Lockdown baking recipe: how to make doughnuts:

Everyone loves doughnuts, right? And if you’re craving the delicious, sugary treat at home in lockdown, this recipe can be your next baking project. The great thing about making doughnuts is you can decorate them however you choose – pretty glazed icing or a good dusting of sugar. Vicky Graham, founder of Vicky’s Donuts, shared this recipe with HELLO! and said: “Our original raised doughnut recipe, made day in, day out at the bakery.”

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Original doughnuts

Makes 12 doughnuts or 24 minis

INGREDIENTS

Ingredients for original doughnuts

• 750g/1lb 10oz strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
• 80g/3¼oz caster sugar
• 80g/3¼oz unsalted butter
• 15g/½oz salt
• 3 x 7g sachets instant dried yeast (HELLO!: use baking soda and lemon juice if you don’t have any yeast)
• 3 medium eggs
• 240ml/8½fl oz warm full-fat milk
• 150ml/¼pt warm water
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil 1.

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INSTRUCTIONS

Instructions for making doughnuts

Step 1

Place the flour, sugar and butter in a large bowl. Make 2 wells in the flour at opposite sides of the bowl and add the salt to one and the yeast to the other. Break in the eggs then add the warm milk.

Step 2

If using a stand mixer, attach the dough hook and mix on the slowest speed while carefully pouring in the water, bit by bit. If you don’t have a stand mixer, use one hand to bring the dough together and the other to pour in the water. Mix together until all the ingredients have been incorporated – you should end up with a sticky, wet mixture.

Step 3

Continue to knead the dough on a slow setting for around 8 minutes, or if by hand, on a floured surface for 10 minutes. When kneaded enough, the dough will be smooth, elastic and have a shiny surface.

Step 4

Put the dough in a clean bowl, cover with a damp tea towel and leave until doubled in size (20-90 minutes, depending on the temperature of your kitchen).

Step 5

Grease 2 baking trays with 1 tbsp of vegetable oil on each.

Step 6

Cover your hands with flour and sprinkle a flat surface with more. Tip out the dough and form into a ball with your hands.

Step 7

Sprinkle a rolling pin with flour and roll out the dough to around 2cm thick. Use a round or doughnut ring cutter to cut out the doughnuts, then place them onto the greased baking trays, spacing them out. Gather together any leftover dough and roll out to repeat the process until you have used up all the dough. Leave to rise for around 10-20 minutes until the dough springs back when touched.

Step 8

Cook the dough using one of the methods below and smother with your glaze or icing of choice.

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How to cook your doughnuts:

Frying method:

“Frying your doughnuts will make them crisp and fluffy. This is the original and most effective way of making them and how we do them in the bakery every day. Remember to be super careful when using hot oil. Keep any form of water away from the fryer or pan, move slowly to avoid any splashes and, if using a pan, always use a digital thermometer to make sure the oil doesn’t get too hot.”

Step 1

Preheat a deep-fat fryer, or vegetable oil (approx 3ltr/100fl oz) in a heavy-based pan, to 180°C, 350°F.

Step 2

Use a fish slice to carefully pick up each doughnut then carefully place it into the oil, cooking each one for around 60 seconds on each side, until golden brown in colour.

Step 3

Remove with tongs and place on a baking tray lined with kitchen towel to soak up excess oil. Leave to cool.

Baking method:

“Baking your doughnuts will make them soft and squidgy and give them a lovely depth of flavour. In this method they are sprayed with oil before and after they go into the oven to simulate the frying process.”

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 220°C, 425°F, Gas 7.

Step 2

Fill a roasting dish with boiling water and place it at the bottom of the oven.

Step 3

Spray the doughnuts with oil (around 3 sprays per doughnut), arrange on greased baking sheets and bake in the oven for 6 minutes.

Step 4

Spray with oil again as soon as they leave the oven and allow to cool.

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