From the brains behind brains on,idge, the Pigeon.

Um.

As a savvy city pigeon, I've had the pleasure of sampling many, many delicious street foods.

I've pecked it up a pastrami stuck to the pavement.

I've nibbled on noodles.

I've even tasted tamales from a takeout counter once when no one was looking.

But in this humble pigeon's opinion, the hottest spot in the city is the dumpster behind the donut shop.

So many delectable donuts to try. Why, just yesterday, I had a strawberry frosted cake donut,

a glazed crueler, a powdered sugar twist, and to top it all off, my personal favorite,

a rainbow sprink sprinkle donut.

But, uh, keep it on the DL, okay?

I don't want every pigeon in town knowing about my super secret day old donut spot.

You know, I've always wondered something.

Why are they called donuts?

Not all of them have nuts in them.

Why not call them dough circles or, ooh, dough yums because they're yummy, you get it?

My friend Sophia sent in a question about this too.

Unfortunately, no one knows for sure why donuts has the word nut in it.

My name is Sarah Lohman, and I am a food historian.

I study the history of the foods we eat to better understand everyday people, both in the modern age and in the past.

To have donuts, we have to have the technology to create donuts, which means that you have to have vessels that you can fry things in,

and you have to have access to some type of oil.

...