A Dessert of Dizzying Description

The humble donut, sweet, soft, and sugary, globally serves as a breakfast staple. From donuts adorned with vibrant sprinkles to the modest glazed dessert devoured by donut purists, there is a flavor for every palate. While most people have savored the tempting taste of this popular pastry, few donut-devourers are aware of the donut’s rich history. In this biweekly edition of The StickerTalk, we have amassed the essential ingredients of the pastry’s past, a treat we hope you will enjoy!

By Any Other Name… The donut, due to its international presence, has accumulated a variety of monikers. One of its earliest names, “olykoek,” was a Dutch term meaning “oily cake.” In present-day America, however, both “doughnut” and “donut” are common variations denoting the fried fancy.
A Taste of Home In both World Wars donuts were offered to lonely soldiers in attempt to diminish their heartache. In World War I, female volunteers affectionally named “Doughnut Girls” distributed the dessert while Red Cross volunteers, more colloquially called “Doughnut Dollies” served the snack in World War II.
A Blissful Blunder Some sources claim that the donut was invented by a cow! According to the tale, the oblivious bovine kicked a pot of boiling oil onto some pastry batter, frying up the world’s first, but certainly not last, batch of donuts.