Yeast Spelt Doughnuts (Wheat Free)

I couldn't stay away from yeast doughs for long! And today's offering is doughnuts....

 In Germany, they are called berliner. In Portugal, they are called malasadas. In Italy, they're called bomboloni. In French, they're called beignets. In Irish, they're called taoschnó.  In Lithuania, they are called spurgos. In Poland, they call them pączki. Whatever you call them, they're delicious.

As someone with who was socialised in English culture, I believe that Great Britain is built on stodge: heavy, doughy, bready, oily foods are part and parcel of what it is to be an Englishman, it seems.Although I understand that doughnuts are a mainland European concept that was introduced to England and the rest of Britain, they have been fully embraced as part of the pastry culture of the island nations.

One of my guilty pleasures is buying iced ring doughnuts from the bakery section of my local supermarket, and over the past four or so years of my blog I have experimented with many different cake doughnut recipes. Cake doughnuts are risen with baking powder or soda, whereas traditional doughuts are risen with yeast. Now that I've got the hang of making yeast risen dough, I can try making traditional doughnuts.

To make these, I use the same dough as I used to make the iced buns and burger buns, and rolled it out the a half inch (1 centimetre) thickness. I then cut out 3 inch (7½ centimetre) circles. Using my fingers, I pinched a hole in the middle of each circle and stretched it out to make an inch (2½ centimetre) hole in each one.

I laid them out on a well floured (and I mean well floured) surface and allowed them to rise for 20 odd minutes, flipping half-way, until increased in size by about a half. Over rising the doughnuts will make them collapse when you pick them up.

Had I had access to my deep fryer, I would have fried them in 180°C (350°F) oil for two minutes on either side. However, I didn't: I'm in Roscommon, but my deep fryer is in my Mum's house. So, I had to use a saucepan with about two or three inches of oil in it, heating it on medium heat. As such, they got a little sunburnt, and because the oil was too hot, there were air pockets under the crust in some of them. But they still tasted fabulous...

If you want, toss them immediately after frying in caster sugar and cinnamon, to taste. I use a tupperware box and do one at a time, but you can use a brown paper bag, too. Or, you can ice them with a simple icing of 4 ounces (115 grammes) icing sugar, 1 tablespoon (15 grammes) butter, melted, and mix in enough water to make an icing. Don't make it too thin, though, otherwise it'll dribble all down the sides. You can colour the glaze if you like, or make it chocolatey by replacing 1 teaspoon or so of the icing sugar with cocoa powder. Decorate with sprinkles, desiccated coconut, grated chocolate, flaked almonds, or whatever you like!

I enjoyed this project, but there are a few things I would change for the next time:

1. I'll use a proper fryer, to avoid burnt outsides and raw insides.
2. Cut the middles out instead of pinching them: pinching them made the dough tighten up, and made some of the doughnuts come out in funny shapes.

Roll on the next batch of delicious fried oily cakey yeasty doughnuts....

No blogs in 2015 or 2016

THIS TIME IN 2014: The Return of Spelt Flour and Cupcakes

Halloween 2016: Toffee Apple Doughnuts (Wheat Free)

It's October! Or as I like to call it: Halloween advent. And here's a sticky treat: toffee apple doughnuts!

Since I discovered my inner darkness in my teen years, and also as a result of Mum and Dad making it into a fun event in the year, I've always been fond of Halloween. I like the early dark evenings, the turf fire on at night, and the get-togethers involving food and party games.

Moving into adulthood, unfortunately, Halloween parties become drinking fests, and I find myself yearning for the simpler childhood events that involved wearing a black bin liner (which could make you anything you ever wanted) and eating sweets until I was sick.

One of the sweets that rarely--if ever--graced the Halloween spread in our house was toffee apples. Apple made an appearance in the form of bobbing for them in a mixing bowl full of water, but they never appeared covered in toffee. And in a way that's a good thing, because generally speaking when kids eat them you end up with a house full of skinned, mauled apples with all the toffee eaten off.

As I got older, I experimented with toffee apples and I actually like them, but it's important to use very small, tart apples, which are hard to find. I used to use Pink Ladies, because they're slightly sour and very firm fleshed, but spending ages hovering over the loose apples looking for the smallest ones is time not worth spending.

I experimented with toffee dipping slices of apple, but the surface of the slices was too juicy and the toffee would either run off as I was applying, or melt off over the course of the day, leaving a sticky toffee puddle under the apple slice. Apple slices dip very well in chocolate, however.

So, I decided to try and do something to capture the essence of a toffee apple, but be a small treat that isn't overwhelmingly and insurmountably sickly. And who doesn't like doughnuts?

A little cake doughnut filled with stewed apple and wrapped in a creamy toffee layer provides that instant sugar hit and autumnal feel that you'd get with a toffee apple, but without it eating it being a monstrous task.

FREE FROM

☑ Soya (check for soya lecithin)
☑ Yeast
☑ Wheat
☑ Nuts

CONTAINS
☒ Eggs
☒ Dairy
☒ Gluten
☒ Refined sugar products

INGREDIMENTS

For about 16 mini filled doughnuts

• 1 pound (455 grammes) doughnut dough (use your favourite recipe, or use this recipe)
• 1 firm eating apple, like a Granny Smith, Pink Lady, or Gala
• Two pinches ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons water
• ½ teaspoon cornflour

For the crunchy toffee coating

• 6 ounces caster sugar
• 3 ounces golden syrup
• 3 ounces evaporated milk, or cream
• 16 wooden lolly sticks

HOW-TO

First, make the apple filling,

• Peel and core the apple, and cut into half inch (1 centimetre) cubes. Put into a small saucepan with all the ingredients except the cornflour. Bring to the boil, then reduce the temperature to a simmer. Simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes until the apple is tender.
• Put the cornflour in a small cup, and add a tablespoon of water. Mix into a slurry, then pour into the saucepan slowly, stirring all the time. Cook until the sauce goes back to being transparent, and it has thickened.
• Once fully cooked, set aside until completely cool; about an hour.

Then, make the doughnuts,

• Preheat the cooking oil to 180°C (350°F), either in a deep fryer or a heavy saucepan.
• Roll out the doughnut dough to a quarter inch (5 millimetre) thickness. Cut into as many 3 inch circles as you can, and make pairs of circles. Put half a teaspoon of the apple filling on one circle, brush another circle with water, and make a sandwich. Press the edges together very well, then cut into a 2 inch (5 centimetre) circle, keeping the jam in the centre. This will keep them well sealed. 
• Repeat until you have run out of circles, then gently mash together and re-roll the trimmings, Continue until you have used all the dough.
• Cook the doughnuts in the oil, about 3 at a time so as not to overcrowd the fryer. Cook for about 2 or 3 minutes on either side, until golden brown and puffed. Drain on kitchen towel then allow to cool on a wire rack.

Finally, make the toffee and assemble,

• Line a baking sheet with non-stick baking paper, or a silicone liner.
• In a medium saucepan, combine all the toffee ingredients and melt together slowly over low heat, until every sugar grain has dissolved.
• Increase the heat to medium, and cook at a slow boil for about 10 minutes. If you have a sugar thermometre, it should read between 146 and 154°C (295 to 309 °F). If using the cold water test, a small drop in a glass of ice-cold water should snap cleanly.
• Immediately remove from the heat, and place on a folded tea towel to protect the work surface. Take a lolly stick, dip the very tip in the toffee, and stick it into a doughnut. Then dip the doughnut into the toffee, twirling it to cover it completely in toffee. Tap gently on the edge of the saucepan to drip off the excess, then place it on the tray, holding it for a few seconds untilit can stand upright by itself.
• Repeat this process with the remaining toffee and doughnuts. If the toffee starts to set, put it over a low heat until it goes runny again.
• If you have any toffee left over, you can pour it out on another baking sheet lined with non-stick baking paper, or a silicone cake tin.

This is a tasty alternative to a full toffee apple, and they have a lovely fluffy doughnut added to boot. This should be a delicious treat for Halloween, or indeed Bonfire Night on November 5th.

Something Different: Koeksisters (Wheat- and Dairy Free)

This time, I thought I'd try something completely different and unusual. My culinary explorations lead me to South Africa, where they make these delicious doughnut like confections soaked in syrup: Koeksisters.

For some reason, my family has had a lot of interaction with South African people: both my brothers have dated South African women, and I have had a few South African friends over the course of my school and college life. I think Ireland had some sort of connexion to the country, through hiring people to work for Intel in Leixlip, but I don't exactly know the details. Either way, it's a big migrant group here in Ireland.

Recently, I invited a friend around for dinner (who helped me out with the videos) and she told me she hadn't had a doughnut in years since going off dairy and wheat, so I promised her that I'd make some for her. I made the dough and thought, while I have it, I'll do a little experiment: another friend reminded me of the existence of koeksisters, which are braided doughnuts (sometimes flavoured with nutmeg and cardamom) that are deep fried and soaked in a simple syrup flavoured with cinnamon, ginger, and more cardamom.

The process was very simple: I used my new doughnuts recipe, adding ¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg and the crushed seeds of 2 cardamom pods to the dry ingredients, and replacing the butter with block margarine. I then split the dough into eight equal pieces and then began the rolling and braiding process.

1. Take each eighth of the dough and roll it into a ball.
2. Use a rolling pin to flatten each ball out into a long oval.
3. Make a mark a little bit down from the top end of the oval, and cut the oval into three legs up to the mark.
4. Pinch each of the three legs into ropes.
5. Braid the legs together.
6. Pinch the loose ends together and fold them behind.

 My technique improved while I has braiding: my first two were a little loose and mental, but the third and all thereafter were much better and neater. My advice is don't be afraid to pull on the legs a bit to keep them tight.

I then fried them like normal doughnuts for about 6 minutes per batch, flipping each side twice to make sure even cooking. If you leave them too long on one side, it actually causes the braids to unravel a little, so turn a few times during the cooking process to make sure each side rises slowly.

Once each batch cooks, take each cake out of the oil and wrap in a piece of kitchen roll and leave on a wire rack to drain and cool slightly. Once all eight are cooked, allow them to cool enough to handle, then make the syrup.

In a saucepan, heat together 6 ounces (170 grammes) of caster sugar with 6 fluid ounces (180 millilitres) of water, along with some spices: 1 cinnamon stick (or a sprinkle of ground cinnamon), 2 whole cloves, the crushed seeds of 4 green cardamom pods, and a teaspoon of vanilla essence. Bring to the boil and cook until the mixture thickens and becomes syrupy like warm honey.

Lay the koeksisters in a dish and pour the syrup out of them, liberally dousing each one. Allow to soak for a while, then flip them over to allow the other side to soak.

These are very heavy going, and very similar to gulab jamun, which I made for one of our Indian themed tea parties. These are best kept in an airtight container and eaten within 3 days.

THIS TIME IN 2014: Honey and Cinnamon Popcorn (Gluten Free)
THIS TIME IN 2013: Minty Millionaire's Shortbread (Wheat Free)

Recipe Revision: Doughnuts (Wheat-Free with Dairy Free Option)

Every so often, I like to revisit and revise some recipes that I think need tweaking. I take on the feedback, and make adjustments to the recipes, and this time I'm having a look at my doughnuts recipe.

I've been using the same doughnut recipe for a while now, and it's been doing the job. However, the most common bits of feedback is that they're too dry, the crusts are too thick, and that they crack when they cook. A few people, both online and in the real world, have said that they would prefer something a little more moist and soft, like a "shop bought" doughnut, and I would actually agree with them.

To achieve this, I did a few things:

1. I reduced the amount of raising agent. This was causing the doughnuts to rise too quickly and too much, causing the cracking on the surface.
2. I upped the amount of milk in the recipe, to make the dough softer and a little cakier.
3. I swapped the oil for butter/margarine, and upped that too for more moisture. The block fat is melted to make mixing easier at the start, but sets up to solid again after a brief chill, making the dough - which now has more moisture - firm up and become easier to work with.

Also, another comment that was made, and that I personally experienced, is that the recipe I was using made dense and dry doughnuts that were difficult to fill with jam using the standard syringe method after cooking. However, no matter how many variations I tried, this was always the case. Also, sometimes the round doughnuts with no hole never cooked fully through, or needed way too long in the oil

To combat this, I had a go at filling the doughnuts before frying and it worked a treat! It also meant that they cooked faster and more evenly in the oil.

In the photos below, you can see a batch of doughnuts with glazed rings, and jam doughnuts. You can see in the sides of these ones where I attempted to inject jam, which didn't work at all. In the second photo, which had the jam sandwiched inside the raw dough before frying, the jam inside the doughnut, and the texture of the crumb of the cake itself. This method was far more effective. That's my brother's hand; can't you see the family resemblance?

FREE FROM

☑ Soya (check for soya lecithin)
☑ Yeast
☑ Wheat

CONTAINS
☒ Gluten
☒ Refined sugar products
☒ Eggs
☒ Dairy (you can use block margarine instead of butter, and water instead of milk)

INGREDIMENTS

For the dough:

• 6 ounces (170 grammes) white spelt flour
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) cornflour
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 medium egg
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) butter or block margarine, melted and cooled
• 4 fluid ounces (120 millilitres) milk or water, or milk alternative, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• Optional: ¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg

For filling and decoration:

• 4 ounces (115 grammes) raspberry, strawberry, or any jam you'd like, sieved to remove seeds and pieces of fruit
• Icing sugar
• Food colouring
• Sprinkles
• Caster sugar
• Cinnamon

METHOD:

• In a mixing bowl, sieve the flour, cornflour, sugar, (nutmeg, if using) and baking powder together. Make a well in the centre, and add in the egg, butter, and milk. Mix with a wooden spoon until the dry ingredients are fully moistened, and the ingredients are well combined. The dough will seem very, very sticky, but don't freak out: it needs a stint in the fridge to set/
• Cover the mixing bowl with a sheet of cling film, or a slightly damp tea towel, and put in the fridge for about 30 minutes, or until the dough is firm to touch, but still a little tacky.
• In a saucepan filled with about 2 inches (5 centimetres) of flavourless oil, such sunflower oil, or in a deep fat fryer, preheat the oil to 190˚C (375˚F). Line a plate with a double layer of kitchen paper, for draining. I use a deep fryer because it's safer, and also because the heat is more consistent, which makes more consistent doughnuts.
• Dredge your work surface, rolling pin, and cutters very well with flour. You will need a 3 inch (7½ centimetre) round cutter for all the doughnuts, and a 1½ (3¾  centimetre) round cutter to cut out the middles of the ring doughnuts.

To make ring doughnuts,

• Roll the soft dough out on the surface, keeping flour nearby in cake it sticks, to a thickness of half an inch (1 centimetre).The mixture is very sticky and very soft, but that's how you want it, DO NOT be tempted to add more flour, because it'll make the dough too dry, which will cause the crusts to crack too much while frying.
• Cut out the doughnuts out with the big cutter, then their middles with the small cutter, and lie them on a baking paper line tray, to make frying easier. Gather up and re-roll the trimmings and punched out middles, being careful not to work the dough too much or be too rough with it; it’s delicate and temperamental.
• Using a fish slice and a table knife, put a doughnut on the fish slice, lower it into the oil, and slide it off the slice with the flat of the knife. This stops the doughnuts from losing their shape. Only fry a few at a time, because they need room to puff up, and if you put too many in at once you will make the temperature of the oil will drop too much.
• Fry the doughnuts for a total of 3 to 4 minutes, flipping half way through. You can tell when they’re ready to flip because the outside of the doughnuts, and the inside of the hole, will be a nice golden brown colour around the edge. If they brown too quickly, your oil is too hot, and if they don’t brown in two minutes, the oil is too cold.
• Flip and finish cooking, then remove with a slotted spoon and drain on the kitchen paper lined plate, blotting off all the excess oil. Move to a wire rack to cool.

To make jam doughnuts,

• Roll the soft dough out on the surface, keeping flour nearby in cake it sticks, to a thickness of a quarter inch (6 millimetres). Try and get the dough into a nice a rectangle as you can.
• On one half of the rectangle, spoon teaspoonfuls of jam, about 2 inches (5 centimetres) apart, then fold the plain dough over, covering the jam blobs, pressing the edges around the jam gently. Use the big round cutter to cut out around the jam, making little round jam and dough sandwiches; treat them gently. Gather up and re-roll the trimmings as with the ring doughnuts.
• In the same way as the ring doughnuts, use a fish slice to lower them into the oil and a knife to push them off. These take a little longer to cook: about 5 minutes, flipping half way through. You can tell when they’re ready to flip because the outside of the doughnuts will be a nice golden brown colour around the edge. If they brown too quickly, your oil is too hot, and if they don’t brown in two minutes, the oil is too cold.
• Flip and finish cooking, then remove with a slotted spoon and drain on the kitchen paper lined plate, blotting off all the excess oil. Move to a wire rack to cool.

To decorate,

• Once the doughnuts are cool, you can decorate them however you want. You can mix some caster sugar with some cinnamon, and toss the doughnuts in that to coat, or just toss them in plain caster sugar.
• Or, you can make some simple glaze with water and icing sugar, adding some food colouring if you like, and dip them in it. Decorate with sprinkles.

These new revised doughnuts are much nicer in texture and flavour than their predecessors, and using the pre-filling method is much more effective. You can, of course, fill them with whatever you like: custard, nutella, marmalade, peanut butter, marmite, superglue, or whatever your heart desires... within reason, obviously.

THIS TIME IN 2014: Variation on a Theme: Persian Banana Bread

THIS TIME IN 2013: Sweeties Make Great Gifts, Hopefully

Spelt Doughnuts Video Tutorial!

UPDATE 29/8/15: Click here for a revised and updated version of this recipe!

I made a tutorial video for the spelt doughnuts recipe that I published a few months ago, butI thought it would be pointless to have two blogs of the same recipe. So this blog post is literally just to say "Lookit ma new vidjo!"

Full spelt doughnuts recipe can be found here!

THIS TIME LAST YEAR: Confectionery Failures and New Job (thus Temporary Pause in Blogging)!

Spelt Doughnuts (Wheat Free)

UPDATE 5/11/14: Click this link to see the video tutorial for this recipe!
UPDATE 29/8/15: Click here for a revised and updated version of this recipe!

For those who have been missing the taste of doughnuts since discovering their allergies, here's a nice recipe so that you can be reacquainted!

I have always found doughnuts very visually appealing: fluffy cakey rings covered in caster sugar, or glazed with icing or chocolate and doused in illegally brightly coloured sprinkles. Usually the reality of eating a doughnut from the bakery isn't as nice as looking at them on the shelf, as here in Ireland there are only two or three kinds of doughnut, all of which are rather plain. I always considered the doughnut a second rate confection until in 2008 I visited Germany. 

While on holiday in Hamburg, I went to a bakery with a friend and was amazed not only by how popular the doughnut is, but also how many different kinds of doughnut you could buy! Jam filled, Nutella filled, custard filled, long ones split and filled with whipped cream and jam, spherical ones glazed completely in glacé icing, ones dusted with icing sugar, cocoa, cinnamon... and ring doughnuts glazed in every colour imaginable. It was a veritable doughnut wonderland!

I didn't think about them again until I visited Germany for a second time in 2012, and in Hauptbanhof in Berlin my boyfriend at the time and I found a "Dunkin' Doughnuts" shop. Yes I know it's an American chain, but once again I was fascinated by the sheer variety and imagination of some of the flavours.

Of course, this doughnut recipe that I developed through a few trials and errors is a fairly plain recipe, but hopefully as time goes on I will come up with some nice flavour and colour combinations.

So, here's the recipe:


FREE FROM
☑ Soya (check for soya lecithin)
☑ Yeast
☑ Wheat
☑ Nuts

CONTAINS
☒ Gluten (unless you use gluten-free bread flour)
☒ Refined sugar products
☒ Dairy dairy free options in italics
☒ Eggs


 INGREDIMENTS

Makes about 12 3 inch doughnuts, and 12 doughnut holes

• 6 ounces (170 grammes) spelt flour
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) cornflour
• 1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) baking powder
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) caster sugar
• Pinch of salt
• Optional: 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1 medium egg
• 3 to 4 tablespoons (45 to 60 millilitres) warm milk, or warm water
• 1 ounce (30 grammes) sunflower oil
• 1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence, or the seeds of 1 vanilla pod

To coat:

• Caster sugar
• Icing sugar
• Cinnamon
• Glacé icing
• Chocolate glaze
• Sprinkles

HOW-TO 

• In a heavy saucepan, heat about 3 inches (8 centimetres) of flavourless oil to 180°C (350°F), measuring with a sugar thermometer. Alternatively you can use a deep fryer, if you have one. The temperature is important so make sure your thermometer is accurate.
• Sieve the flour, baking powder, salt, and caster sugar (and cinnamon, if using) into a large mixing bowl.
• In a separate bowl, mix together the egg and the oil. Make a well in the centre of the flour and add in the egg mixture. Mix a little until messy but not combined.
• Add 3 tablespoons of milk or water to start with, and mix until combined. If it's not coming together properly, add up to 1 more tablespoon of liquid.
• Once the dough is formed, turn out onto a work surface and knead lightly until smooth, about 3 minutes.
• Roll the dough out on a floured surface to a half inch (1 centimetre) thickness. Using a 3 inch (8 centimetre) round cutter, cut as many doughnuts as you can. Using a 1 inch round cutter (2½ centimetre), or the screw top from a wine bottle, punch holes out of the middle of the doughnuts. When cutting them, press the cutter into the dough then twist as you take the cutter away.
• Gently drop the doughnuts into the oil in batches of 2 or 3. Cook the doughnuts for about 3 to 4 minutes, flipping once.
• Lift the doughnuts out with a slotted spoon or tongs and drain on kitchen paper. Allow to cool.
• To coat, dip them in caster sugar or icing sugar, or you can ice and decorate them.

THIS TIME LAST YEAR: Free-From Gingerbread Men