Timbit-Style Donut Holes (Copycat)

Name: Timbit-Style Donut Holes (Copycat)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 24 servings
Ingredients: 250 g plain flour; 150 g granulated sugar (for the batter); 2 tsp baking powder; 0.5 tsp ground nutmeg; 0.5 tsp salt; 1 egg (beaten); 180 ml milk; 30 g butter (melted); 1 tsp vanilla extract; 750 ml neutral frying oil (amount depends on pan size); 100 g granulated or cinnamon sugar (for coating)

Independent copycat-style recreation, not Tim Hortons’s official recipe (theirs is a trade secret) and not affiliated with Tim Hortons. This is a home version inspired by the menu item, worked out for a normal home kitchen.

A structure-demo recipe, written to show how this section will work. It recreates the familiar bite-size cake-donut holes at home, a simple spiced batter, fried in small scoops and rolled in sugar while warm. It has not been kitchen-tested for this site yet, so treat quantities as a starting point until the tested version replaces it after launch. One restaurant Timbit is a single small piece; this batch makes about 24 holes, and the cost comparison below is per piece so the two can be compared fairly.

Servings

15 min

Prep

15 min

Cook

30 min

Total

Easy

Difficulty

Est. calories / serving

What it costs: restaurant vs home

Option	Cost
EggTimbit (1 pc) at Tim Hortons (typical price, from the menu page)	$0.49
This home version, per serving	$0.18
You save	$0.31 (63%)

Restaurant price is the typical figure from our Tim Hortons menu data (prices vary by location). Home cost is an estimate for the ingredients listed, per serving.

Ingredients

Amount	Ingredient	Note
250 g	plain flour	n/a
150 g	granulated sugar	for the batter
2 tsp	baking powder	n/a
0.5 tsp	ground nutmeg	n/a
0.5 tsp	salt	n/a
1	egg	beaten
180 ml	milk	n/a
30 g	butter	melted
1 tsp	vanilla extract	n/a
750 ml	neutral frying oil	amount depends on pan size
100 g	granulated or cinnamon sugar	for coating

Method

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg and salt together in a large bowl.
In a second bowl, whisk the beaten egg, milk, melted butter and vanilla.
Pour the wet mixture into the dry and stir just until combined, a few small lumps are fine; overmixing makes the holes tough.
Heat the oil in a deep, heavy pan to about 175°C (350°F). If you have no thermometer, a small cube of bread should turn golden in about 40 seconds.
Drop rounded teaspoons of batter into the hot oil, 6 to 8 at a time so the temperature does not crash. Fry for about 2 minutes, turning once, until deep golden all over.
Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain briefly on kitchen paper.
While still warm, roll each hole in the coating sugar until evenly covered, then cool on a rack for a few minutes before eating.

Tips

Keep the scoops small and even, oversized holes brown outside before the centre cooks.
If the holes colour too fast, the oil is too hot; lower the heat and wait a minute between batches.
These are best within a few hours of frying. A quick 10-second warm-through in a microwave softens day-old ones, but the coating will lose its crunch.

Allergen caution: whether the home version contains allergens depends entirely on the ingredients and brands you use. Check every label, and take extra care with shared surfaces and frying oil if anyone eating has an allergy.

Recipe credit: adapted in our own words from the tested recipe by Total Tastes. Their Homemade Timbits recipe (Canadian donut holes) was published and tested on Total Tastes; it was the reference point for the batter style and coating approach here. Our wording, quantities and method above are our own. The recipe above is complete as published here; the original is credited only as a reference for readers who want to compare: original tested recipe at Total Tastes.

See the full Tim Hortons menu & prices The original item: EggTimbit (1 pc)