Strawberry Cheesecake Donut Holes

These Strawberry Cheesecake Donut Holes are fluffy fried cake donuts; rolled in sugar & stuffed with a creamy strawberry cheesecake filling.

Cake Donuts vs Yeast Donuts

There are two different types of donut: cake and yeast.

A cake donut is made with a sweetened dough that’s leavened with baking powder and fried until crispy on the outside with a soft, cakey inside.

Yeast donuts are your classic glazed donut, and as the name implies, made with a yeast dough. These are typically cut out into a shape before being frying.

Yeast donuts are typically light and airy, where cake donuts tend to be more dense.

Personally I prefer a cake donut, and they are a lot easier to make at home.

How to Store Cake Donuts

Leftover donuts should be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Tips for the BEST Fried Cake Donuts

1. Clean up your work area and make sure you don’t have anything flammable near by your stove top.
2. Use a large, heavy-bottom dutch oven with high sides.
3. Use an instant thermometer to monitor the temperature of your oil.
4. You will need about 2 inches of oil in your pan – just enough to fry the donuts, without splashing out.
5. Fry only a few doughnut holes at a time – it is easier to manage and will ensure even cooking.
6. Ensure your ingredients are all at room temperature before starting.
7. Do not over-work your dough, it can result in dense donuts. Get it just combined then stop.

What is the Best Temperature to Fry Cake Donuts?

You will need roughly 4 cups of oil to fry your donuts. Set your heat to medium-high and let the oil get hot, about 5 minutes.

Donuts fry best at a temperature between 350ºF-375ºF, you will want to use an instant thermometer to accurately measure the temperature of your oil. 

An alternative way to test your oil is by dipping the handle of a wooden spoon into the oil. If it starts bubbling around the handle, the oil is good to go.

If you see smoke, your oil is too hot. Remove it from the heat for a few minutes before proceeding. If it doesn’t bubble at all then it needs to heat up more.

It’s important you start with your oil at the right temperature to make sure the donut holes get a nice crisp outside layer and soft fluffy interior.

What Kind of Oil is Best for Frying Cake Donuts?

The best oil to use for deep frying is one that has a high smoke point and a neutral flavor.

Canola Oil – Inexpensive and perfectly checks off all the boxes which is why I recommend it’s use in this recipe.

Sunflower oil – This is more expensive than Canola oil but will give comparable results.

Vegetable Oil – Another good, cheap oil that ticks all the boxes.

Avoid deep frying using butter or shortening at the smoke points are quite low for these fats. You will also want to avoid more expensive oils like olive oil as you need quite a bit for deep drying donuts.

Don’t like Cheesecake Filling? Try these Donut Hole Variations!

If you aren’t a huge fan of lemon, either skip it altogether or try these filling ideas instead:

• Nutella
• Strawberry Jelly
• No-Bake Cheesecake Filling
• Pastry Cream
• Bavarian cream
• Raspberry Sauce
• Custard
• Chocolate Custard
• Lemon Curd

Ingredients for the Strawberry Cheesecake Donut Holes

Flour – Spoon and level the flour when measuring it, otherwise you’ll wind up with dense donuts.

Baking Powder – To leaven the dough. Make sure it is still active.

Buttermilk – Make sure your buttermilk is room temperature before starting. If you don’t have any buttermilk on hand make it yourself by adding half a tbsp of lemon juice to 1/2 cup milk.

Eggs – Make sure your egg is at room temperature before starting.

Sugar – Just use plain old granulated sugar.

Butter – Unsalted butter, melt it first. If you only have salted, omit the salt altogether.

Salt – Helps to balance all the flavours and make em shine.

Vanilla extract – Use pure vanilla extract for the best flavour, but artificial is just fine too.

Strawberry Cheesecake Filling – Full fat cream cheese, powdered sugar and strawberry jam.

Looking for More Fried Donut Recipes?

Check out some of my favourite recipes for fried donuts:

Dulce De Leche Donuts featuring a buttery tender dough that is stuffed with dulce de leche and fried up into a golden, fluffy masterpiece.

Lemon curd donut holes are a lemony delight – soft donut holes are filled with sweet and tart lemon curd, and covered with a sugar glaze.

How to Make Strawberry Cheesecake Donut Holes

Yields: 15 Donut Holes | Prep Time: 15 mins | Cook Time: 6 mins

Ingredients:
For the Donut Holes

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg, small
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• Canola oil for frying
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar for coating

For the Strawberry Cheesecake Filling

• 2/3 cup cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons strawberry jelly

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

2. In a large bowl, beat the egg. Add the buttermilk, whisk until combined. 

3. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and fold together using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Mix in the melted butter and vanilla.

4. Fill a Dutch oven at least 2″ deep with oil and heat to 350°F. Fry the donuts by carefully dropping spoonfuls (about 1-2 teaspoons in size) into the hot oil, making about 4-5 donut holes at a time. To form uniform balls, you can work with a spoon in each hand or a cookie-scoop. Fry for about 2 minutes, turn the donuts over while frying.

5. Remove donuts from the oil with the spider tool and place on a tray lined with paper towels. Once slightly cooled, place 1/2 cup granulated sugar in a dish, roll each donut in sugar, and set aside to cool completely before filling.

6. For the strawberry cheesecake filling, mix the ingredients until smooth.

7. Add the cheesecake filling to a pastry bag fitted with a narrow nozzle. Fill each donut hole with the filling.

Enjoy!