Visiting a coffee shop or bakery to buy donuts is one kind of joy, but making these treats at home can be equally gratifying. While some donut recipes may be intimidating, calling for perfectly round donuts fried in bubbling oil and coated in hot glaze, old-fashioned donut recipes offer a little more forgiveness to home cooks.

Old-fashioned donuts have a rustic, craggy look and don't need to be perfectly shaped, and require a lower temperature of oil for frying. The donuts can be placed into oil that clocks in at around 340 degrees Fahrenheit, and since only a few inches of oil are necessary to submerge the donuts, a deep fryer isn't needed.

You'll notice that your raw donuts will first sink when placed into the oil, but then they'll rise and turn golden and craggy, after which you can fish them out of the pan. Once your old-fashioned cakey donuts have cooled, you can glaze them or dust them with powdered sugar and serve alongside fresh cups of coffee.