When I found a recipe for fluffy yeasted angel biscuits in one of my grandmother’s recipe folders that I in no way recall her making, I knew I had to try them. I had heard somewhere you can deep-fry them to make donuts, so I went straight there, since a pot of boiling oil is usually where my deepest affections lie. If you don’t have time to make the jam filling, they are nearly as incredible simply rolled in icing sugar. You could also cut out the center of the round to make the traditional donut shape and glaze them with a mixture of jam and icing sugar instead of filling them.
This is the easiest version of yeasted dough I have ever encountered, and the result is as tender as a cake donut. The recipe doubles easily if you’re having a donut party. What I am saying is that this is a win-win.
Preparation
For the donuts
60 mL (¼ cup) water
11/8 teaspoons (½envelope) active dry yeast
350 grams (2½ cups) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cubed
2 tablespoons lard or shortening, cold, cubed
250 mL (1 cup) buttermilk
2 L (8 cups) neutral oil, for frying
To finish
½ jar Strawberry & Passion Fruit Jam (see cookbook)
7 grams (¼ cup) freeze-dried strawberries
63 grams (½ cup) icing sugar
To make the donuts, heat the water in a small saucepan to just warm, 100 F to 110 F. Whisk in the yeast and let stand for 5 minutes, until foamy.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt on low speed. Increase the speed to medium-low, and mix in the butter and lard until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Remove the bowl from the stand mixer, add the yeast mixture and buttermilk, and stir with a wooden spoon to combine. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, heat the oil to 360 F. Set a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet.
On a floured surface, knead the dough five times. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough until it’s 1/2 inch thick. Cut out 10 rounds with a 23/4-inch plain cutter.
Being careful not to crowd the pan, fry the donuts, four or five at a time, for 1 to 2 minutes per side, until golden brown. Usea pair of chopsticks (I find they are the easiest) to turn them and transfer them to the wire rack. Let cool completely.
To finish, fill a pastry bag fitted with a small French tip with the jam. Use a spice grinder to grind the freeze-dried strawberries. Transfer the strawberries to a medium bowl, add the icing sugar, and whisk them together.
Once the donuts are cool enough to touch (it won’t take long), fill them with 1 teaspoon or so of the jam, piercing the flattest side with the pointy tip, then roll them in the icing sugar mixture so they are well coated.
Eat as soon as possible! Like all donuts, these are best the day they are made and don’t keep particularly well.
Excerpted from Jam Bake by Camilla Wynne. Copyright © 2021 Camilla Wynne. Photography by Mickaël A. Bandassak. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
