Salted Caramel Buttermilk Doughnut Holes on a Fork

These were a huge hit at the baby shower last weekend. Seriously. What's not to love about salted caramel on anything. Even liver would taste good with salted caramel.  These homemade buttermilk doughnut holes are a far cry from the liver. They're fluffy cake bites with a hint of spice that you roll in powder and then drizzle with salted caramel just before serving. I roll them in powdered sugar, wait a few minutes, and roll them in sugar again. This gives them a nice thick coating.  Don't add the salted caramel more than an hour before serving or it will melt into the doughnuts. I served them in mini souffle cups that you can purchase at most grocery stores in the cake and party favor section.

Salted Caramel Buttermilk Doughnut Holes

Doughnut Batter:

2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

¼ tsp. Chef Tess Wise Woman of the East Blend, or nutmeg; optional, for flavor

¼ cup coconut sugar

1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

1 cup buttermilk

¼ cup coconut oil, melted

Frying Oil:  about 5 cups

Powdered Sugar, about 3 cups

Salted Caramel Sauce, prepared, about 2 cups

Instructions:

      Pour the oil 1" deep into a 10" skillet that's about 2 1/2" deep or use an electric frying pan. You want the oil to be about 1" deep. Start to heat the oil to 350°F while you're preparing the doughnut batter.
Whisk together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and egg.
Pour the milk/egg into the bowl with the dry ingredients, stirring briefly; then add the oil, stirring to make a thick batter/soft dough.
When the oil has come up to temperature, use a cookie scoop (or a spoon) to drop balls of batter into the hot oil. This recipe will make 2" doughnut holes using a tablespoon cookie scoop, and drop in balls of dough about as big as an undersized ping pong ball; or 1 1/2" holes, using a teaspoon cookie scoop, and dropping in balls of dough about as big as a chestnut.
Fry the doughnut holes for 2 minutes on the first side, or until they're a deep brown. Some of them may turn themselves over; that's OK, just use a pair of tongs to turn them back. After 2 minutes, turn the holes over, and fry for an additional 2 minutes (for the larger doughnut holes), or 1 1/2 minutes (for the smaller ones).
Transfer the doughnut holes to a baking sheet lined with paper towels to drain and cool.

Decorate:

·       Serve warm or at room temperature, roll in powdered sugar and place in mini souffle cups.Drizzle each doughnut hole with 1 Tbsp. salted caramel sauce and pierce with a mini serving fork. 

Homemade Fluffy Potato Cream Birthday Doughnuts

When my son announced he wanted doughnuts instead of cake for his birthday, I was almost insulted. I mean, what kind of pastry chef mom would I be if I didn't make my son a fantastically amazing awe inspiring birthday cake that would be the envy of every kid in school?! Then...he said the magic words, "Your doughnuts are a little piece of heaven." Awe crap! Sweet talking dimple cheeked boy! I'm a freaky pushover. So, doughnuts it is. I get a lot of requests for a fluffy creamy doughnut recipe, so I thought I'd share the ol' perfect potato doughnuts of love and joy. Ohm... 7th heaven. Truth be known, I developed this recipe so I didn't have to buy daggum doughnuts at a local doughnut chain called KK...(you do the word association). 

The fact that my son wants to make doughnuts with me for his birthday, is pure heaven to me. I doubt I'll be the center of his universe forever...and I can feel his childhood slipping away every day. Sniff sniff. Dang. I need a Kleenex. I don't even want to think about him growing up. I don't.
I learned something today. I didn't know before, in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, Tues the 16th of February is traditionally the day to make "Fastnachts" AKA potato raised doughnuts and eat until you're stuffed. Heather, my science teacher friend who's been to Space Camp, was kind enough to share this article with me. (here ) I had no idea I was joining the Pennsylvania Dutch tradition by doing potato doughnuts today. So, there you go. Somewhere in the "Great Beyond", one of my German ancestors is smiling down on me...and I am most joyfully smiling back. My recipe is slightly different, but still very similar. So...we may be on to something!

Tess' Yeast Raised Potato Doughnuts

•2 1/4 cups lukewarm water
•1 cup mashed potatoes (no salt, milk, or butter added)
•1/3 cup sugar
•1 packet active dry yeast ( 2 1/2 tsp)
•6-1/2 cups flour
•1-1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

•6-8 cups vegetable oil for frying

Chocolate Birthday Frosting:

2 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup cocoa powder

4-5 T hot water

1/2 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt

Equipment:

Large 2 gallon bowl, Mixing spoons, measuring cups, Deep (3-4 inch) 12 inch Dutch oven or Heavy skillet for frying, 2 inch biscuit cutter, extra flour for counter top, rolling pin

Directions:

Combine the water, potatoes, sugar and yeast and allow yeast to start to bubble, about 5 minutes. Add 3-4 cups flour, salt and nutmeg. Stir well. Add remaining flour until dough is soft, but not sticky. Knead 3-5 minutes by hand until smooth. Do not knead as long as you normally would for bread, it will be a nice loose dough. Form into a ball. Place in clean large two gallon bowl. Cover and allow to raise until double in size, about 2 hours. Expel air from dough and transfer to a well floured counter top, like so...

Gently roll out the dough until it is 1/2 inch thick, checking frequently that the dough is not sticking to the counter top.

Firmly press cutter into the dough.

A little secret, in between each cutting, if you lightly dip the cutter in flour, it won't stick.

Place doughnuts on a lightly oiled sheet pan. The traditional way to make these, I've been told, is to do so without a doughnut hole! So there...I'm not breaking tradition. Allow them to raise 40-50 minutes, until very fluffy.

Leave the doughnuts uncovered and allow them to raise while you prepare the whole frying area. We don't do this very often...so it's kind of a big deal. First, make sure you have a pan lined with clean paper towels.

Now, place your oil in the Dutch oven or large heavy deep frying pan (mine is 4 inched deep). This is where you tell the kids to just leave the kitchen or they will die. Okay...that may be pushing it...just tell them it's safer if they don't stay in the kitchen for this part. Heat your oil to 365 degrees. Very gently transfer the doughnuts to the oil one by one. I use slotted metal spatula for this. Brown on one side about 3 minutes...

Very gently turn over. I use a slotted spoon and always turn the doughnut over so if it splashed it would splash away from me. I've been married to a safety specialist too long huh? Cook 2-3 more minutes. By the way, my 12 inch frying pan can fry 12-15 of the two inch doughnuts at a time.

Place the cooked doughnuts on the clean paper towels to cool.

To make the frosting, combine the frosting ingredients in a medium size bowl until smooth.

Smooth and shiny.

Now, mercilessly plunge the head of the doughnut into the mud bog and scream, "die you evil demon..." Or you can just put the doughnut in there like a nice person. You will however have to press it down slightly into the frosting and twist it around in a circle like a Jr. High bully in the boys lavatory giving a swirly. Best to get it out of your system on the doughnuts and not on your cat. Oh for heck sake, I'm kidding. No way I'd waste the frosting on a cat.

Tenderly raise the doughnut out of the frosting, allowing the extra frosting to drizzle from the fluffy chunk of fried heaven in a oozing steady stream of sable goodness.

Place on a tray. Repeat. Oh, if you want sprinkles...and I know you want them...it is best to sprinkle right away. Not 10 seconds, after you frost, but right away. The frosting will get a thin candy shell on it. Oh yes. Like an M&M candy. Face wanted green and blue sugar sprinkles. At first I was a little weirded out by the color choice. However, now I'm thinking they are way too cha-cha for words. Totally retro.

They tasted incredible. They always do.

Happy Birthday Face. Seven years have never been more sweet.

There you go.

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess

Apple Fritters

Tutorial Tuesday. I used to make apple fritters every day. Every, every day. I was the female version of the Dunkin' Doughnuts guy...but thin and cute with blond ringlets. I sang while I made the doughnuts. It was probably a very disturbing site. I was one of the morning bakers and it fit my job description to put doughnuts out by the case lot. I'm not proud of my fried apple-dope peddlin' days. I am in fact reformed. However, My son Face was in serious need of some mom Face time. Not just the normal stuff...the creative crazy stuff. So we cast aside all our normal restraints, and decided to make doughnuts. Not just any doughnuts mind you, but the happy deep fried apple fritters of joy and love. I can't remember the last time I made anything deep fried. Bare with me. Despite the deep fry...they were still whole grain and had no refined sugar. Like that makes a huge difference when it's boiled in oil right? They can be baked instead of fried. See...I'm not totally evil. Totally.

For the dough I used:
3 cups whole wheat bread flour
1 1/4 cup water (lukewarm...no hotter than 110 degrees)
2 T honey
2 tsp active dry yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp each nutmeg, cloves and allspice
1T vanilla

Put water, yeast and honey in a 2 quart mixer bowl and combine. Allow to proof 5-10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, being careful to add the salt last so it doesn't come in contact with the yeast. Mix in a mixer with a dough hook until combined and smooth, 4 minutes on the medium setting. Form into a ball and allow to raise, covered, 45 minutes.

Divide into 12 pieces and spread out on a lightly floured counter top. Peel 1 granny smith or Jonathan apple and cut into 1/2 inch chunks.


Lovingly shove pieces of the apple into the pieces of dough...

Remember that cheek pinch from great Aunt Bertha? Do it again with this dough. Pinch it up around the apples. Yes, once again...the apples have found their happy place. They may be sucking their thumbs at this point. Repeat with all 12 pieces of dough.

Just to make sure the apples feel secure, turn the fritter over and flatten it. The apples will be sealed in the blanket of dough and ready to raise. Well, they will be secure, or dead. May they rest in pieces. Happy little apple chunks. Joy and happiness. Sing a hymn and walk away (like a true freak...). Demented as that sounds, somehow it helps the apple fritters rise. Then again, I may just be as insane as you think I am.

After their un-eternal rest...looking like 35-45 minutes really... (my kitchen was warm. It may take up to an hour if your kitchen is a bit cool)

In a 3 quart dutch oven heat 6-7 cups of oil medium high heat until a tiny piece of dough bubbles like crazy when cast into the inferno... (I keep the kids away at this point since the sputtering balls-o-dough and apple really are not safe for kiddos.) Cook 3-5 minutes on each side then remove to a plate lined with paper towels.

If you choose to bake them, do so at 350 degrees 25-30 minutes until golden and lovely. Be sure to use parchment paper or to grease your sheet pan so they don't stick. Stoneware is, of course, always perfect for this project.

We drizzle ours with honey instead of frosting. Even more evil if you add some chopped hazelnuts or pecans in the fritters with the apples. Ouch. Serve warm.

There you go. Thanks Face!

Let Me Sleep You Crazy Man!

Deep Fried Fluffy Dough Logs of Love and Indescribable Happiness...

or Pumpkin Doughnuts...

I have a friend who had an incurable sickness called KK. Krispy Kreme. I have to say I don't blame him but I just can't bring myself to drive all the way across town to get a deep fried dough ball... So when he asked if I had a recipe for pumpkin doughnuts my evil and twisted mind floated back to the days when I was up all night, not with babies, but with doughnuts. I can't help confessing right here and now that I may have intentionally fumbled with a doughnut or two just so I could sample the "broken" ones... still warm out of the fryer. The security guards loved to come by my corner of the bakery late at night. They would find broken pieces of fritters and jelly filled Bismark just begging for a friendly visitor to sample them. So can I help it if now as a mom and at home late at night I can't shut off my brain and end up in the wee hours concocting something as evil as a deep fried yeast raised fluffy pumpkin doughnut covered in maple glaze... and then topped with a rich cream cheese frosting, chocolate chunks and toasted almonds. Is it wrong? I may not be right in the head, but tell me these doughnuts look amazing! I'm telling you right now, if I could only eat with my eyes, I'd be a size 6. I really need to stop answering emails... those little voices in my head that beg for a recipe that has never been tackled. This was one of those voices. Thanks a lot. Mr. Evil. Now if I could only make this thigh fit in my pant leg...

Pumpkin doughnuts1 cup warm milk (not too hot now)
2 tsp active dry yeast (1 pkg)
1 tsp salt
1 cup packed canned pumpkin
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup oil
4 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp almond extract
Vegetable shortening ( for frying)

Directions:
Put the milk, yeast, sugar, pumpkin in a mixer with a whisk and mix until smooth. Add remaining ingredients. Mix with a dough hook until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes (by hand about 300 turns). Put dough in a covered bowl and raise about 1 hour until doubled. Lightly flour a counter top and roll dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into doughnuts or bars. I like the bars. Allow to raise uncovered 1 hour. Using a heavy pot and a thermometer, heat about 4 inches of oil to 360 degrees (with a candy thermometer). Lower the doughnuts into the hot fat, and brown on one side then carefully turn over. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel. Repeat until all the doughnuts are cooked (this yields 16 good size bars or about 20 doughnuts and holes). When cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting or glaze with a maple glaze.

Maple glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
2-3T hot water
1/4 tsp maple flavor
dash of salt.
Mix until smooth and spread over doughnuts with a silicone brush.