Last weekend, I found my favorite waffle recipe to date, and this weekend I found the best doughnut recipe that I have tried so far. The doughnuts turned out light and fluffy and really tasty. It is a two-day process and does take some work, but I was in the mood to cook last night and the prep work this morning wasn't too bad.
First, make a sponge from warm water, yeast, and flour.
When you mix the yeast and water and let it sit, be sure that it blooms before you add the flour. For me, this always happens at the very last part of the allotted time. Please note that the pictures of the yeast blooming are taken just seconds apart. Just in case you have not worked with yeast before, I wanted to show what the process looks like.
Let it sit for 30 minutes to an hour.
Cream the butter and sugar.
Add the eggs, vanilla, and salt.
Add the sponge mixture and flour, and switch to the dough hook on the mixer. Mix until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl and clings to the hook.
Butter the sides of a large bowl, and let the dough rise in a warm place for an hour and a half to two hours. It should be double in size. I keep my house pretty cold during the summer months, so I have found that I have to set my oven on the "Warm and Hold" setting and leave it on for about 15 minutes. Then I turn it off and put my dough in to rise. This method seems to make the dough rise perfectly.
I deviated from the original recipe a bit here. I punched the dough down, but left it in my large bowl because the bowl had a lid. I covered the top of the dough in plastic wrap, put the lid on, and left it in the refrigerator overnight.
The next morning, roll out the dough to about 1/2" thickness on a floured surface and cut with a doughnut cutter. I found that thickness is important. My first try was too thin and my next try was too thick. Once I found a happy middle, they rose and cooked perfectly.
I put the doughnuts and doughnut holes on parchment paper on cookie sheets, and put in the oven to rise for another 30 minutes.
While they were in the oven, I prepared my glazes. These are the same glazes that I use every time I make doughnuts.
Plain Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
4-5 tablespoons of milk (more or less, depending on preferred consistency)
Cinnamon Sugar
1/2 cup of granulated sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
Chocolate Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
4-5 tablespoons of milk (more or less, depending on preferred consistency)
Of course, these can be adjusted to taste. This is just what I have found works for my family. A couple of side notes... The pictures will indicate a really dark-colored cinnamon. This is because I was working before my second cup of coffee and started pouring the cocoa powder into the granulated sugar. Once I realized what I was doing, I scooped as much of it out as I could, but there were some leftover bits of cocoa powder in the mixture. It wasn't bad, even though it was a total accident. Also, I decided to experiment this morning and use cooled brewed coffee in place of milk for my chocolate glaze. It was pretty tasty as well.
Heat the oil to between 350-375 degrees. Once the doughnuts are risen, fry the doughnuts in the oil for 1-2 minutes on each side (until they are golden brown). Be sure and turn them quickly. If they fry too long on one side, they get heavy and tend to keep flipping onto the heavy side. This is especially important for the doughnut holes.
Once the doughnuts are fried, I let them cool on a cooling rack sitting on a cookie sheet. Then, I dip them into the glaze of choice and put them back on the cooling rack.
Deputy D and Little Man agreed that this is the best recipe I have tried so far. Deputy D would like the dough itself a little sweeter, so if anyone has any ideas on how to tweak this recipe to make it a sweeter dough, please let me know!
FAQs
If you're making yeast-raised doughnuts (pictured) you'll want to make the dough the night before and chill it overnight first. When you're ready to begin, remove the dough from the fridge, dust with flour, and press the dough out flat on a floured surface.
Can doughnut dough be made the night before? ›
About my No-Knead, Yeast-Raised, Glazed Donuts
I designed this method so you can quickly whip up a batch of dough the night before and just pop it in the fridge. The next morning, the dough will be ready so you can enjoy some fresh, warm donuts!
What is the best flour for donuts? ›
Use real cake flour – not DIY cake flour!
DIY substitutions don't really cut it, and AP flour will not create doughnuts with that same soft texture. Also, bleached cake flour will work best. Unbleached (like King Arthur Baking) won't absorb as much moisture, and you may end up with doughnuts that crumble while frying.
What happens if you let donut dough rise too long? ›
“If the dough has risen too long, it's going to feel fragile and might even collapse as you poke it,” says Maggie. If this is the case, there's a chance you can save your dough by giving it a quick re-shape.
What happens if you let donuts rise too long? ›
If the bench time is too long, volume could be lost in the proofing process; the donuts will shrink during frying; the texture will be coarse; and the flavor will not be up to your standards. Always let the dough rise on the bench for approximately 45 minutes before proofing.
How to prep donuts the night before? ›
Roll out the dough, shape into doughnuts, lay them out on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to rise while you sleep. Go to bed and dream of pillowy clouds of dough. In the morning, set the doughnuts out on the counter for an hour or so to finish rising.
How do you prepare dough for the next day? ›
Just portion your dough into balls and brush them with a little oil. Place them into zip lock bags and refrigerate them. The following day pull the bags out a few hours before you plan on spinning pies and let them come up to room temperature. When they're around 70 degrees F, get to work.
Is butter or shortening better for donuts? ›
We have found that peanut oil or vegetable shortening yield the best texture for donuts, with shortening producing the crispest exteriors.
What flour does Dunkin donuts use? ›
Donut: Enriched Wheat Flour (Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Palm Oil, Yeast Donut Concentrate [Soy Flour, Salt, Leavening (Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Baking Soda), Wheat Starch, Whey (a milk derivative), Nonfat Dry Milk, Gum Blend (Cellulose Gum, ...
What is the best oil for homemade donuts? ›
Vegetable oil is the go-to choice for many good reasons. Besides being cheap and easy to find, it has no problem handling high temperatures with a smoke point of around 400 degrees Fahrenheit — well above temperatures needed to brown donuts.
What is the secret to Krispy Kreme Donuts? The secret to Krispy Kreme doughnuts is of course the sweet glaze, and this is achieved by bathing the doughnuts in a glaze of icing sugar, vanilla extract and milk, for a thicker glaze increase the quantity of icing sugar by a few spoons.
How does Krispy Kreme make their donuts so fluffy? ›
A batch of original glazed starts with Krispy Kreme doughnut mix, water and yeast, the same single-cell fungi used to make bread rise. The yeast is what makes the original glazed so light -- it puffs the dough up with air, so it's not dense like a cake doughnut (more on this later).
Are there eggs in yeast donuts? ›
To make the dough: In a large bowl or the bucket of your bread machine set on the dough cycle, whisk together the dry ingredients. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, melted butter, and vanilla. Add all at once to the dry ingredients. If you're using a bread machine, press Start.
How long can you let Doughnut dough rise? ›
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate dough for at least 2 hours or up to overnight. Turn dough out onto a well-floured board or counter.
How long should I leave my doughnut to rise? ›
Place the dough in a greased bowl, turn it over to coat the top, cover, and let it rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until doubled in bulk. To shape the doughnuts: Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Gently roll it 1/4" thick, and cut out doughnuts with a 2 1/2" to 3" round cutter.
How long can you rest donut dough? ›
place the baking sheets of doughnuts/holes in the refrigerator, covered in plastic wrap, overnight (and up to 24 hours). if you are making your donuts right away, let them rest on the counter until they have doubled in size (ish) about an hour.
How long can you leave donut dough at room temperature? ›
Summary. The standard time dough can be left out for is 4 hours. But this can change depending on the ingredients used and the baking methods used. The use of science to study the bacteria growth generated during the baking process should be acknowledged.
