O Towner Doughnuts Recipes

Steps:

• Make the doughnuts: Add the first 6 doughnut ingredients to a large bowl and stir to combine.
• Add the flour and salt and stir (or mix with your hands) until the dough comes together (it will still be wet and sticky).
• On a well-floured surface, knead and shape the dough into a thick disk; transfer it to a bowl that's greased with oil or cooking spray and let it rest in a warm, draft-free area for 1 hour.
• On a well-floured surface, flatten the dough and roll it out into a 1/4-inch-thick disk. Use a 2-inch round cookie cutter to cut out as many circles of dough as you can. Transfer the circles to a 10-by-15-inch baking sheet that's lined with parchment paper and greased with oil. Collect the dough trimmings and form them into another ball; roll it into another 1/4-inch-thick disk, cut out more doughnuts, and transfer them to the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough.
• Let the dough circles rest in a warm, draft-free area for 1/2 hour. Then heat about 1 inch of oil in a high-sided skillet over medium-high heat until very hot but not smoking (365 to 375 degrees F).
• Working in batches, fry the doughnuts until they're golden brown on one side, then flip them and finish frying, about 3 minutes total. Transfer the doughnuts to a paper towel to drain.
• Fill and finish: Transfer some of the Concord Grape Jelly to a pastry bag or to a zip-top bag with a small hole cut from one corner. When the doughnuts have cooled completely, use a small knife to gently burrow from the side of the doughnut to the center. Insert the tip of the bag into the opening and pipe in as much filling as possible. Repeat with the remaining doughnuts and filling. Dust the doughnuts generously with powdered sugar, and sprinkle each with a small pinch of coarse salt.
• Combine the grapes, sugar, and water in a nonreactive pot. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook, stirring often, until the grapes have broken down, 6 to 8 minutes. Place the cardamom pods and citrus-zest-strips in a piece of cheesecloth and secure it with twine; add the cheesecloth bundle to the grape mixture. Cool to room temperature and transfer the pot to the refrigerator overnight. Meanwhile, place 4 to 6 spoons (regular dinner is fine) in the freezer (you'll use them to test the jelly at the end).
• Press the chilled grape mixture through a coarse mesh strainer. Discard the seeds. Return the strained grape mixture to a clean nonreactive pot, along with the lemon juice. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook until it begins to look shiny, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Test the jelly: Take one of the spoons from the freezer and place about 1/2 teaspoon of the grape mixture on it. Return the spoon to the freezer for 3 to 4 minutes. (Meanwhile, turn the heat to low and cover the pot so the mixture does not reduce further than necessary.) Remove the sample from the freezer and try spreading it; if it's not thick enough, uncover the pot, turn the heat back up to medium, and cook the grape mixture for another 5 minutes before testing a second sample using another frozen spoon. Continue this testing process until the jelly spreads smoothly. Let the jelly cool, then store it in the refrigerator.

Steps:

• Whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, 1 1/4 teaspoons of the salt and the nutmeg in a large bowl until completely combined. Whisk together 2/3 cup of the buttermilk, the sour cream, eggs, yolks, 1 tablespoon of the vanilla paste and the oil in a medium bowl until completely combined. Fold the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients just until a soft and sticky dough comes together (do not overwork).
• Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and liberally dust with flour (about 1/3 cup).
• Scrape the dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Dust your hands and the top of the dough with more flour, then gently pat the dough to 3/4-inch thick.
• Working on the baking sheet, punch out as many rounds as you can with a 3 1/4-inch cutter. Then use a 1 1/4-inch cutter to punch out the center of each round. Dip the cutters in flour before each cut to avoid sticking. Gather the dough scraps and gently re-roll without overworking the dough. Repeat cutting until all the dough has been used (you should have 8 doughnuts).
• Set a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet and line a second rimmed baking sheet with several layers of paper towels. Fit a large heavy pot with a deep-fry thermometer and pour in oil to a depth of 3 inches. Heat over medium-high until the thermometer registers 375 degrees F.
• Fry the doughnuts in batches until deep golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to the wire rack and let cool slightly. Fry the doughnut holes until deep golden brown, about 90 seconds per side. Transfer to the wire rack and let drain for 1 minute. Then transfer to the paper-towel lined baking sheet to cool for 10 minutes before glazing. (This two-step process gets a lot more oil out of the doughnuts than using only one method.) Repeat with the remaining dough, making sure the oil returns to temperature between batches.
• Whisk together the confectioners' sugar, the remaining 6 tablespoons buttermilk, the remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla paste and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl until the glaze is smooth and the consistency of honey; add more confectioners' sugar or buttermilk if necessary.
• Dip each doughnut into the glaze on one side (we like the craggy side, it has more texture for an appetizing appearance), letting the excess drip back into the bowl, then return it to the wire rack. Toss the doughnut holes in the glaze to coat completely and return to the wire rack. Let the glaze set for 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• For the banana cake doughnuts: Add the cake flour, bread flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon to a fine-mesh sieve and sift over a large bowl. Whisk the bananas and buttermilk together in a small bowl. To the bowl of a stand mixer add the shortening, sugar, salt and vanilla and using the paddle attachment, cream the mixture on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the whole egg, then add and the egg yolk and beat until smooth. Alternate adding the flour mixture and banana mixture in 3 additions, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients and mixing just until combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 10 minutes.
• Generously coat the work surface with flour and turn the dough out onto the floured surface. Dust the top of the dough with more flour, then roll the dough into a 1/2-inch thick sheet. Use a 3-inch donut cutter to stamp out circles from the dough. Place the circles on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bring the scraps together, re-roll them into a 1/2-inch thick sheet, and stamp as many circles from the dough as possible (discard the remaining scraps); you should get about 12 donuts.
• Line a rimmed baking sheet with paper towels and set a wire cooling rack on top. Pour the oil into a large heavy-bottomed frying pan set over medium-high heat; the oil should fill the pot by about 2 inches-if it doesn't, add more. Heat the oil until it reads 375 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Add 2 to 3 doughnuts to the hot oil and cook until the doughnuts are golden brown, about 1 1/2 minutes on each side. Transfer to the cooling rack to drain and cool and repeat with the remaining doughnuts, making sure the temperature of the oil returns to 375 degrees F between batches.
• For the bananas foster: Melt the butter in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add in the brown sugar, cinnamon and the salt stirring until the mixture starts to bubble. Add the bananas and gently stir to coat in the sugar mixture. Continue to cook the bananas until they are warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the bananas to a medium plate. Stir the rum and banana liqueur to the skillet and cook until combined, then pour the sauce into a heat-safe mixing bowl. Whisk in 1 cup of confectioners' sugar, and once well combined, begin adding more confectioners' sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, until the sauce is a medium-thick consistency good for drizzling.
• For serving: Slice the doughnuts three-quarters of the way through horizontally. Stuff the doughnut with a few banana slices. Drizzle the sauce over the top and serve generously dusted with confectioners' sugar.

Steps:

• Preheat corn oil to 350 degrees F.
• Begin by combining the warm milk and yeast in a mixing bowl with a dough hook. Add the flour, eggs, butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla. Mix until all ingredients are incorporated. Cover dough with plastic wrap, and let it rise for 30 minutes.
• Remove dough from bowl, and place on a lightly floured surface. Shape or roll out dough, and cut into desired shapes. Carefully place a few doughnuts at a time in fryer, and fry for approximately 3 minutes, or until golden brown.
• To serve, glaze or garnish with chocolate, raspberry, or any of your favorite fillings and toppings.

Steps:

• Put 150g water and all the dough ingredients, apart from the butter, into the bowl of a mixer with a beater paddle. Mix on a medium speed for 8 mins or until the dough starts coming away from the sides and forms a ball. Turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 1 min.
• Start the mixer up again on a medium speed and slowly add the butter to the dough - about 25g at a time. Once it is all incorporated, mix on high speed for 5 mins until the dough is glossy, smooth and very elastic when pulled.
• Cover the bowl with cling film or a clean tea towel and leave to prove until it has doubled in size. Knock back the dough in the bowl briefly, then re-cover and put in the fridge to chill overnight.
• The next day, take the dough out of the fridge and cut it into 50g pieces (you should get about 20).
• Roll the dough pieces into smooth, tight buns and place them on a floured baking tray, leaving plenty of room between them, as you don't want them to stick together while they prove.
• Cover loosely with cling film and leave for 4 hrs or until doubled in size. Fill your deep-fat fryer or heavy-based saucepan halfway with oil. Heat the oil to 180C.
• When the oil is heated, carefully slide the doughnuts from the tray using a floured pastry scraper. Taking care not to deflate them, put them into the oil. Do 2-3 per batch, depending on the size of your fryer or pan.
• Fry for 2 mins each side until golden brown - they puff up and float, so you may need to gently push them down after about 1 min to help them colour evenly.
• Remove the doughnuts from the fryer and place them on kitchen paper.
• Toss the doughnuts in a bowl of caster sugar while still warm. Repeat the steps until all the doughnuts are fried, but keep checking the oil temperature is correct - if it is too high, they will burn and be raw in the middle; if it is too low, the oil will be absorbed into the doughnuts and they will become greasy. Set aside to cool before filling.
• To fill the doughnuts, make a hole with a small knife in the crease of each one, anywhere around the white line between the fried top and bottom.
• Fill a piping bag with your filling and pipe into the doughnut until nicely swollen - 20-50g is the optimum quantity, depending on the filling; cream will be less, because it is more aerated. After filling, the doughnuts are best eaten straight away, but will keep in an airtight tin.
• FillingsCustard filling: Try out Justin's custard filling and, if you like, add different flavours to the custard as follows...Brown sugar: Replace the caster sugar with half soft dark brown sugar and half light brown sugar. You can add chopped stem ginger to the finished custard, or some hazelnut praline. Finish with half the quantity of cream.Chocolate: Whisk 150g dark (70%) chocolate into the milk. Finish with half the cream.Coffee: Add 4 tbsp of freshly ground strong coffee to the milk.Malt & vanilla: Mix 2 tbsp of powdered malt into the sugar, and 2 tbsp of liquid malt into the milk.Saffron: Add a good pinch of saffron to the milk. Finish with half the quantity of cream.Violet custard: Add 3 tsp of violet extract and 3 tbsp of violet liqueur to the finished custard. Sprinkle sugared violets and crushed Parma Violet sweets over the top of the filled doughnuts.