May 27, 2006

Heart shaped Jelly Donuts

I was inspired to learn to make Jelly Donuts when Shaun linked me here a couple of weeks ago. I was tickled by the random joke and it got my cravings escalated. Jelly donuts are great! I've loved eating them as a child and have been nicknamed "jelly donut" as a result of resembling little round puffy jam filled sugar coated delights. I do not respond to "Jelly donut" in public, and I shrug it off when people to laugh at my chubbyness. It isn't insulting; it's definitely better than having a nickname like fatty of lumpy! "Jelly donut" is cute.
These donuts took me awhile to make. It was tedious waiting and kneading; but definitely worth the trouble! I found the recipe here. It made around 30 donuts; depending on the size of your cutter. I would suggest sprinkling castor sugar on top instead of icing sugar. I love a good crunch to my donuts. Reminds me of the mini donut's at Dunkin Donuts ---------------------->

3 1/2 cups bread flour, plus extra 1/2 cup for dusting
1 teaspoon salt
1 (6/10 ounce) cake fresh yeast or 1 (1/4 ounce) envelope active dry yeast
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 cup lukewarm milk
2 eggs
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil, for frying
1 cup strawberry or raspberry jam
Â’ sugar for sprinkling

A heart shaped cutter
2 cookie sheets
A pastry bag fitted with a 1/4-inch plain tip
In the bowl, combine the flour and the salt. Combine the yeast, sugar, and milk in a small bowl and let proof” (foam up) for 5 minutes. Add the proofed yeast mixture to the flour. Mix till combined with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs and butter and mix until the dough comes together and is soft, but not sticky. If the dough does seem sticky, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing after each addition, until a soft dough forms.
Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 1 minute, until smooth and elastic. Return the dough to the mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap (or transfer to a clean oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap). Let rise in a warm spot (such as an oven that is not on) until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours. (The recipe can be made up to this point and refrigerated after the kneading up to 1 day in advance. The dough will rise slowly in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before proceeding.)
Punch down the dough with your fist. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times. Roll the dough out 1-inch thick, letting it rest” a few times during the rolling (if you handle the dough too much, the natural gluten will tighten up and make your donuts tough).
Lightly flour 2 cookie sheets. Using a well-floured cutter, cut out hearts of dough, transferring them to the cookie sheets as you work, spacing them 2 inches apart. Reroll the scraps and cut out more disks to use up the dough. Cover lightly with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in bulk, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, pour 3 inches of vegetable oil into a deep, heavy pot and heat it to 350 degrees F. Lay out a thick layer of paper towels or brown paper bags for draining the fried donuts. Spoon the raspberry jam into your pastry bag. Working in batches of 6 or 7, transfer the risen donuts to the hot oil and fry until golden and puffed, turning frequently, about 5 to 7 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the hot donuts to the paper to drain. When cool enough to handle, poke the tip of your pastry bag into the center of each donut hole (entering from the side). Squeeze in a little jam. Sprinkle with sugar and serve as soon as possible.

5 comments:

ViNi said...

Oh my God, to think I've lived with you overnight tons of times and never had a bite out of your cooking. How come I only got Ribena for breakfast!
I'm so gonna try these out, but in the break, where I can actually have space for my stuff. >.<

Su-Yin -Décorateur said...

Vanessa, wasn't that great of a cook when I was in KL...you should come visit me in Sydney, I promise you a big glass of ribena; and a stack of yum pancakes! haha

Anonymous said...

Oh. My. God.

I remembered telling you that I absolutely hate donuts (try working with them every weekend...) but this has totally changed my mind. They look fabulous!

Su-Yin -Décorateur said...

Yannie! *muah* you got to teach me how to get the jelly all the way into the donut without bursting them! haha...Mayb im just greedy, but everytime I squeeze too much, they leak out :(

Anonymous said...

Well, the ones we sell are pre-jammed (is that even a word??) so they already have stuff in them before we fry them. I was observing at a local donut shop and I think that's what they do too...put the jam in first :P

Try that the next time!