Raspberry-Filled Jelly Doughnuts

These jelly doughnuts are a brilliant shortcut: canned buttermilk biscuits baked until golden, dipped in melted butter, rolled in cinnamon sugar, and filled with raspberry jelly using a baster. No yeast, no rising time, no deep frying, and they taste shockingly close to the real thing.

The butter dip while the biscuits are still hot is what sells the illusion. Hot biscuits absorb the melted butter, creating that greasy-in-the-best-way surface that makes a doughnut a doughnut. The cinnamon sugar sticks to the butter and coats every side.

The baster trick for filling is genius. Seal the tip with foil, load the jelly in, and squeeze it right into the center of each biscuit through the side. You get a pocket of raspberry jelly hiding inside every bite.

Kitchen Tips

• Stir the jelly smooth before loading the baster. Chunky jelly clogs the opening and won’t squeeze through.
• Fill the doughnuts while they’re still warm. The soft interior accepts the jelly easily. Cold biscuits resist the baster tip.
• Dip in butter immediately after baking. The sugar coating only sticks while the surface is wet with butter.

Variations

• Strawberry or apricot: Use any flavor jelly or jam you prefer. Apricot is especially good with the cinnamon sugar.
• Glazed version: Skip the cinnamon sugar and drizzle with a powdered sugar glaze for a more classic doughnut look.