Nutella Doughnuts!

Finally had a chance to sit and write up the Nutella Doughnuts recipe. I've been baking a lot in the last week or so, especially as the weather has turned colder. I seem to be baking bread on an almost daily basis, and I have been attempting to master the art of Sourdough. Which, I will admit, is not the easiest thing I have ever done!

Back to the Doughnuts, there are two types of Doughnut. The Cake Doughnut, and the Yeast Doughnut. There are various differences between the two, I would be here all day explaining them and the merits of each. To put it simply, Cake Doughnuts are much more dense and cake like (obviously, hence the name), and Yeast leavened Doughnuts tend to have a lighter fluffier texture. The Doughnuts you see at fairgrounds, and the like, where rings of batter are dropped into hot oil from a machine are cake doughnuts. They are leavened chemically with bicarbonate of soda, or baking powder. Yeast Doughnuts require a more lengthy process, through kneading the dough, and allowing them to rise. I prefer the taste of a Yeast leavened Doughnut over a cake doughnut, so the extra effort is worth it to me.

Doughnuts are not something I make very often, because firstly, I prefer them Fried (rather than baked), and I will only fry them when I have out fresh oil in the fryer. Secondly, because they are so good I eat so many and they are far from waistline friendly! When I made these hubby and myself ate almost the whole batch in one day... they do not keep very long though, so are best consumed on the day they're made.

Of course these Doughnuts can be filled with whatever you like, raspberry or strawberry jam is traditional. I'm not a fan of jam at all, so I have used Nutella and it worked wonderfully!

Nutella Doughnuts
Makes 8 Doughnuts
250g Strong White Flour, plus extra for kneading
25g Caster Sugar, plus extra to roll the doughnuts in after cooking
20g Softened Butter (plus an extra 25g melted if baking)
1 Large Egg
1 tsp Instant Yeast
5g Salt
75ml Milk
70ml Water

Oil for Frying

Roughly 8 dessert spoons Nutella, or filling of choice

 Start by warming the milk slightly, to take the chill off. Don't make it too hot.

Place all the ingredients except the water into a large mixing bowl. Add in approximately three quarters of the water. Mix together with your hands until the it starts to come together as a dough. Add in the remaining water and continue to mix in the bowl for 4-5 minutes. (You could also use a stand mixer for this)

Turn out on to a floured work surface and knead for a further 10 minutes, the dough will become smooth and elastic.

Shape the dough into a ball and place into a bowl, cover with cling film and leave at room temperature to prove for at least an hour.

Once proved, tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knock it back, forcing any air out by kneading it a few times. Divide the dough into 8 even sized portions and roll in to balls. place on to a baking tray, or plate to rise for an hour.

To fry the doughnuts; preheat a deep fat fryer to 180, or fill a pan with 2-3 inches of oil and heat to 180, monitor the temperature using a candy thermometer. Fry the doughnuts in batches of 2 or 3, for 3-5 minutes on each side, until a dark golden, almost mahogany colour. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and roll in caster sugar, this must be done while hot to allow the sugar to stick to the hot fat. Allow to cool completely.

To bake the doughnuts; preheat the oven to 200 (180 fan), bake the doughnuts for 12-15 minutes until a dark golden colour. Brush with melted butter and roll in caster sugar. Allow to cool completely.

Using a small knife make a small incision on the side of each doughnut. Fill a piping bag with your chosen filling and pipe the filling into the centre of the doughnut.

Enjoy!