Dolly Parton had one non-negotiable order at Dollywood, and it was funnel cake. The country legend was co-owner of the Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, theme park, and in a Southern Living cover interview published in January 2025 she said she could not walk its grounds without grabbing one.
“Even if I’m in my bus or The Dolly Suite, I say, ‘Run get me some funnel cakes. I can’t leave here without funnel cakes,'” she said.
She was talking to the magazine for its January/February cover, timed to Dollywood’s 40th anniversary season. She loved the whole menu, not just the fried stuff. “I have to say, we have some of the best foods ever at Dollywood,” she said.
She died on August 25, 2026, at age 80, her representatives announced. Dollywood opened on May 3, 1986, a partnership between Parton and Herschend Family Entertainment, and now has more than 50 rides and attractions across 165 acres in the Great Smoky Mountains, according to the park. Through all of it, the snack she kept asking for by name stayed the same.
Where Dolly Got Her Funnel Cakes
Two stands inside the park fry them fresh all day. Crossroads Funnel Cakes sits in Rivertown Junction, and Splinter’s Funnel Cakes serves them over in Wilderness Pass. The deal is the same at both: hot dough, plain or buried under powdered sugar, handed over the second it comes out of the oil.
The park also shapes some of them like a butterfly, the emblem Dolly used everywhere. Parton never said exactly how she took hers, but the menu gives you plenty of ways to go. Both stands offer strawberry pie filling, apple pie filling, whipped cream, crumbled Oreos, and hot fudge, and Splinter’s adds a scoop of Mayfield ice cream. Seasonal versions rotate through the calendar too: a spiced Harvest funnel cake with caramel in autumn, red velvet with cream cheese filling at Christmas, and a Flower and Food Festival cake in spring, currently wild berry cream cheese.
Why Funnel Cake Beat Everything Else At The Park
This is the part worth sitting with, because Dollywood’s cinnamon bread gets more hype, and Parton named potatoes, baked or mashed or fried, as the food she loved most. Even so, the funnel cake is what she wanted delivered to her bus. It reached American fairgrounds only after the Kutztown Folk Festival started selling it in 1950, and the appeal has barely changed since: fried dough that turns crisp on the outside while staying soft in the middle.
The Dollywood version is crisp on the outside like fried chicken and pillowy inside like a yeast donut. The batter itself is not very sweet, and that is the whole trick. A cake that leans plain can carry a heavy dusting of powdered sugar, a river of caramel, or a scoop of melting ice cream without collapsing into one flat note of sugar.
How To Make Funnel Cake At Home
You do not need a trip to Tennessee for this. Funnel cake is one of the easiest fried desserts going, and the batter uses pantry staples you probably already have. Flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, eggs, milk, and vanilla, that’s the entire list. Whisk the dry ingredients in one bowl, whisk the wet ones in another, then beat them together until the batter pours like a thin pancake mix. Let it sit for about 10 minutes while your oil heats.
The oil matters more than anything else you do. Heat about an inch of vegetable or canola oil to 375 degrees Fahrenheit in a deep skillet or heavy pot at least 10 inches across, and clip a thermometer to the side so you can actually watch it. Pour the batter into a squeeze bottle or a piping bag instead of fighting with a real funnel, which gives you far more control over the stream.
Drizzle the batter over the hot oil in loose spirals and crisscrosses, using roughly half a cup to three-quarters of a cup per cake. Fry about a minute or two per side until deep golden, then flip it once with tongs or a spider. Lift it out, drain it on paper towels or a rack, and dust it with powdered sugar while it is still steaming. Eat it fast. Funnel cake waits for no one.
The Best Toppings To Pile On
Powdered sugar is the classic, and it is genuinely hard to beat. Cinnamon sugar is the next move, and it takes about two seconds to stir together in a small bowl. If you want the full Dollywood treatment, reach for hot fudge, crushed Oreos, or a scoop of ice cream set right on the hot cake so it starts to melt into the cracks.
Home cooks who chase the park’s flavors reach for cream cheese icing, crushed Oreo pieces, strawberry or apple pie filling, and a drift of whipped cream. There is no wrong answer here, so set out a few bowls and let everyone build their own. That is the whole spirit of the thing.
Mistakes That Turn Funnel Cake Greasy
Cold oil is the number one problem. If the oil falls much below 350, the batter soaks up oil instead of frying, and you pull out a heavy, greasy cake. Let it climb back to temperature between batches, and never crowd the pan. Two cakes fighting for the same space cool the oil down and stick together.
Batter that is too thick will not drizzle into those lacy strands, so thin it with a splash of milk if it clumps in the bottle. Batter that runs too thin fries up flat and lacy with no chew. Aim for something that streams steadily, about the weight of a thin pancake batter. If you want the shape Dollywood is known for, guide the squeeze bottle in a rough butterfly outline before you fill it in.
Dollywood-Style Funnel Cake
Course: DessertCuisine: American6
servings15
minutes25
minutes450
kcalThe hot, crispy, powdered-sugar funnel cake Dolly Parton could not leave Dollywood without, made at home.
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Vegetable or canola oil, for frying (about 6 cups)
Powdered sugar, for dusting
Directions
- Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Breaking up any lumps now keeps the batter smooth later, so give it a good stir.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, and vanilla until fully combined. The mixture should look pale and slightly frothy on top.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until you have a smooth, pourable batter about the weight of thin pancake mix. Let it rest for 10 minutes while the oil heats. If it thickens too much, loosen it with a splash of milk.
- Add about an inch of oil to a deep skillet or heavy pot at least 10 inches across and heat it to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Clip a thermometer to the side so you can hold the temperature steady the whole time.
- Transfer the batter into a squeeze bottle or a piping bag with the tip snipped off. This gives you far more control than a real funnel and makes the classic lacy pattern much easier.
- Drizzle roughly half a cup to three-quarters of a cup of batter over the hot oil in loose spirals and crisscrosses. Work quickly so the strands connect into one loose cake.
- Fry for about a minute or two until the underside is deep golden, then flip it once with tongs or a spider. Cook the second side another minute until crisp.
- Lift the cake out and drain it on paper towels or a wire rack. Dust generously with powdered sugar while it is still hot, then add any toppings you like and serve right away.
Notes
- Keep the oil near 375 degrees and never let it fall much below 350. Too cool and the batter soaks up grease; too hot and the outside burns before the inside cooks.
- A squeeze bottle gives you more control than a real funnel. Trace a rough butterfly shape first if you want the Dollywood look.
- Try cinnamon sugar, hot fudge, caramel, cream cheese icing, crushed Oreos, or a scoop of ice cream on top.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What was Dolly Parton’s favorite snack at Dollywood?
A: Funnel cake. She told Southern Living she could not leave the park without one, even asking staff to bring some to her bus or her suite.
Q: Where can you buy funnel cake at Dollywood?
A: Two spots serve them fresh, Crossroads Funnel Cakes in Rivertown Junction and Splinter’s Funnel Cakes in Wilderness Pass, sometimes shaped like the park’s butterfly emblem.
Q: What oil temperature should I use for funnel cake?
A: 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Let it fall much below 350 and the batter turns greasy instead of crisp, so use a thermometer and let the oil recover between cakes.
Q: Can I make funnel cake without a funnel?
A: Yes, and it’s actually easier. A squeeze bottle or a piping bag with the tip snipped off gives you much better control over the batter.
