Baked Doughnuts

I've been trying to be better about eating breakfast, as I have a bad habit of consuming nothing but coffee in the morning and just waiting until lunch to eat.  Doughnuts are certainly one of my favorite breakfast (and snack) choices, but I only eat them every once in a while because they are so unhealthy.  I found a baked version a while ago and set it aside, and after trying the Homemade Zwieback Toast bread loaves a few weeks ago I felt I had to confidence to tackle another rising bread dough and give it a shot.




First I poured 1/4 cup of warm milk into the bottom of my Kitchenaid mixing bowl, then sprinkled the yeast over it and let it sit for 5 minutes.

I mixed together more warm milk, butter, and sugar in a bowl until combined, then stirred it into the yeast mixture.

Once combined, I mixed in the egg and followed it with the flour, salt, and nutmeg.  I used a spoon to mix it until it became doughy, then put it on the mixer and used the kneading attachment.

I mixed it until it was soft.

I kneaded the dough on a cutting board for a few minutes, then set it in a bowl and let it rise for 1 hour.  I just set it in the oven (turned off, of course).

After rising, the dough had nearly doubled in size.

I rolled it out on a floured table until it was about 1/2 inch thick.

Next I cut out the donuts. I only have 2 small biscuit cutters that were given to me, but don't have the right size to make doughnuts and doughnut holes.  So after checking around my kitchen I decided to use the lid of an old sour cream container that was the perfect size.  Improvisation at it's best!  For the doughnut center, I used the smallest biscuit cutter I had and cut out all the donuts I could from the rolled out dough.  The remaining dough did not roll up together again well, so I just made small dough balls and baked them on a separate pan.

I then let the dough rise for 45 minutes in the oven again.  After the second rising, they had puffed up slightly more, and I removed them from the oven and began pre-heating it.

I let them bake for 6 minutes before removing the top tray from the oven.  The bottom tray was not browning on top, so I left them in a minute longer and ended up burning the bottoms.  I will need to stick to one shelf in the oven next time.  I made the frosting while the donuts cooled by heating milk and vanilla extract on low heat, then slowly stirring in the confectioners sugar.

I dipped the donuts individually into the warm frosting and let them sit for 10 minutes.

They turned out pretty good!  I won't say that they tasted quite like Krispy Kreme, but the glaze was awesome and made the doughnut.  The dough itself wasn't all that sweet and tasted more like a sweet bread, so I'd like to either try a different recipe next time or maybe add some more sugar (maybe even brown sugar...that always seems to work).  I only baked them for 6 minutes, but I'll have to try for 5 to see if that helps keep the inside more doughy.  Not bad for my first doughnut experience!

Baked Doughnuts Recipe

Ingredients:

For the Doughnuts:
3/4 cup warm milk
1 packet Active Dry yeast
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the Glaze:
1/4 cup Milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups confectioners sugar

Instructions:

To make the dough, place 1/4 cup of warm milk in the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle the yeast over the milk and let sit for 5 minutes.  Mix together the remaining warm milk, sugar, and butter in a small bowl, then pour it into the yeast mixture. Stir in the egg until well combined. Next, gradually add the flour, nutmeg, and salt and stir until the dough starts to form. Place the mixing bowl in the mixer and use the kneading hook attachment to knead the dough for 1-2 minutes, until the dough begins to look smooth.  Add a small amount more flour if the dough is overly sticky.  Remove the dough from the mixer and place it on a lightly floured surface.  Knead the dough using your hands for about 5 minutes and form it into a ball.  Cover and allow to rise for 1 hour until dough has doubled in size. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until it is about 1/2 inch thick. Use a dough cutter to cut out a larger circle and a smaller circle, leaving the outer doughnut about 1 inch thick. Cut out the doughnuts until you have no dough left, then roll the remaining scraps of dough up into small balls.  Place the doughnuts on a parchment paper lined baking sheet a few inches apart. Cover and let sit for about 45 minutes.  Preheat the oven 375 degrees F, then bake doughnuts for 5-7 minutes or until they are lightly golden brown. Let cool for about 5 minutes before glazing. To make the glaze, mix the milk and vanilla into a small sauce pan. Heat on low until just warmed, then slowly add in the confectioners sugar and whisk until smooth.  Dip the doughnuts halfway into the glaze and place on a pan or cooling rack to cool for 10 more minutes.