How To Make Doughnuts

First of, you will need the following ingredients:

• 490g (3 1/4 cups) plain flour
• 55g (1/4 cup) caster sugar
• 3 teaspoons dried yeast
• Pinch of salt
• 250ml (1 cup) milk, warmed
• 100g butter, melted
• 3 egg yolks
• Canola oil, to deep-fry
• 215g (1 cup) caster sugar, extra
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Method/Procedure

• Step 1
  Combine flour, sugar, yeast and salt in a bowl. Make a well. Mix in milk, butter and egg until dough starts to come together – it may be sticky.
• Step 2
  Knead on a well-floured surface until smooth. Place in a greased bowl. Cover. Prove for 1 1/2 hours or until dough has doubled in size.
• Step 3
  Punch down the dough. Knead on a lightly floured surface for 2 minutes or until smooth. Roll out dough until 1cm thick. Rest dough for 2 minutes.
• Step 4
  Use an 8cm round cutter to cut out discs. Use a 3.5cm round cutter to cut out centres. Place on a lined tray. Set aside for 15 minutes to rise slightly.
• Step 5
  Combine extra sugar and cinnamon on a tray. Heat oil to 180°C. Deep-fry 4-5 doughnuts for 40 seconds each side or until puffed and golden.
• Step 6
  Transfer the doughnuts to the sugar mixture and turn to coat. Repeat, in 3 more batches, with remaining doughnuts.

Keep  in mind:

• Don’t throw out the centres. Re-roll them to make more doughnuts or make custard gems. Deepfry the centres for 40 seconds each side or until golden and puffed. Spoon 180g (3/4 cup) bought thick vanilla custard into a piping bag fitted with a 5mm nozzle. Push the nozzle into gems and pipe in custard. Toss in cinnamon sugar.
• For evenly shaped doughnuts, rest the dough after rolling and before cutting. This prevents the dough from shrinking.
• Don’t have a deep-fryer? Add oil to a large, deep saucepan to reach a depth of 8cm. Heat to 180C over high heat. When it’s ready a cube of bread will turn golden in 15 seconds. Or, test with a wooden spoon – when the oil bubbles around the spoon, it’s ready.