a cutting board or plate lined with paper towels to drain the excess grease off of the donuts before placing them in the cinnamon sugar.
- Once the donuts have reached the desired golden color, turn them over in the oil and brown the other side.
- When the donuts are done, drain them quickly on the paper towels and place them straight into the cinnamon sugar mixture to coat them completely.
- Finally, enjoy them with your family and a big glass of milk! (Make it skim milk or low-fat milk if you’re watching your figure (HA))
Variations for Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe: (Icing)
* Powdered sugar can be sprinkled on top of finished donuts for a funnel cake-like experience.
* A simple glaze can be made by mixing powdered sugar, vanilla extract, milk, and a pinch of salt in a small shallow bowl. Using a pastry brush, coat the donuts with the sweet glaze and enjoy!
* Cream cheese frosting on these donuts would be fantastic and rich! Simply mix cream cheese, vanilla extract, milk, powdered sugar, and butter to make this decadent topping. For a beautiful presentation, take a spoon and drizzle the cream cheese frosting across the donuts.
* If you want a feeling of homemade cinnamon rolls, simply fry the donuts, dunk them in the simple glaze above, and then sprinkle them with cinnamon sugar.
Donut Flavors: (The best part about using canned biscuits from Pillsbury is the amount of flavor options available with no extra effort!)
* Chocolate Chip Biscuits – These sweet rolls don’t need any help. Just shape them, fry them, and coat them with the icing provided!
* Blueberry Biscuits – If you are a blueberry muffin lover, then I can’t imagine you not falling head over heels for a blueberry-flavored donut. The icing is included, so all you have to do is fry these bad boys up and enjoy!
* Honey Biscuits – Melted butter mixed with additional honey would be a dream coating on this flavor of donut! You could also add some mashed banana for a banana bread experience.
* Buttermilk biscuits – This would be great to make a donut like a sticky bun’s recipe. Just add a glaze of brown sugar, pecans, and butter!
* Original Biscuits – If you want an apple pie variation, simply mix powdered sugar and apple cider and dunk your donuts for a truly unique spin!
* Butter Biscuits – A cinnamon pecan glaze would bring these buttery biscuits up a level. Think monkey bread vibes.
* Cinnamon Rolls – Can you imagine gooey cinnamon rolls in the form of a donut??? (And the cream cheese is already included!)
* Orange Rolls – This variation of donuts sounds fancy to me. I don’t know what it is about orange-flavored things, but they just sound “extra”. (In a good way, of course.) I could see orange-flavored donuts gracing the table on Christmas morning.
* Hot Cocoa Rolls – And just like the orange donuts could be the star on Christmas day, I think these hot chocolate donuts would be amazing for Christmas Eve. (I’m sure Santa is sick and tired of cookies!) HA
* Peaches and Cream – If you are wanting to lighten things up just a bit, this flavor would be great for the summer!
Check out Pillsbury Kitchens for even more inspiration and products!
It’s also fun to check out contest recipes from Pillsbury.
Average people being creative in the kitchen and winning money that can potentially change their lives is something I can get behind!
Storage for Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe: (What about the leftover life?)
- Donuts can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature on the counter for 2 days.
- Store in a Ziploc bag or an airtight container in the fridge for 3 days.
- Donuts can be frozen in a Ziploc bag for 3 months.
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Easy Cinnamon Sugar Donuts – Pillsbury Biscuit Recipe
Equipment
- 1 large pot for frying
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 can Pillsbury Grands Flaky Layers Biscuits
- 1.5 Tablespoons cinnamon
Instructions
- First, pour vegetable oil into deep pot and turn heat on medium high.
- Second, open the can of Grands Flaky Layers Biscuits and make donuts out of them by making a hole in the middle of the biscuit. (You can see this better in my video below)
- Third, place the donuts into the hot grease and let the first side get golden and crispy.
- While the donuts are frying, get the cinnamon sugar coating ready in a separate dish. Place 1/2 cup of sugar and the 1.5 tablespoons of cinnamon in a dish and mix well.
- Also, get a cutting board or plate lined with paper towels in order to drain the excess grease off of the donuts before placing them in the cinnamon sugar.
- Once the donuts have reached the desired golden color, turn them over in the oil and brown the other side.
- When the donuts are done, drain them quickly on the paper towels and place them straight into the cinnamon sugar mixture to coat them completely.
- Finally, enjoy them with your family with a big glass of milk!
