In the mid-19th century, the Dutch were making ‘olykoeks” or oily cakes, balls of cake fried in park fat. These were sweet snacks. The cooks had a problem because the centre of the cakes would not get cooked completely. So they would stuff the centre with fruits or buts, which required no cooking. Another story refers to what Elizabeth Gregory, a New England ship captain’s mother did. She would prepare the dough and pack it for the boat crew going on long voyages. She stuffed the dough with hazelnuts or walnuts and referred to the treats as doughnuts. Her son, Captain Hanson Gregory said he invented the familiar ring shape in 1847, while abroad his ship. The middle of the doughnut was raw, so he punched a hole through the centre with the ship’s tin pepper box. The hole increased the doughnuts’ exposure to the hot oil and ensured that the doughnut was cooked throughout. “I produced the doughnut hole!” claimed Gregory. Another sailor’s story?
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