Friday, July 23, 2010

Doughnuts or Donuts?


I don’t know if I should be using doughnut or donut? I want to go with donut because its short and I’m tired but it just doesn't look right.

Yummy yum yum, Doughnuts!! These aren't quite Krispy Kremes but they're still pretty tasty and a lot of fun to make.

From what I had read from other people while looking for a recipe, I was expecting these to be a bit of a pain in the bottom. Glad to report my adventure into doughnut making was hassle free.

Lucky for me we had people over the night I made these so I didn’t have to eat them all by myself.

I don’t know what more to say, except maybe make them, then eat them!



Doughnut dough- (adapted from Joy The Baker)

1 packet active dry yeast (2 ½ teaspoons)
2 tablespoons warm water
3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour (extra for dusting)
1 cup full cream milk at room temperature
½ stick (¼ cup) butter (softened)
3 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
About 10 cups vegetable oil for deep frying

For the doughnuts- Add yeast and warm water to a small bowl, mix together until yeast is dissolved. Cover the yeast mixture with a clean tea towel and let stand in a warm spot for about 5 minutes. The mixture should foam and double in size. (If yeast doesn’t foam, discard and start over with new yeast.)

In a large bowl mix together flour, milk, butter, yolks, sugar, cinnamon, and foamed yeast at low speed until ingredients come together to form a soft dough. Increase speed to medium and beat for about 3 minutes.

With a spatula scrape the dough into a ball in the middle of the bowl. Sprinkle the dough lightly with flour (to keep a crust from forming). Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel, stand in a warm draft free spot to rise for about 1 ½ to 2 hours, dough will double in size. (Alternatively, let dough rise in bowl in refrigerator 8 to 12 hours.)

Lightly flour a work surface and rolling pin. Turn dough out onto floured surface and roll out to about ½ inch in thickness.

Using a floured 3 inch round cutter cut out as many doughnuts as possible from the rolled dough.


In the centre of each large circle cut out the donut holes with a 1-inch cutter. (Turns out I don’t have a small round cutter so I used a starburst shape instead.)


After cutting the shapes transfer the doughnut rings to a large baking paper covered tray. Cover doughnuts with a clean tea towel and leave to rise again in a warm draft-free place about half and hour, until puffy. Don’t reroll the scraps it will make them tough. (I let the scraps and the doughnut holes rise with the cut-outs and used them to test the oil, or maybe that was the excuse i used as i snacked on them while making the actual doughnuts.)


Heat 2 1/2 inches oil in a deep, heavy based pot to 175 degrees c (350°F). Gently drop in your doughnuts 2 at a time and fry until they puff up and are golden, about 1 minute per batch, flip halfway through frying. Scoop out the donuts and drain on paper towel.


When the doughnuts are done ice them, glaze them or roll them in cinnamon sugar. Enjoy!


Vanilla glaze-

½ cup icing sugar
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
¼ cup water (room temperature)

In a small bowl mix together all ingredients until smooth. While the are still warm dip them into the glaze. Place dipped doughnut over paper towel on a wire rack until glaze is set. It’s totally up to you how much glaze you want on them. I tried some with just glazed tops, some glazed all over and some double coated. (None of them were bad :D )

Chocolate icing-

½ cup icing sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 teaspoon melted butter
1 tablespoon milk (approximately)

Mix together icing sugar, cocoa, butter and milk until smooth but slightly thick. I found the chocolate icing works best if the donuts are left to cool a little before dipping. Press doughnut into the icing about half way, remove from the icing and allow to set on a wire rack.


Cinnamon doughnuts-

½ cup caster sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Mix sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. To ensure the cinnamon sugar sticks to the donuts, toss doughnuts in the mixture while they are still hot.

5 comments:

  1. Yummo I just love doughnuts have been looking at the recipes in the Gourmet Traveler from a couple of months ago and willing myself to make them. Yours look great.

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  2. They look better than any doughnuts I see at the shops. I would love to take a bite of one right now!

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  3. Ohmeegosh I thought these were from a bakery! Brilliant work. Can't wait to try these for a little something different.

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  4. Will be a pleasure to follow your blog and try to do some typical recipe ^ _ ^ I've never made these!
    Soon
    Sonia

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  5. Yum, you make it look so easy

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