Doughnut Extravaganza Recipes

Steps:

• For the dark chocolate and salted caramel ganache:.
• In a saucepan, melt the sugar with the water over low heat, until it becomes a caramel-colored liquid, approximately 6 to 8 minutes. Add the butter and stir until it's all incorporated. Add the cream and stir until it becomes a thick and rich caramel. Add the chocolate and stir until it's melted and incorporated in the caramel. Remove from the heat. Let cool and reserve in an airtight container.
• For the raspberry mango filling:.
• Put the raspberries, mango, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice in a saucepan and bring to a boil, skimming the surface of the jam regularly. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Let cool. Blend the mixture to reduce to a puree. Pass through a fine sieve to remove the seeds. Reserve in an airtight container and keep refrigerated.
• For the lemon cream:.
• In a stainless steel bowl, mix the sugar, butter, eggs, lemon zest, and lemon juice together. Place the bowl over a pot of boiling water. Do not let the bottom of the bowl touch the water, you do not want to scramble the eggs. Cook for approximately 2 minutes, until the cream thickens.
• Remove from the heat. Pass through a fine sieve. Cover with plastic wrap so that it is directly on top of the cream (to prevent a skin from forming). Let cool and keep refrigerated.
• For the doughnuts:.
• In a food processor, sprinkle the yeast over the warm milk and stir to dissolve; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the sugar, salt, beaten eggs, vanilla, and butter. Blend thoroughly. Add the flour and then using a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, beat until smooth.
• You can also knead the dough by hand for about 5 minutes.
• Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill at least 4 hours or overnight. Roll the dough out on a floured surface to 1/2-inch in thickness. Cut the dough into 1 inch-round doughnuts using a circular cookie cutter (or alternately, a can). Cover with a plastic wrap and let rest for 1 hour in a warm place.
• Heat oil in a deep fryer to 360 degrees F and fry the doughnuts in batches for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes, until lightly browned on both sides. Drain on a paper towel-lined baking tray.
• Fit a pastry bag with a 4 mm pastry tip and insert the tip into the side of the doughnut. Gently squeeze the bag as you slowly pull the tip out of the doughnut. Using this technique, fill the pastry bag with the prepared dark chocolate and salted caramel ganache, raspberry-mango jam, and lemon cream, changing the pastry bag after filling the desired amount of doughnuts with each filling.
• Sprinkle the doughnuts generously with powdered sugar. Serve warm.
• Cook's Notes:.
• Chilling the dough makes it easier to roll it (does not stick as much). The dough will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. You can also use any good quality jams to fill the donuts.

Steps:

• Heat the milk until it is warm but not hot, about 90 degrees. In a large bowl, combine it with the yeast. Stir lightly, and let sit until the mixture is foamy, about 5 minutes.
• Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, beat the eggs, butter, sugar and salt into the yeast mixture. Add half of the flour (2 cups plus 2 tablespoons), and mix until combined, then mix in the rest of the flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Add more flour, about 2 tablespoons at a time, if the dough is too wet. If you're using an electric mixer, the dough will probably become too thick to beat; when it does, transfer it to a floured surface, and gently knead it until smooth. Grease a large bowl with a little oil. Transfer the dough to the bowl, and cover. Let rise at room temperature until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.
• Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface, and roll it to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut out the doughnuts with a doughnut cutter, concentric cookie cutters or a drinking glass and a shot glass (the larger one should be about 3 inches in diameter), flouring the cutters as you go. Reserve the doughnut holes. If you're making filled doughnuts, don't cut out the middle. Knead any scraps together, being careful not to overwork, and let rest for a few minutes before repeating the process.
• Put the doughnuts on two floured baking sheets so that there is plenty of room between each one. Cover with a kitchen towel, and let rise in a warm place until they are slightly puffed up and delicate, about 45 minutes. If your kitchen isn't warm, heat the oven to 200 at the beginning of this step, then turn off the heat, put the baking sheets in the oven and leave the door ajar.
• About 15 minutes before the doughnuts are done rising, put the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, and heat it to 375. Meanwhile, line cooling racks, baking sheets or plates with paper towels.
• Carefully add the doughnuts to the oil, a few at a time. If they're too delicate to pick up with your fingers (they may be this way only if you rose them in the oven), use a metal spatula to pick them up and slide them into the oil. It's O.K. if they deflate a bit; they'll puff back up as they fry. When the bottoms are deep golden, after 45 seconds to a minute, use a slotted spoon to flip; cook until they're deep golden all over. Doughnut holes cook faster. Transfer the doughnuts to the prepared plates or racks, and repeat with the rest of the dough, adjusting the heat as needed to keep the oil at 375. Glaze or fill as follows, and serve as soon as possible.