National Donut Day. A holiday so great, it's celebrated in some form at least twice a year. The first Friday in June is the original National Donut (or doughnut, if you prefer) Day, dating back to the 1930's to honor the women who served doughnuts to soldiers in World War I. The second holiday falls on November 5th. Nobody really knows the backstory on the November 5th date, but in our opinion, any day is a good day for a donut.
To celebrate the holiday dedicated solely to the doughnut, here are some fun facts about our deep-fried frenemies.
- ‘Doughnut' is the traditional spelling, though either way is acceptable. The first known printed use of ‘donut' was published in 1900.
- Over 10 billion donuts are made every year in the U.S.
- They were not always round – they were originally made as a long twist.
- The first donut machine was invented in 1920.
- The largest donut on record weighed 1.7 tons.
- There are two main types of donuts – cake donuts and yeast donuts.
- A 16-year-old American claimed to have invented the ring shaped-donut in 1847.
- Donuts got their name from a woman who fried dough with nuts in it.
- They were first knowing as “oily cakes”.
- “Donut lassies” served donuts to members of the U.S. military in France and Germany in WWI.
Do you dream of having a doughnut (or donut!) business? Horizon sells all the donut making equipment you'd need for success!