Long John Donuts

This homemade Long John Donuts recipe is your step-by-step guide for perfect donuts every time. Made with a creamy vanilla custard, and an easy chocolate glaze, the pastry comes out fluffy just like your favorite donut shop’s, but bonus – you never have to get out of your pajamas!

Long John Donuts Recipe

The nostalgia and cozy feelings from weekend treats like strawberry pop tarts and donuts make me so happy! Making chocolate long johns at home is easier than you think and having the right tools makes it even easier.

The yeasted dough is easy to work with and kneading it helps make it super tender and light. While the dough rises, the creamy rich custard is made for the filling. After frying and cooling the long john pastry, they’re filled, dipped in a simple chocolate glaze, and ready to devour!

You’ll Also Love: Easy Bavarian Cream Donuts

Ingredients for Fried Donuts

Long John Donut Dough

• Whole Milk, Eggs, Egg Yolk, and Butter – These ingredients create the rich, soft dough that makes delicious homemade donuts.
• Active Dry Yeast – Make sure you check the expiration date on the yeast. It will not rise if the yeast is no longer active.
• Granulated Sugar – Active yeast needs sugar to feed on and activate for rising the dough. It also adds a subtle sweetness to the pastry.
• Vanilla Extract, Ground Nutmeg, and Salt – I love adding vanilla and just a bit of nutmeg to add flavor and depth to the dough. It’s completely optional but I think you’ll love it!
• All-Purpose Flour – The key to perfect dough is to measure the flour accurately. That means spooning the flour into the measuring cup and leveling it with the back of a knife or something flat. This ensures the flour isn’t packed down and you aren’t using too much.
• Canola or Vegetable Oil for Frying – You need to use a neutral flavored oil that is good for frying heats up to 400 degrees F. Both canola and vegetable oil are great options.

Vanilla Custard Donut Filling

• Whole Milk – Custard is a cooked pudding that you want to be nice and thick so it fills the donut and stays put, so I don’t suggest using lower-fat milk.
• Butter
• Egg Yolks – For this recipe, you’ll only need the yolks of the eggs. Save the whites and use them to make an egg white omelet or shake them into a delicious cocktail.
• Granulated Sugar
• Cornstarch – The cornstarch is the thickener for the custard. It’s lighter than flour and does a great job of creating a velvety filling.
• Salt
• Vanilla Extract or Vanilla Bean Paste – The vanilla is the flavor of the filling for these homemade donuts. This is also where you can get creative! Use whatever flavoring you want for your filling, like maple extract, almond extract, or coconut.

Chocolate Donut Glaze

• Unsalted Butter – The butter in this glaze makes it rich and also helps it harden a bit as it cools on the donut.
• Cocoa Powder – I prefer using Hershey’s Cocoa powder for this glaze. It gives it the perfect chocolate flavor! Do you prefer vanilla frostings over chocolate? Use the glaze recipe from this Cinnamon Roll Peach Cobbler – it’s SO GOOD!
• Confectioner’s Sugar – Also known as powdered sugar, confectioner’s sugar dissolves seamlessly into the butter and makes a super smooth, shiny glaze.
• Vanilla Extract – Vanilla and chocolate are a match made in heaven! The chocolate will taste richer and better simply by adding a little extract.
• Whole Milk – The creamy, thick milk is necessary so the glaze isn’t too thin. If you’re using 2% milk, lower the amount by 2 Tablespoons and add more only if it’s needed.

How to Make Long John Donuts

How to Make Donut Dough

1. Add the yeast and sugar to the warm milk and let sit.
2. Whisk the other ingredients minus the flour and salt with the yeast mixture until just combined.
3. Switch to a dough hook and mix in the flour and salt until a tacky-sticky dough forms.
4. Knead the dough until it is smooth and no longer sticky.
5. Transfer the dough to a bowl, cover it, and let it rise in a warm place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
6. Roll out the risen dough with a little flour, roll it out, and cut it into rectangles.
7. Allow the donuts to rise again while you heat the oil.

How to Make Vanilla Custard Donut Filling

1. Bring the milk and butter to a boil over medium heat, remove from the heat, and set it aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, and salt.
3. Slowly add the warmed milk and butter, whisking until completely incorporated.
4. Return everything to the saucepan and whisk it over medium heat until it becomes thick.
5. Strain it through a sieve if you want to, cover it with plastic wrap, and let it cool.

Chocolate Icing for Donuts

1. Whisk the chocolate glaze ingredients together in a large bowl until smooth and silky.
2. Set it to the side while you fry and fill the donuts.
3. Make sure the bowl is large enough for a donut to be dipped into the glaze inside of it.

How to Fry Donuts

1. Fill a heavy-bottomed pot about halfway with oil and heat it to 350 degrees F.
2. While the oil heats, line baking sheets with 2 layers of paper towels to set the fried donuts on.
3. Carefully, use a slotted spoon to lower 1 donut at a time into the hot oil. Fry until golden brown on each side, and transfer them to the paper towels.
4. After the donuts have cooled use a straw to poke through the length of the donut and shimmy it side to side to make an opening.
5. Fill a piping bag with the vanilla custard and pipe it into each donut.
6. Dip each filled donut in the chocolate glaze and place it on the wire rack for the glaze to dry a bit!

Helpful Tools for Donut Making

Making doughnuts at home can seem intimidating, but with a few easy-to-find tools, and my clear steps to follow, you’ll be an expert in no time!

Thermometer – The #1 key to perfectly frying homemade Long John donuts is to know the temperature of the oil. If it’s too hot, the donuts will brown too quickly and be undercooked inside. If it’s too cool, the donuts will absorb too much oil by the time they’re fully cooked. Keep the temp of the oil right around 350 degrees F – adjusting your stove as needed.

Dough Hook – If you have a stand mixer, it more than likely came with a dough hook. You can also use one with your hand mixer! A dough hook helps incorporate all of the dough ingredients really well and cuts down on your kneading time, making it easier on you.

Sieve – Making custard isn’t complicated but using a sieve to press your custard through will guarantee you don’t end up with any lumpy or overcooked parts and you’ll end up with a perfectly smooth homemade donut filling. I love having these on hand – they’re perfect for sifting ingredients, and sprinkling powdered sugar on French toast.

Wire Rack – Set the fried donuts on the wire rack to cool, and again after you’ve glazed them. The circulating air around them keeps the bottoms from getting soggy and they’ll cool quickly. The extra glaze is also able to drip down the sides.

Can I Prepare Things Ahead of Time?

YES! Follow these steps to prepare the dough, custard, and glaze ahead of time, and then simply fry, fill, and glaze on the day of:

Dough – Make the dough, knead it, and cover it in a large bowl. Place the dough in the fridge and allow it to rise slowly overnight. The dough shouldn’t be made more than about 12 hours before using it.

Custard – The custard will keep in the fridge for 3-5 days, as long as you press cling wrap, parchment, or wax paper to the top and store it in an airtight container.

Glaze – Make the glaze 1-2 days ahead and store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container. When you’re ready to glaze your donuts, just warm the glaze in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.

RELATED: Air Fryer Cinnamon Rolls

More Breakfast Recipes

• Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
• Mini Pancakes
• Apple Pie Filling Cinnamon Rolls
• Cinnamon Streusel Muffins
• Strawberry Pancakes Recipe

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Long John Donuts

Dalya Rubin

This homemade Long John Donuts recipe is your step-by-step guide for perfect donuts every time. Made with a creamy vanilla custard, and an easy chocolate glaze, the pastry comes out fluffy just like your favorite donut shop's, but bonus – you never have to get out of your pajamas!

5 from 20 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 50 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Inactive Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs 40 minutes mins

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings 18 Donuts

Calories 470 kcal

Ingredients

  

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Donuts

• 1 1/4 cups whole milk
• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast one packet
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar divided
• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• 1 large egg yolk at room temperature
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted and slightly cooled
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg optional
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt or table salt
• 4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour spooned and leveled, plus more for rolling out the dough
• canola oil or vegetable oil for frying

Custard Filling

• 2 cups whole milk
• 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter cut into pieces
• 4 large egg yolks at room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

Chocolate Glaze

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 3 cups confectioners sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 7 Tablespoons whole milk at room temperature

Instructions

 

Make The Dough

• Warm the milk by placing it in a bowl in the microwave for 20-30 seconds, or until warm to the touch (but not boiling).
• Pour the warmed milk into a large mixing bowl (or electric stand mixer bowl) and add the yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar. Lightly stir together with a fork (or whisk) and let sit for 5-8 minutes until foamy. If the mixture doesn’t become foamy after 10 minutes, discard and make a new batch of milk-sugar-yeast mixture.
• With the whisk attachment (or handheld whisk) mix in the eggs, egg yolk, remaining sugar, melted butter, nutmeg, vanilla extract just until combined.
• Switch to a dough hook and mix in the flour and salt until a tacky-sticky dough forms.
• Sprinkle flour on your counter. Knead the dough on the counter until smooth, adding up to 2-3 tbsp extra flour if the dough is too sticky. No need to overwork the dough; 1-2 minutes of kneading is perfect.
• Grease a large bowl with some oil or cooking spray. Transfer the smooth ball of dough to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a towel. Let rise at room temperature in a warm/room temperature place for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until the dough has doubled in size. You can also place the plastic-wrap-covered bowl in the fridge overnight if you want to fry the donuts the next day.
• ****While the donuts rise, prepare the custard filling, recipe below!***
• Grease two baking sheets with baking spray or cooking spray.
• Once the dough has risen, transfer the dough, lightly punch it down and transfer to a floured work surface. Sprinkle the dough with a bit of flour. Roll into a ½” thick rectangle.
• Cut the rectangle with a sharp knife so it measures about 17-inches wide by 10-inches tall.
• Cut the dough down the middle horizontally. Then, cut each half of the dough into 5”x2.5” rectangles. Place dough rectangles onto the prepared baking sheets, with at least 1 ½ inches apart. Reroll any dough scraps and cut into the same size rectangles.
• Allow dough to rise slightly while you preheat the oil (oil directions below).

Fry The Donuts

• Add enough oil to a heavy-bottom large pot to fill it halfway. Heat over a medium flame until the oil reaches 350°F on a candy thermometer or instant read thermometer. It can take 8-15 minutes to heat up. While the oil heats up, line a plate, baking rack or baking sheets with two layers of paper towels to set the donuts onto later.
• Once the oil is hot, fry the donuts: Carefully use a slotted spoon to lower 1 donut at a time into the hot oil (adding up to 3 donuts per batch) and fry for about 1 ½ minutes on each side, or until each side is a golden brown color.
• Transfer cooked donuts with the slotted spoon to the prepared paper-towel lined pan/plate. Continue frying batches of donuts until they’re all cooked.

Fill The Donuts

• After the donuts have cooled slightly for 10 minutes, fill each donut with the cold custard.
• Use a straw to poke a hole in the side of each donut and push it ¾ of the way into the rectangular donut. I like to lightly shimmy the straw around once in the donut in a circular motion to open up the center of the donut to accommodate more filling. Then, fill a piping bag with the custard and pipe it into the punctured hole on the side of the donut.

Glaze The Donuts

• Whisk all Chocolate Glaze ingredients together in a large bowl until smooth and silky.
• Dip the top of each filled donut into the chocolate glaze, then place it back onto the baking rack or plate to set for 15 minutes.
• Enjoy right away!

Make The Custard

• To a medium saucepan, add the milk and butter. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Once it begins to boil, immediately turn off the heat, remove from the heat and set aside, otherwise it will boil over.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, and salt until light and pale, about 2 minutes.
• Slowly pour in about 1/2 cup of the hot milk mixture, whisking until incorporated.
• Slowly stream in the remaining milk mixture as you whisk everything together.
• Pour everything back into the now-empty saucepan and whisk over a medium heat until it becomes thick, about 3-5 minutes.
• Turn off the heat and whisk in the vanilla extract.
• Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, press it right onto the cream, and cool for 15 minutes at room temperature, then refrigerate for 1 hour.

Notes

• To bring eggs to room temperature quickly, run sink water until it is hot-warm. Then fill a bowl with the hot sink water, and place the whole eggs in it to sit for 5 minutes. Drain the water and crack the eggs as usual when ready to use.
• If any bits of the custard overcook and become browned, be sure to push the custard through a fine mesh sieve instead of just transferring it into a bowl. Once you “strain” the custard, you should be left with all the delicious custard pushed through the sieve into a bowl, and discard the browned bits left behind in the sieve.
• I like to use Hershey’s cocoa powder for the glaze recipe.
• If you want to make the chocolate glaze 1-2 days in advance, you can! Simply prepare it, then store it covered in the fridge. Reheat slightly in a pot or in the microwave for 20-30 seconds to loosen the glaze and make it a dipable consistency again.
• This thermometer makes frying so much easier and less messy!

Nutrition

Calories: 470kcal

Keyword Homemade Donuts, Long John Donuts

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