These homemade Italian Donuts, also called zeppole, are crisp outside, fluffy inside, and dusted with powdered sugar. Made with simple ingredients and no yeast, this batch costs just $2.95, or about $0.49 per serving, and tastes like the ones from an Italian festival!
I first tried zeppole at an Italian festival and knew I wanted to make them at home. My family loves having these as a special weekend treat, especially when they’re served warm.
Why you’ll love this family favorite recipe!
- Pantry ingredients. Butter, flour, eggs, water, a little sugar and salt — no yeast and no waiting for dough to rise.
- About 8 cents a donut. One $2.95 batch makes about 36 bite-size zeppole, a big bowl for less than a single small order out.
- Light and airy inside. It’s the same no-yeast dough I use for cream puffs. It puffs in the hot oil, so each one comes out crisp outside and hollow-soft inside.
After 14 years of developing recipes, I’ve learned that homemade treats don’t need complicated ingredients to bring back favorite memories. These Italian Donuts use basic pantry staples and turn an ordinary afternoon into a little taste of an Italian festival.
We also love to make Cannoli Cake and Cannoli Poke Cake for more Italian flavor.
Ingredients
- All Purpose Flour. I recommend spooning the flour into a cup instead of scooping it. This is more accurate and prevents excess flour being packed into the cup.
- Large eggs: Room temperature, so they blend into the warm dough smoothly. Cold eggs can make the dough lumpy.
- Vegetable oil: You need about 2 inches in your pot (roughly 8 cups in a 4-quart pot). Vegetable oil is inexpensive and has no flavor of its own, so the donuts taste buttery, not oily. Canola or peanut oil work too.
- Powdered Sugar. For serving.
- Water: Boiled with the butter to make the dough base.
- Butter: Unsalted, so you control the salt. If you only have salted, skip the added salt.
- Sugar and salt: Just a little of each to balance the flavor — most of the sweetness comes from the powdered sugar on top.
Find the complete list of ingredients at the bottom of the page in the recipe card.
Step By Step Instructions
Step 1 – Melt the butter. Heat the water, butter, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring, until the butter melts and the mixture just starts to boil.
Step 2 – Cook the flour. Dump in all the flour and stir hard with a wooden spoon until it comes together in a ball. Keep stirring over the heat for 1–2 more minutes. You’ll know it’s ready when the dough leaves the sides of the pan clean and leaves a light coating on the bottom.
Step 3 – Let it cool. Move the dough to a mixing bowl and let it cool about 5 minutes, until it stops steaming. If it’s too hot, it will start cooking the eggs.
Step 4 – Beat in the eggs. Add the eggs one at a time, beating with a hand or stand mixer after each. At first the dough looks slippery and broken but keep going. It’s ready when it’s smooth, glossy, and thick enough to hold its shape on a spoon.
Step 5 – Fill a piping bag. Spoon the dough into a piping bag or zip-top bag and snip about a [¾]-inch opening. A small hole makes stringy shapes.
Step 6 – Heat the oil. Heat 2 inches of oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat to 375°F. Any deeper wastes oil; any shallower and the zeppole can’t roll over and puff. A clip-on thermometer is the easiest way to keep it steady, since the temperature drops with each batch.
Step 7 – Fry in batches. Pipe 1-inch pieces just above the oil, cutting each one off with kitchen scissors. Fry 6–8 at a time for 4–5 minutes, until deep golden. Most will roll over by themselves; nudge any that don’t. Lift them onto a paper towel–lined plate. Break the first one open to check: you want a hollow, airy middle. If it’s still pasty, give the next batch an extra minute.
Step 8 – Dust and serve. While they’re still warm, shake them in a paper bag with powdered sugar or dust them generously. Serve right away.
Zeppole Troubleshooting
Flat, not puffy: The dough was too thin. Cook the flour mixture the full 1–2 minutes and make sure each egg is fully beaten in before adding the next.
Greasy: The oil wasn’t hot enough. Wait for it to come back to 375°F between batches.
Dark outside, raw inside: The oil was too hot or the pieces were too big. Keep them about 1 inch and turn the heat down slightly.
Stringy shapes: Cut a bigger hole in the bag and snip the dough with scissors right above the oil.
Pro Tips
- Pot or fryer: A large heavy pot, Dutch oven, or deep fryer all work.
- Hand or stand mixer: Either one works for beating in the eggs.
- Don’t crowd the pot. Leave room for each one to roll and puff. Crowding drops the oil temperature and makes them greasy.
Toppings
- Powdered Sugar – Generously dust the donuts with powdered sugar.
- Granulated Sugar – Roll the warm donuts in a bowl of white sugar.
- Cinnamon Sugar – Stir together ½ cup granulated sugar and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon in a shallow bowl and roll the warm zeppole in it.
- Dipping Sauce – Chocolate sauce, Nutella or raspberry sauce make great ideas for dips. Jam is also delicious.
Storage
Place the leftovers inside an airtight container or bag. They will last up to 3 days but please note they are best served fresh.
Line the container with a paper towel to soak up extra oil.
To reheat, spread them on a baking sheet uncovered and warm at 350°F for about 5 minutes, until crisp. Dust with fresh powdered sugar after reheating. The first coat soaks in overnight.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can make the dough up to 3 days in advance. Simply make the dough as normal, cover and refrigerate.
Then fry as normal when ready. We suggest this method if you need to make in advance since they are best eaten fresh.
Both are fried and dusted with powdered sugar, but the dough is different. New Orleans–style beignets usually use a yeast dough that’s rolled flat and cut into squares. These zeppole use a cooked, no-yeast dough that’s piped straight into the oil and puffs into hollow little balls.
See the troubleshooting guide above — it’s almost always the oil temperature or dough that’s too thin.
Zeppole (ZEP-oh-lay) are Italian fried dough balls, often sold at street fairs in a paper bag with powdered sugar. This version uses the same cooked dough as my homemade cream puffs: water, butter, and flour cooked together, then eggs beaten in.
More Easy Donut Recipes
Italian donuts are the best treat. Make these today and leave a comment. I love hearing from you!
Italian Donuts Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup Water
- 8 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 2 Tablespoons Sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1 cup All Purpose Flour
- 4 Large Eggs Room temperature
- Vegetable Oil for frying
- Powdered Sugar for serving
See how we calculate recipe costs.
Instructions
- Heat the water, butter, sugar and salt in a saucepan over medium high heat. Whisk the ingredients together and heat until the butter melts.
- Then stir in the flour with a wooden spoon. Stir until a dough is formed into a ball. Then continue to cook the dough for 1-2 more minutes to cook the flour.
- Remove from heat and place the dough in a mixing bowl. Let it cool until steam is no longer coming off the dough.
- Then add the eggs in one at a time and beat with a hand held mixer until the eggs are incorporated into the dough.
- Heat 2 inch of oil in a large pot over medium high heat until the oil reaches an internal temperature of 375 degrees F.
- Pipe 1-inch pieces of dough right above the oil, snipping them off with kitchen scissors, and fry 6–8 at a time.
- Fry 4–5 minutes, turning them halfway if they don't flip on their own, until deep golden brown. Cut the first one open — it should be hollow and airy inside, not wet or doughy. If it's doughy, fry the next batch a minute longer.
- Move to a plate lined with paper towels with a slotted spoon.
- Serve topped with powdered sugar and enjoy!
My sister made these and they were so delicious.
LuAnn – Wahoo! Thanks for letting us know!