Donuts

Yesterday I decided to make donuts. I have several recipes in my collection, but I wanted to try the one I saw on the TV program "Good Eats". They turned out pretty well, but I did have a problem regulating the temperature of the oil. If the oil is too hot, you get burned on the outside and raw in the middle. If it is too cool, you get oil-soaked donuts. So unless you're using an electric frying pan or deep-fat fryer, get yourself a good cooking thermometer! It will make a difference!

Here are some of the recipes I have - all of them are good. Recipes for glazing (frosting) donuts are at the end of the post.

GOOD EATS DONUTS (Alton Brown)
Makes 2-3 dozen donuts

1 1/2 cups milk
2 1/2 oz. vegetable shortening
2 1/2 Tb. instant yeast (I didn't have any instant yeast, so I used Red Star active dry yeast - it worked well)
1/3 cup warm water
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
23 oz. (weight not measure) all-purpose flour (I estimated this to be about 5 1/3 cups)

Place milk in a saucepan. Heat it until it is just warm enough to melt shortening. Remove from heat and add the shortening, stir until melted. Set aside and let cool to lukewarm. Place water and yeast in a mixing bowl and let dissolve for 5 minutes. Add the milk and shortening. Stir. Add eggs, sugar, salt, nutmeg, and half of the flour. Beat until well combined. Add remaining flour. Beat well. Dough will be soft. Oil another boil and place dough in it. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for an hour. After the dough has risen, dump it onto a lightly floured surface. DO NOT KNEAD. Roll out to 3/8" thickness. Cut, placing donuts onto lightly floured cookie sheets. Gather up dough pieces and roll out again, cut, and repeat until all dough is used. Let donuts rise for 30 minutes. Heat at least 1 inch of oil in a heavy pan to 365 degrees. Fry 3 to 4 donuts at a time, carefully brushing excess flour from bottom of donuts before adding them to the oil. Fry time, if oil is at the right temperature, should be about 1 minute per side. Cool on a wire rack over a layer of paper towels. Let cool at least 20 minutes before glazing.

EASY DONUTS

Buy a couple cans of Buttermilk Biscuits. Buy a reputable brand, but don't get "Grands". Open cans and separate biscuits. For donut holes, cut biscuits into quarters. For regular donuts, push a hole through the middle of each biscuit with your thumb and stretch gently until you have a hole about 1 inch in diameter. Deep fry. Coat donuts with powdered sugar.

BUNUELOS (a recipe for donut holes from Argentina)

2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 Tb. melted butter
1 1/2 cups flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1/3 cup milk

Drop by spoonfuls into hot oil. Fry until golden. Place fried bunuelos into a bowl of sugar and toss.

APPLE DONUT HOLES

4 Tb. butter (1/4 cup or 1/2 a stick)
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
5 cups flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. nutmeg
2 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 cup milk
1 cup applesauce

Cream together butter and sugar. Add remaining ingredients and mix until smooth. Cook by dropping teaspoonful into hot oil. Shake in a sack of sugar and cinnamon, and let cool slightly before eating.

AUNT VELEEN'S RAISED DONUTS
This recipe makes enough to share with all your neighbors.

5 Tb. yeast
1 quart warm water
3 cubes butter, melted
1 cup milk
6 eggs
14 cups flour
2 Tb. salt
3 Tb. baking powder
2 tsp. nutmeg
2 tsp. mace
1 cup sugar
1 cup cornstarch

Mix yeast and water, let rest 5 minutes. Combine butter, milk, and eggs; mix well. Sift together dry ingredients. Combine all ingredients and stir. Dough will be very soft. Roll out and cut. Let raise until double. Deep fry and glaze.

SPUDNUTS
This recipe makes oodles. While it keeps me in the kitchen for a long time, it's probably my favorite donut recipe.

7 tsp. yeast
1/2 cup warm water
8 Tb. shortening
1 quart milk
1 cup sugar
12 cups flour
2 cups mashed potatoes (use leftover, or make fresh - can use reconstituted instant potatoes, but not as good) 4 eggs
4 tsp. salt

In large bowl, dissolve yeast in water, add sugar. Add melted and cooled shortening, milk, potatoes, eggs, salt, and flour, mixing well after each ingredient. Knead a few minutes. Dough should be soft but not sticky, Place dough back in bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Let rise until double. Heat oil in a big pot. Roll dough 1/2 inch thick. Cut doughnuts and place on squares of floured waxed paper. Let rise until almost double. Fry up to 3 at one time in deep fat. Turn when underside is golden brown. Fry other side the same. Turn each doughnut only once. Drain on paper towls. May be frosted. These freeze well (before frosting them). *Use peanut oil to fry if you can find it. It works the best.

BISQUICK SOUR CREAM OVEN DOUGHNUTS

2 cups Bisquick
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup sour cream
1 egg

Mix together until soft dough is formed. Make ball on floured board; knead 10 times. Roll 1/2 inch thick. Cut with doughnut cutter or facsimile. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Bake on ungreased sheet for 8 to 10 minutes. Immediately brush with butter, then dip doughnuts into a plate of 1/2 cup sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon.

CONNIE WEATHERFORD'S RAISED DONUTS
These are fantastic! My second favorite donut.

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. lemon extract
1/2 cup warm water
3 Tb. yeast
4 cups warm water or milk
10-12 cups flour

Cream butter, sugar, and salt. Add eggs, vanilla, and lemon extract. Let yeast dissolve in 1/2 c. water, then add to butter mixture. Add 4 cups water or milk and flour. Make a soft dough. Let rise at least twice. Knead down and roll out. Cut into donuts and let rise again. Fry in 325 degree hot fat. Dip in a glaze. If you don't cut a hole in your donut, you can fill it with pudding or jelly. Use a long nozzle or a cake decorating tube.

APPLE DOUGHNUTS

5 cups flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1/4 cup oil
2 cups grated fresh apples or thick applesauce

Still all dry ingredients together. Cream sugar, oil and eggs, then add vanilla. Mix alternately dry ingredients, then creamed mixture, milk, and apples. Roll out on lightly floured board to 1/4 inch thick. Cut into doughnuts. Makes about 3 dozen doughnuts. Fry in oil 360 degrees, drain on paper towels.


CHOCOLATE GLAZE (FROSTING)

Melt 1 cup (2 sticks) butter with 1/4 cup cocoa powder, 1/2 cup milk, and 2 Tb. corn syrup, stirring frequently. Add 2 tsp. vanilla and 4 cups powdered sugar. Stir until smooth, then remove from heat. Dip tops of donuts and set on a rack to cool. Frosts 3-4 dozen donuts.

VANILLA GLAZE (FROSTING)

In saucepan, heat 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter and 1/2 cup milk until butter is melted. Add 2 cups powdered sugar. Stir until smooth. Add 2 tsp. vanilla. Dip tops of donuts and set on rack to cool. Frosts 2 dozen donuts.

Dirty Popcorn

Have you ever wondered what to do with left-over popcorn that you bring home from the movie theater, and nobody is eating it? Here's one solution: make Dirty Popcorn! Yes, this is edible and only has 3 ingredients: popcorn, oreo cookies, and white chocolate chips.


Step One:
Fill a 9x13 cakepan with popcorn - left over or freshly popped. The salty/buttery kind from half-full bags of theater popcorn gives it a different taste than air popped corn, and both are somewhat different than microwave popcorn. ANY variety of popcorn works wonderfully with this recipe!

Step Two:
Crush half a 14-oz. package of Oreo Cookies. I like finer crumbs, so use a food processor to do the job. A cheaper version of chocolate sandwich cookies can also be used. You can use any variety of Oreos, too! Mint Oreos are fabulous! I'm thinking of trying peanut butter sandwich cookies the next time. YUM!

Step Three:
Melt a 12-oz. bag of white chocolate chips. I melt mine in the microwave, stirring every once in a while. Melting time was about 3.5 minutes, but your microwave might be different.

Step Four:
Stir everything together, being careful not to dump too much on the floor. Enjoy! If you let this dry out a bit (maybe a half hour), your hands won't get sticky when you eat it. If you have any left over, this stores well in plastic ziplock bags.

You can also add in other ingredients if you want, such as peanuts, almonds, cashews, pretzels, cereal, M&Ms, etc. Get creative! The possibilities are almost endless.