What Kind of Donut Are You?

Did our ancient ancestors get to eat doughnuts?

In a word, no.

The evolution of breakfast in Europe is a fascinating journey through history, reflecting the continent's diverse cultures and changing lifestyles. In ancient times, breakfast was not a universally observed meal. For Neolithic peoples, a typical morning might begin with a simple porridge made from ground grains. This trend of modest morning meals continued into ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome.

In ancient Egypt, the breakfast of peasants primarily consisted of bread, beer, and onions, foods that were staples for the working poor and enslaved people. The Greeks had a morning meal known as "ariston" or "akratisma," which was usually simple but nourishing. A typical Greek breakfast might include barley bread dipped in wine or pancakes made from spelt flour, often accompanied by figs and olives. Athenaeus of Naucratis, a Greek writer from the 3rd Century AD, even mentions a pancake recipe that included sesame and cheese.

The Romans, on the other hand, preferred a breakfast called "jentaculum" or "ientaculum," consisting of bread, cheese, olives, nuts, cold meats from the previous night's dinner, and sometimes a salad. A popular breakfast drink was "mulsum," a wine-based cocktail mixed with honey and spices. Roman soldiers often started their day with a porridge made from spelt-wheat or barley.

As we move into the Middle Ages, the concept of breakfast began to change. Initially, eating breakfast was not common among most people, as religious authorities often discouraged it. It was typically reserved for children, the elderly, and laborers, who were thought to be the only ones needing morning sustenance. Consequently, most people during this era did not eat their first meal until lunchtime.

However, by the Middle Ages, those who did partake in breakfast usually had simple fare such as a bit of bread, cheese, and small beer—a low-alcohol beer not dissimilar to today's light lagers—this period marked a significant shift in the perception of breakfast, setting the stage for its eventual recognition as an important meal in later centuries.

Where did the doughnut come from?

Doughnuts have a bit of a mysterious history — no one knows exactly when or where they were invented. Dutch immigrants (specifically, Anna Joralemon) to the U.S. made a version called an "olykoek" as early as 1673, and the Navajo people have been making fry bread for more than 150 years.

These groups weren't the first to drop dough into boiling oil. In fact, archaeologists have discovered signs of fried dough at sites that date back more than 8,000 years!

The modern doughnut — and the word itself — seems to originate with Elizabeth Gregory and her son, a sea captain named Hanson Crockett Gregory. Elizabeth made fried dough with nuts in the middle, calling them "doughnuts" out of practicality. Hanson is credited with creating the hole in the middle in the mid-1800s.

The sweet, classic doughnut that we know and love today didn't gain popularity until World War I. A few years later, a baker named Adolph Levitt invented a machine to make the delicious desserts a bit faster. And by 1934, doughnuts were so popular that they were featured prominently at the World's Fair.

Our personality quizzes are set up a little differently than your basic trivia quiz, but you’ve probably seen their kind around. Rather than having to choose the right answer from a list of multiple choice options, in this case, there is no “right answer”! (Two plus two will always be four, but every Golden Girls character is equally awesome.)

So, stop stressing. Just click on the answer that suits you best, and enjoy the ride. These quizzes are just for fun but who knows – you might just learn something about yourself along the way!