Description
Is there a more welcoming sight than a big pile of jam doughnuts? These ones are soft and chewy, and you get a good amount of jam with every mouthful!
Ingredients
Scale
For the dough:
- 11g active dry yeast (1 tbsp)
- 50g caster sugar, divided (¼ cup)
- 455g all-purpose flour (3 ¼ cups), divided
- 180ml whole milk (¾ cup)
- ½ tsp fine sea salt
- 2 eggs, beaten and at room temperature
- 75g butter, cubed and at room temperature (2.5 oz or ⅔ stick)
- frying oil, I used 650ml (3 cups) of groundnut/peanut oil
For the coating and filling:
- 100g caster sugar (½ cup)
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 320g raspberry jam (1 cup), not runny
Instructions
- Make the sponge. Put the yeast, 2 tsp of the sugar and 105g (¾ cup) of flour in a large mixing bowl and stir together. Warm the milk in a small saucepan over low heat (or using the microwave) until it’s around 32°C (90°F). It shouldn’t be hot, simply lukewarm! Pour the milk into the bowl and whisk until completely combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a tea towel and let the sponge rise for 30 min. It should foam and then double in size.
- Make the dough. Stir the sponge to deflate it. Tip in the rest of the sugar, the salt and 350g (2 ½ cups) of flour over it. Mix until combined with one of your hands. Stir in the beaten eggs and then the softened cubed butter. Mix with your hand until you get a smooth(ish) dough. At first, the dough will look dry but it will come together after a few minutes.
- Knead the dough. Tip the dough onto an oiled surface and knead it for 10 min. Oil the surface again if the dough sticks to it while kneading. When ready the dough should be smooth, only slightly sticky and bounce back lightly when pressed. Shape the dough roughly into a ball and place it into a large lightly greased mixing bowl, seam-side down. Cover the bowl with oiled plastic wrap and leave the dough to rise until at least doubled in size, about 1h30 in a lukewarm environment. I usually place my dough in an oven that has been preheated to the lowest temperature for a couple of minutes and then turned off.
- Shape the balls. Line 2 baking trays with parchment paper, dust them with flour and set them aside. Punch the dough and fold it on itself several times to remove the air. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces, each piece should weigh around 70g (2.5 oz). Roll each piece into a tight ball by cupping the surface with your palms. Transfer the balls to the baking sheets (6 per baking sheet), spacing them well apart. Loosely cover the baking sheets with damp tea towels and leave the balls to rise until doubled in size, about 1h.
- Fry the balls. Stir the sugar and cinnamon together in a shallow bowl and set aside. Line a baking sheet with several layers of paper towels. Fill a large pan no more than a third full with oil and heat to 180°C (355°F), or until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds, over medium-high heat. Lower 4 dough balls into the oil, seam-side up, gently brushing off the flour stuck to the dough before doing so. Cook the balls for 2min30 per side. Make sure that the oil is at the right temperature for the duration of cooking. If it’s too hot the interior will burn but the interior will be raw, if it’s too low the doughnuts will turn out greasy. Honestly, I wouldn’t fry doughnuts without having a thermometer at my disposal. The doughnuts will be a deep golden brown and feel crispy when done. That’s normal, once they’ll cool down the steam on the inside will escape and they will soften. Remove the doughnuts from the pan using a slotted spoon and drain them on the paper towels. Toss the doughnuts in the sugar while they are still a bit warm and oily (the sugar will stick better), then place the doughnuts on a cooling rack or a large plate. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls until they are all cooked. Don’t forget to check the oil temperature!
- Fill the doughnuts. Use a small paring knife or a wooden skewer to make a hole in the side of each doughnut. Swing the knife or skewer through the interior to clear space for the filling but be careful not to pierce the other side. Stand the doughnuts, slit-side up, in a baking pan or a casserole dish. It will be easier to fill the doughnuts if they remain standing up. Fit a piping bag with a nozzle. Place the bag in a tall glass and fold down the top to make a cuff. Place the bag in a tall glass with the cuff around the rim of the glass. Spoon the jam into the piping bag. Unfold the bag, push the jam down towards the nozzle and twist the bag where the jam ends. Secure the twist with a food clip or a bag tie. Push the nozzle right into a doughnut, past the middle point. Slowly squeeze the jam in and stop when you notice a little bit of jam oozing out of the hole. Repeat with the other doughnuts.
Notes
Jam doughnuts are best eaten on the day they are made but you can keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. They will dry out though.
You can make the dough using a stand mixer (fitted with the dough hook) if you have one. Once the butter has been entirely incorporated into the dough, keep mixing for 5 min using medium speed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 402 calories
Keywords: deep fried jelly donuts, dessert for breakfast, french bakery treats