CUSTARD DONUTS
In my humble opinion, this is the perfect donut recipe giving you the most incredible fluffy, pillowy texture with a custard filling. Although you can fill them with chocolate, jam, vanilla or just leave them plain and dust them with sugar!
INGREDIENTS
Donut Dough:
4.5 cups bread flour or all purpose (500g)
1 teaspoon lemon zest
Pinch of salt
3/4 cup lukewarm milk (150ml)
1/4 cup caster sugar (60g)
1 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast (8g)
1-2 teaspoons vanilla essence
1/2 cup butter (125g), room temperature, cubed
4 eggs, room temperature
Vegetable oil, for deep frying
Custard Filling:
4 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup cornflour
2 1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
Another 1/4 cup of sugar
PREPARATION
1. For the dough, combine flour, zest and salt in a bowl and mix.
2. Add 1 teaspoon of the sugar quantity and add it to the milk, then mix in the yeast and allow to bloom for 5 minutes.
3. In the meantime, in a separate bowl, add the vanilla and the rest of the sugar to your 4 eggs and whisk well to combine.
4. Once your yeast has bloomed, in your electric mixer bowl, add the flour, milk mixture and egg mixture and mix using the dough hook on low for 5-8 minutes, until it forms a dough and is not sticking to the sides of the bowl.
5. Let the dough rest for a minute, before incorporating the butter gradually, 2 cubes at a time, making sure it is completely mixed before adding more.
6. Once all the butter is added, we increase speed to high, and mix for an additional 3-5 minutes until the dough is elastic, sticky and glossy.
7. Store it in a lightly oiled bowl and cover, allowing it to rise for approximately 3 hours, so it doubles in size. You can also prepare the dough ahead of time and allow it to rise in the fridge overnight.
8. Once it has doubled in size, knead it on a floured surface for a minute, then roll it out into about 1 inch thickness, and take a round cookie cutter to cut into equal portions. Alternatively, you can roll the dough into equal sized balls of around 50-60g each.
9. Once you shape your donuts, place on parchment paper, leaving distance between them and leave them to rise for another hour or two, then cut the parchment paper around each donut.
10. While the donuts are rising one last time, prepare your custard filling by mixing the yolks, 1/4 cup sugar and cornflour really well in a bowl. In a saucepan, heat the milk with vanilla and additional 1/4 cup sugar until tiny bubbles form, but it is not boiling. Add a little of the hot milk into the egg mixture and whisk, repeat again, then add the whole thing and mix well. Pour everything back into the saucepan and stir over heat low heat until it thickens (make sure it does not curdle or become too thick). Place in a bowl, cover in cling film, making sure it touches the surface of the custard and refrigerate.
11. In another bowl, prepare powdered sugar or a mix of cinnamon and sugar or regular caster sugar, if you like, and heat your oil to about 180C.
12. To fry the donuts, gently drop the parchment paper into the heated oil for about 1-2 minutes on each side, making sure not to overcrowd the pan. We want a golden color and that perfect white ring around the donut. The donut tends to float above the oil, so gently push them down when that happens.
13. Remove from oil and drain on kitchen paper, before tossing into your sugar while it’s still hot.
14. To fill the donut, use scissors or a knife to make a small opening, then fill a piping bag with your filling, piping it into the hole until it slightly spills over the top creating a delicious blob at the opening.
15. These are always best eaten as soon as they’re made! Donuts tend to turn a little stale or dry the next day, however if they are plain with no filling you can always store them in an airtight container and reheat them for a few seconds before eating them.
