Review on Sunbeam Full Size Donut Maker - FPSBDML920 by Julius Hunter

I bought this donut machine for my daughter's birthday. She loves donuts and I needed an excuse to buy her! First, if you are looking for fried donuts, you are buying the wrong product. This machine makes BAKED donuts. I thought about buying donut molds (similar to cupcake molds) but after reading the mold reviews I got concerned that donuts don't have the same "cook" on both sides. I like the golden donut. The first thing that struck me about the car is that it's really cute and has a sprinkles picture on top, which is cute. The directions are very clear. I washed the inside with a wet soapy cloth to make sure it was clean. This machine must NOT be submerged in water, as must all electrical devices. I went with the basic recipe for white donuts from the booklet. It was very easy to follow. I sprayed the inside of the pans with canola oil to keep the batter from sticking. Set a timer for 8 minutes. After several attempts, I found that the suggested 6 minutes was not enough. Most of my donuts took 8-9 minutes. I'm not sure why some people are complaining that the recipe in the booklet didn't work. I thought it was right for the money (except for the timing). By the way, I am a very experienced home baker. I make everything from scratch including cakes, cookies, puddings, tarts, etc. Donut makes five donuts at a time, which is time consuming when you're trying to make 50 for a party (which I did). However, it's a really hassle-free operation, which is a plus. It also takes less time than baking and frosting cupcakes. I followed other people's advice and used a chopstick to scoop the hot donuts out of the pans. Won't scratch pan and donuts slide out like a charm. The device itself heats up to the touch, but the handle used to open it is made of plastic, which doesn't heat up. I didn't need a top glove. HOWEVER I gave this machine 4 stars instead of 5 because I think the handle design is a little clunky and the lid slams shut when closed. I think the manufacturer should fix that. I dipped my warm donuts in melted butter and rolled them in sugar. I also dipped some in chocolate icing and added sprinkles. Very beautiful. The donuts aren't huge, but they're not mini either. I think they are the perfect size. They taste like wet donut cakes. I think I'll try the chocolate donut recipe next time, for fun or maybe for the next school bake sale.