From the YummyYucky team, founded by Nancy Nash

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Can Babies Eat Sufganiyot? Not Before 12 Months

Sufganiyot are the jelly doughnuts fried for Hanukkah, and they are mostly refined flour, oil and sugar. Not before 12 months, and after that a couple of bites cut into strips rather than a doughnut of their own. Never hand a baby a whole one, check what the filling is, and give them a strip of challah or some applesauce so they have something in their hand while the box goes round.

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When to introduce: Not before 12 months, and after that a few bites at the party rather than a portion of their own.
Common allergen?: Wheat and egg in the dough, usually milk as well, and a bakery fryer often cooks other things in the same oil.
Texture: Soft fried dough around a pocket of loose jam that can come out in a rush. Cut it into finger length strips and never hand over a whole one.
Key nutrients: Refined flour, frying oil and a lot of added sugar, with a little protein and choline from the egg in the dough.

A sufganiyah is a jelly doughnut, fried in oil the same way latkes are, and between the two of them they are what Hanukkah tastes like in most houses. The honest answer is not before 12 months. A sufganiyah is largely added sugar, and the CDC's position is that infants and young children should not have added sugars at all, so there is no version of this that turns into a food rather than a treat. That does not mean your baby stands there empty handed while the box goes round. Hand them a strip of plain challah, a spoon of applesauce or some soft cooked apple at the same moment, and after the first birthday let them have a couple of bites of the doughnut itself, cut into strips with the jam pocket opened up first. The sentence for the table is "He can have a bit of the outside, I just need to cut it up first."

Prep School: how to prepare sufganiyot for baby-led weaning (BLW) and purées

Under 12 months, at the Hanukkah partySkip the doughnut and hand your baby something at the same moment so they are eating along with everyone. A finger length strip of plain challah, a spoon of applesauce, or soft cooked apple slices all work, and all of them travel in a pot in your bag. If a relative is set on giving the baby something from the box, a small torn piece of the plain outside is the lesser version, but fried dough and sugar are not a food for a baby under one.

12 to 24 monthsTake one onto your own plate first. Cut it in half so you can see the filling, scrape most of the jam out, then cut the dough into strips about the length of your finger. Check the middle against the inside of your wrist, because a fresh doughnut holds frying heat and the filling holds it longer than the dough does. Two or three strips is a generous share. Offer water alongside rather than a sweet drink.

2 years and upA small piece at a Hanukkah party is a reasonable once a year thing. Keep pieces no larger than half an inch, keep them sitting down while they eat, and check what is inside, because bakeries now fill these with custard, chocolate, dulce de leche and liqueur creams as well as jam.

🍪 Little pancakes so they get a treat too →

Is sufganiyot safe? Choking & prep

Three things to manage here: sugar, heat, and what is actually inside. Sugar first, because it is the reason for the 12 month line. The CDC states plainly that infants and young children should not have added sugars, and a filled, sugared doughnut is one of the sweetest things on a holiday table.¹ After a birthday, a few bites at a party is a reasonable exception. A sufganiyah on each of the eight nights is not. Heat second. These are best straight from the fryer, and the jam inside holds heat far longer than the dough around it, so cut one open and check the filling against the inside of your wrist before any of it goes near a child.² Shape third. Do not hand a baby or a toddler a whole doughnut. Cut it open, take most of the jam out, and serve the dough in finger length strips, or in pieces no larger than half an inch once they are biting rather than gnawing, keep them sitting upright, and stay within arm's reach while they eat.³ That reduces the choking risk rather than removing it. Then the fillings, which are where the surprises live. Most sufganiyot are strawberry or raspberry jam, but plenty are custard, chocolate, dulce de leche or a liqueur cream, and alcohol can be very poisonous to a young child, so an alcohol filling is not something to give a baby or a toddler at all.⁴ There is no safe amount, and it does not cook out of a filling that was never cooked. Ask, or pick a plain jam one. Honey is the other thing to watch on a Hanukkah table. Sufganiyot themselves are not usually honeyed, but the Sephardi and Mizrahi fried sweets that share the table, bimuelos, sfenj and zalabia, are often soaked in honey syrup, and honey is not safe before 12 months because it can carry the spores that cause infant botulism.⁵ On allergens, the dough is wheat and egg and usually milk, so if any of those are new to your baby, meet them in a plainer food first.⁶

Trying sufganiyot today? Log the first taste and whether it was a hit, a hard maybe, or launched across the room, dated and ready for the pediatrician.

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Nutrition

There is not much to defend here nutritionally, and that is fine as long as nobody is pretending otherwise. A sufganiyah is refined flour, frying oil, sugar in the dough, sugar in the jam and sugar dusted on top, with a little protein and choline from the egg. Fried food itself is not the problem: babies and toddlers need plenty of fat, and latkes out of the same pan of oil are a reasonable food. The problem is that a doughnut delivers a large amount of added sugar in a small package and fills a stomach that only holds so much. Serve it next to a real meal rather than instead of one, and keep the portion to a few bites.

Goes well with

Applesauce, a sweet thing a baby under one can actually have · A strip of plain challah, if the loaf was made without honey · Cooked apple slices, soft enough to squash between your fingers · Plain whole milk yogurt · Banana, cut into finger length strips

Storage & freezing

Sufganiyot are a same day food. They are best within a few hours of frying and turn stale and heavy by the next morning. Keep them covered at room temperature and eat them within a day. Refrigerate any with a custard or cream filling rather than leaving them out, since those should not sit at room temperature for more than about two hours. They do not freeze well once filled. Throw away anything a child has already been handling.

More grains to explore

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TabboulehAround 9 months

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Teething biscuitsFrom about 9 months

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Toast stripsFrom about 6 months, once baby is showing signs of readiness for solids

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TriticaleAround 6 months

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TacosFrom about 9 months (some parents wait until 12 months for lower sodium and less processed fillings)

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Tamale9 months+

Introducing this allergen

Common questions

Can my baby have a sufganiyah at Hanukkah?

Not before 12 months. A sufganiyah is fried dough and added sugar, and added sugars are not recommended for infants and young children. After the first birthday, a couple of bites cut into strips, with most of the jam scraped out and the middle checked for heat, is a reasonable holiday exception.

What do I give my baby instead of a doughnut?

Something in their hand at the same moment, so they are part of it. A finger length strip of plain challah, applesauce, soft cooked apple or banana strips all work, and none of them need explaining to anyone. The point is that the baby is eating while everybody else is eating, not that the food matches.

My mother in law already gave the baby a bite of the doughnut. Should I worry?

One bite of jam doughnut is not a medical problem for a healthy baby who has already had wheat, egg and dairy. Check two things: that it was not still hot in the middle, since the filling holds heat, and what the filling actually was, because a liqueur cream is a different conversation. Then carry on with the rest of the day as normal.

Are sufganiyot a choking hazard?

A whole doughnut in a small pair of hands is. The dough is soft, which helps, but a big round doughnut invites a big bite, and the jam can come out in a rush. Cut it open, scrape most of the filling out and serve strips or half inch pieces. That reduces the risk rather than removing it, so stay beside them.

Is it the frying or the sugar that is the problem?

The sugar. Babies and toddlers need fat, and food fried at home in a clean pan of oil is fine in moderation. A sufganiyah carries sugar in the dough, sugar in the jam and sugar on the outside, which is why it stays a few bites at a party rather than a regular snack.

Can a baby have a doughnut filled with custard or liqueur cream?

Custard is dairy and egg, so it is fine after those have been introduced, but it needs refrigerating and it should not have been sitting out on a table all evening. A liqueur filling is a no at any age under this roof: alcohol can be very poisonous to a young child, there is no safe amount, and an uncooked filling keeps all of it.

Sources

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Last updated September 2026. Next review December 2026. How we write these: built from current published guidance from the AAP, CDC, FDA/EPA, NIAID, WHO, and other pediatric and public-health authorities, with sources cited on the page. See our editorial and medical policy for how we research, source, and update these, and how we double-check the food advice.

This is general information, not medical advice, and is not individualized for your baby. Always talk to your pediatrician about your baby's diet, introducing allergens, and any reaction. In an emergency, contact emergency services.

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