April 19, 2012

Midday treat: raised donuts

I need a little extra motivation today, as you often do on a Thursday.

Instead, my mind goes to lazy weekend brunches and little treats, or not so little in the case of this orange blossom donut from the Bowery Diner. We all get lost in our everyday routines and sometimes it helps to stop and take a breath, treat yourself to something special or stir a pot of raspberry orange marmalade or knead a loaf of yeasty bread.

And when my mind starts to wander, I look for recipes. Here is a perfect yeasty donut recipe (from KAF), perhaps with this orange zest glaze:

You’ll need:

1 cup (8 ounces) water
1 teaspoon regular instant yeast
1/2 cup (2 ounces) King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour
5 cups (1 pound, 6 1/8 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon special instant yeast (or 1 teaspoons regular instant yeast)
3 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) butter
3 tablespoons lard (or other shortening or butter)
1 cup (7 1/2 ounces) brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1. Stir together the water, 1 teaspoon regular instant yeast, white whole wheat flour, 2 cups unbleached flour and 1 teaspoon salt to make a slack dough. Let this work for at least 3 hours, or best, all day long.

2. In the evening, stir in the eggs, beaten; the second teaspoon of salt, the teaspoon of special instant yeast (or regular instant yeast), the butter and lard (which should be softened), the brown sugar, nutmeg and the remaining flour. As with cake doughnuts, this will create a soft dough. After you’ve kneaded it thoroughly (keep the kneading surface and your hands well floured ), allow this to rise all night, in a cool place but not refrigerated.

3. The next morning, knock it down, turn it out onto a floured surface, and roll it out as for cake doughnuts. Cover and let rest for 15 to 20 minutes (longer if you can wait). Fry.

4. Mix the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg together and dump the mixture into a medium-sized paper bag. After the doughnuts have cooled, shake them several at a time in the sugar.