Old Fashioned Donuts Recipes

GRANDMA'S OLD-FASHIONED CAKE DONUTS

Steps:

• Beat eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer until whipped to a creamy color. Mix in sugar gradually until well blended. Mix in buttermilk and vanilla extract. Mix in butter.
• Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, and salt together in a separate bowl. Beat 1/2 of the mixture into the sugar mixture until well blended; beat in remaining 1/2. Let batter rest for 20 minutes.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead as little as possible until it comes together. Roll dough out using a rolling pin until it is 3/8-inch thick; cut into donut shapes.
• Lower donuts carefully into the hot oil and cook until light brown, 2 to 3 minutes, turning once. Remove from oil and let cool on a wire rack.

OLD-FASHIONED DOUGHNUTS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat sour cream and buttermilk until smooth. Beat in sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla just until combined. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to buttermilk mixture just until combined (dough will be sticky). Cover and refrigerate for 2-3 hours., Turn dough onto a well-floured surface; knead for 2-3 minutes or until smooth. Roll out to 1/2-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 2-1/2-in. doughnut cutter., In an electric skillet or deep-fat fryer, heat oil to 375°. Fry doughnuts, a few at a time, for 3 minutes or until golden brown on each side. Fry doughnut holes until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Dust with confectioners' sugar if desired.

OLD-FASHIONED CAKE DOUGHNUTS (DONUTS)

Steps:

• In a large bowl mix the sugar, baking powder, salt and nutmeg.
• Add eggs, milk and melted butter. Beat well.
• Add 3 cups of the flour, beating until blended. Add one more cup of flour and beat well. The dough should be soft and sticky but firm enough to handle. If you feel its necessary, add up to 1/2 cup more flour.
• Cover with plastic wrap and chill for *at* *least* one hour.
• Remove your dough from the fridge and begin heating about 1" of oil to 360F in a large metal skillet.
• Working half the dough at a time, roll it out on a floured surface to about 1/2" thickness. Cut out circles using a doughnut cutter or large biscuit or cookie cutter. For the center, I actually use the cap off my martini shaker ;) to cut the holes.
• Gently drop the doughnuts in batches into the hot oil. Flip them over as they puff and turn them a couple more times as they cook. They will take about 2-3 minutes in total and will be lovely and golden brown all over.
• Remove from the oil and set them on paper towels or brown paper bag (that removes all the fat, you know).
• Douse them with sugar and cinnamon, icing, chocolate dipped with sprinkles or whatever you like.

BAKED OLD-FASHIONED DONUTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray two 6-cavity doughnut pans with non-stick cooking spray.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, eggs, vegetable oil and vanilla extract.
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture and gently stir together until just combined.
• Divide the batter into the prepared donut pans, filling almost full.
• Bake for 7-9 minutes or until the tops spring back when lightly pressed.
• In a small bowl, mix together the sugar and cinnamon.
• As soon as the donuts are cooled enough to handle (but still warm), remove from pan and coat in cinnamon-sugar. Set on a wire rack to cool.

HOW TO MAKE DONUTS THE OLD-FASHIONED WAY

Steps:

• Heat the milk in the microwave for 45 seconds. Mix in 1 tsp sugar and the dry yeast packet. Let it stand for 8-10 minutes. In a separate bowl, mix eggs, melted butter, vanilla, and sugar. Pour in yeast mixture when it is ready and mix. Add in flour and salt. Mix together until a dough has formed. Flour a surface and knead the dough until it is elastic-this should only take a few minutes. Spray down a large bowl with cooking spray and place the shaped dough ball in it. Cover with a dish towel and let it rise in a warm place for 1 1/2 hours. Move dough to a floured surface and roll out with a rolling pin until 1/2-inch thick. Cut out donut shapes with a donut cutter. Move cut donuts (and donut holes!) to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover with a towel and let it rise for 30 minutes. While the dough is rising again, prep the oil. Pour canola oil into a large pot or Dutch oven and heat. Make sure it's hot enough (around 350 to 375 degrees). Fry donuts and donut holes on each side for 1-2 minutes on each side. Remove to a cooling rack. Whisk the ingredients together for the glaze in a small bowl. Dip warm donuts in the glaze, then move to parchment paper. If desired, add sprinkles! Then devour.

THE BEST OLD-FASHIONED DOUGHNUTS

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.