Yeast Doughnuts with Raspberry Jam

Remember when I was attacked by those mini doughnuts (here). This time I was attacked by my own craving. My craving for yeast doughnuts. The fried kind. The first time I made yeast doughnuts they came out chewy, dense, and sickeningly sweet. I was a bit frustrated because all that time and ingredients were wasted. It has taken me a year to build up the courage to give homemade yeast doughnuts another go. I used the same recipe, but did things a little differently than the first time. The first time I made these I added about a cup more flour than the recipe called for. The dough felt too sticky and soft. Please refrain yourself from doing this or you'll end up with dense, chewy icky doughnuts and no one wants their doughnuts to taste icky.

I recommend  placing the doughnuts on 4 inch squares (depending on the size of your doughnuts) of wax paper to rise. This makes them easier to transfer into the hot oil without deflating them. Having your frying oil at the right temperature is also important. Not hot enough and these little guys suck up the oil and too hot will brown the outside too quickly and a will be a doughy mess on the inside.

I filled these with raspberry jam and dusted them with powdered sugar. Yeast doughnut craving satisfied!

Crispy and Creamy Doughnuts from Allrecipes.com

2 (.25 ounce) envelopes active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees)
1 1/2 cups lukewarm milk
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/3 cup shortening
5 cups all-purpose flour 1 quart vegetable oil for frying

1/3 cup butter
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 tablespoons hot water or as needed

Directions

1. Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water, and let stand for 5 minutes, or until foamy.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the yeast mixture, milk, sugar, salt, eggs, shortening, and 2 cups of the flour. Mix for a few minutes at low speed, or stirring with a wooden spoon. Beat in remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough no longer sticks to the bowl. Knead for about 5 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. Place the dough into a greased bowl, and cover. Set in a warm place to rise until double. Dough is ready if you touch it, and the indention remains.

3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and gently roll out to 1/2 inch thickness. 

Cut with a floured doughnut cutter. 

Let doughnuts sit out to rise again until double. Cover loosely with a cloth.

4. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth. Remove from heat, and stir in hot water one tablespoon at a time until the icing is somewhat thin, but not watery. Set aside.

5. Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large heavy skillet to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 

Slide doughnuts into the hot oil using a wide spatula. 

 Turn doughnuts over as they rise to the surface. Fry doughnuts on each side until golden brown. Remove from hot oil, to drain on a wire rack. 

For filled doughnuts, take a pastry tip and bag filled with desired filling. Press the tip into the side of the doughnut and squeeze filling into it.  Dip doughnuts into the glaze while still hot, and set onto wire racks to drain off excess...

or skip the glaze and dust with powered sugar.