…Because sometimes you just need doughnuts!

Sparkle! Sparkle! XX-gwyn

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Donuts! Donuts! All Kinds of Donut Stuff!

PSS I may have gotten a little carried away with the doughnut photography today. They were fun to shoot. I just could not decide which I liked best for this post. I hope they make you as happy as they made me.

Homemade Double Glazed Doughnuts with Sprinkles

Ingredients

1/4 cup sugar
1 1/8 cups whole milk, warmed
4 teaspoons dry active yeast
2 large eggs
1 1/4 sticks unsalted butter, melted
4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups vegetable shortening, for frying
*Doughnut cutter or two concentric circle cutters.

Doughnut Directions

In a medium bowl, add the warm milk, the sugar, and the active yeast. Give it a gentle stir. Let it sit for a few minutes until the yeast starts to bubble.

Combine the flour and salt in a bowl and set it aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the whisk attachment, beat the eggs. Slowly pour in the melted butter. Pour in the yeast mixture. Remove the whisk attachment and add the hook attachment. Mix on low speed until incorporated.

Add the flour mixture 1/2 cup at a time until completely combined. Continue mixing for 6 minutes. (Turn the mixer off and scrape the sides once during the 6 minutes.) Remove the bowl from the stand.

Place the dough in a lightly-oiled bowl and cover it with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for 4 hours. Note: You can make the dough the night prior and refrigerate for 8 to 12 hours.

Remove the dough from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature and rise for two hours in a warm dry place.

Turn the dough out on to a floured surface and roll it out to about 1/4-inch thick. Use a doughnut cutter to cut out the doughnuts. Remove the holes. Transfer the doughnuts and the holes to a lightly-floured baking sheet/s lined with parchment. Place them at least 2 1/2″ apart. Cover the doughnuts and the holes with tea towels and place them it in a warm draft-free area for a minimum of 2 hours. Keep an eye on them. Smile!

In a soup pot, melt the shortening over medium-high heat until it reaches 350 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Drop a donut hole in the oil to test the temperature. It should sizzle, puff up, and float. Use a metal spatula to flip the donut hole over. This should take less than a minute on each side. When it is golden brown, remove it from the the oil an place it on a paper towel lined plate. Repeat this process with the donuts and then the holes.

Glaze

5 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup water
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 colors, gel food coloring

…AND SPRINKLES!

Glaze Directions

In a medium bowl, mix the powdered sugar, cold water, salt, and vanilla until smooth. Leaving 1/4 of the mixture in the bowl, separate the rest of the mixture into 4 separate bowls. Add a drop of food coloring into each of the 4 bowls and mix well.

Dip and flip the doughnuts in the clear mixture one at a time. Place them on a cookie rack to let any excess glaze drip off.

For the second dunk, only dip the tops of the glazed donuts into the colored glazes. Place them on a cookie rack to let any excess glaze drip off the sides.