Crispy & Creamy Doughnuts (Donuts)

Homemade doughnuts (donuts) are hard to beat. And I’m talking about homemade “raised” doughnuts. The ones made from a buttery rich yeast dough that are deep fried and then rolled in sugar or dipped in chocolate. There is no doubt that these doughnuts are best eaten freshly made. That is when the sugary outside crust is wonderfully crisp. Yet when you bite through that crust, the inside is so soft and tender. You will find it almost impossible to eat just one.

-Nikolas

for 4 persons

Ingredients

500 gr flour
50 gr sugar
40 gr butter
4 gr baking powder
24 gr yeast
2 eggs
2 dl milk or buttermilk
a pinch of salt
½ orange zest
½ lemon zest

Instructions

Put milk and all the dough ingredients, apart from the butter, into the bowl of a mixer with a beater paddle. Mix on a medium speed for 8 minutes or until the dough starts coming away from the sides and forms a ball. Turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 1 minute.

Start the mixer up again on a medium speed and slowly add the butter to the dough – about 25 gr at a time. Once it is all incorporated, mix on high speed for 5 minutes until the dough is glossy, smooth and very elastic when pulled.

Cover the bowl with cling film or a clean tea towel and leave to prove until it has doubled in size. Knock back the dough in the bowl briefly, then re-cover and put in the fridge to chill.

After 2 hours, roll the dough 2 cm thick and cut with a cuter 8 cm Ø (diameter) then with a cutter 2 cm Ø make a whole in the middle. Place the donut in baking paper with some flour on the top so they will not stick.

Cover loosely with cloth and leave for 2 hrs or until doubled in size. Fill your deep-fat fryer or heavy-based saucepan halfway with oil. Heat the oil to 170°C.

When the oil is heated, carefully slide the doughnuts from the tray using a floured pastry scraper. Taking care not to deflate them, put them into the oil. Do 2-3 per batch, depending on the size of your fryer or pan.

Fry for 2 minutes each side until golden brown – they puff up and float, so you may need to gently push them down after about 1 minute, to help them color evenly.

Repeat the steps until all the doughnuts are fried, but keep checking the oil temperature is correct – if it is too high, they will burn and be raw in the middle; if it is too low, the oil will be absorbed into the doughnuts and they will become greasy.

Decorate as you feel like.