How to Make Filled Doughnuts
Better than any bakery version, these jam-filled pillows are worth the extra effort.
Soft pillows of fried dough wrapped around your favorite jelly. What could be better?
1 START THE DOUGH
In a small bowl, melt 6 tablespoons butter and combine with 3/4 cup milk. Set aside to cool slightly. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine 3 1/2 cups flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon active dry yeast and 1 teaspoon salt.
2 MIX THE DOUGH
With the mixer on low using the paddle attachments, add the milk mixture, the two eggs plus the two egg yolks and mix on low just until combined. Switch to the dough hook and knead the dough on low speed until smooth and elastic, about 6 minutes. The dough should be workable but still somewhat sticky. Add a few more tablespoons of flour if necessary but resist the urge to add too much.
3 LET THE DOUGH RISE
Transfer the dough to a buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set it in a warm place to double in size, 60 to 90 minutes.
4 CUT THE DOUGHNUTS
Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it once or twice to expel the air. Roll the dough into a 9 1/2 by 12 1/2 inch rectangle. It should be about 1/2 inch thick. Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 12 dough rounds and set them on two floured rimmed baking sheets. Lightly cover the sheets with plastic wrap and set in a warm place until almost doubled, 60 to 90 minutes.
5 FRY THE DOUGHNUTS
Line a rimmed baking sheet with a few layers of paper towels and set aside.
Add 1 1/2 quarts of oil to a medium, heavy-bottomed pot. Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pot and heat the oil to 350 degrees F. Carefully add 2 to 3 doughnuts to the oil and fry them until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the doughnuts to the paper towels. Repeat with the remaining dough.
6 SUGAR THE DOUGHNUTS
Toss the warm doughnuts in the powdered sugar. If you want to frost your doughnuts, skip this step.
7 FILL THE DOUGHNUTS
Use a chopstick to poke a hole into one side of each doughnut. Twist the chopstick around to make some room in the center of the doughnut. Be careful not to poke through the other side. Transfer 1/2 cup of jam to a pastry bag fitted with a small round tip. For each doughnut, insert the tip of the pastry bag into the hole and gently squeeze to fill.
8 FROST THE DOUGHNUTS
Alternatively, instead of powdered sugar, make a glaze by whisking 1 cup of powdered sugar together with 2 to 3 teaspoons of cream and some food coloring. Top each filled doughnut with some glaze and top with sprinkles. Let the glazed doughnuts stand at room temperature for a few minutes to set.
