Polish Doughnuts Recipes

BAKED PACZKI (POLISH DOUGHNUTS)

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• In a small bowl or measuring cup, add the yeast to the warm milk; stir to dissolve and set aside.
• In a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the sugar and butter until fluffy.
• Beat in the egg, egg yolks, brandy or rum, and salt until well incorporated.
• Add 4 1/2 cups of the flour alternately with the milk-yeast mixture and beat for 5 or more minutes until smooth. The dough will be very slack. If much too soft or runny, add the remaining 1/2 cup flour.
• Place the dough in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk, anywhere from 1 to 2 1/2 hours.
• Punch down the dough and let rise again.
• Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Pat or roll to 1/2 to 3/4-inch thickness. Cut rounds with a 3-inch cutter. Remove the scraps, re-roll, and re-cut.
• Transfer the rounds to parchment-lined baking sheets, cover, and let rounds rise until doubled in bulk, 30 minutes or longer. Heat the oven to 375 F.
• Place pączki in the oven and bake 8 to 10 minutes or until a toothpick tests clean.
• Remove from the oven; if coating in granulated sugar, brush the tops and sides with melted butter and roll in granulated sugar while still hot. If using confectioners' sugar, let the doughnuts cool before coating.
• To fill the pączki , let them cool completely, cut a slit in the side, and slip a teaspoon of fruit paste or jam inside. Then dust with confectioners' sugar or roll in granulated sugar.
• Serve and enjoy.

GRANDMA'S POLISH DOUGHNUTS

Steps:

• Scald the milk. To scald milk: Place milk in a heavy-bottomed pan on low heat. Stir occasionally until milk is just hot with steam and small bubbles appear around the edges; do not boil. Remove from the heat.
• Add butter to warm milk and stir until melted.
• Allow butter and milk to cool until it is just warm (around 110-115°F). Add yeast and 2 cups flour. Mix well.
• Allow to rest for around 10 minutes to give the yeast time to "proof" or activate. The mix should be starting to bubble.
• Pour flour/milk mix into mixing bowl. Add egg, yolks, sugar, salt and vanilla. Mix well.
• Start adding the rest of the flour, one cup at a time, mixing after each addition, until you have slightly sticky dough. Dump dough onto lightly floured countertop to knead in the last of the flour.
• Depending on the humidity levels, you may not need all the flour called for in the recipe. You want the dough to be soft and elastic, not too stiff. Don't overwork it or you'll develop the gluten too much and your doughnuts will be tougher.
• Grease your bowl and gently coat your dough with oil. Cover and set in a warm place and let rise until double.
• While dough is rising, prep your frying oil. A deep fryer is great if you have one. I use an eight quart heavy bottom pot. I put in enough local, non-hydrogenated lard to fill the pot around 3-4 inches deep.
• When the dough has doubled in size, roll out to about 1/3 inch thick and cut out doughnuts. We used a large glass for the doughnut and an empty decorator sprinkle container for the holes. Let rise until double in size.
• Heat lard to 340-365°F for frying. Drop 3-4 doughnuts into the frying oil, keeping an eye on your frying temp. Cook until brown on one side, flip and brown on the other side.
• Remove doughnuts from frying oil and place to drain on a wire rack sitting oven a paper grocery bag. Dip in glaze or sugar while still warm, if desired.
• For glaze, simply mix all ingredients together.

POLISH DONUTS PąCZKI RECIPE

Steps:

• If it's cold in your kitchen, heat your oven to 86°F (30°C).
• Sift the flour.
• Warm up the milk.
• Using a spoon, mix yeast with 1 tbsp of sugar. Add 3 tbsps of warm milk and 1 tbsp of flour. Mix and leave it for 30 minutes to grow.The mixture will double or triple its size, that's why you should place it in a big bowl. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen cloth. If it's cold in your kitchen, place a bowl in the oven heated to 86°F (30°C).
• In the meantime, beat egg yolks with sugar until they change the color to whitish. If you are using the pudding filling, it's the right time to do it (read how to do it below).
• After 30 minutes, mix all the ingredients for the dough together. You may knead it manually or use a food processor. Knead until the dough starts to detach from your hand.
• Place the dough in a big bowl, cover with a clean kitchen cloth, and leave to grow for about 30-60 minutes until it doubles its size. Again, if it's cold in your kitchen, place the bowl in the oven.
• When the dough has doubled its size, knead it briefly to remove excessive air bubbles.
• Pour the oil into the wok or big pot and start heating it up.
• Start forming pączki. Each should have the size of the tangerine.
• Cover pączki with a kitchen cloth and wait until the oil is ready to fry.How to check whether the oil is hot enough? Throw a small piece of the dough into the oil. If it stays on the bottom, the oil is still too cold. If the dough comes straight up to the surface, the oil is ready to fry.
• Fry pączki for about 3-5 minutes on each side.
• After frying, place the pączki on a plate lined with paper towels to remove the excessive fat.
• Pour one cup of milk into the pot.
• Add egg yolks, sugar, and whip it together until you will get a smooth, yellow color.
• Place a pot on the stove, cook slowly, stirring frequently.
• In the meantime, pour half a cup of milk into the small bowl.
• Add potato flour. Mix until dissolved.
• When the mixture in the pot nearly boils, add milk with potato starch and mix until you will get the consistency of pudding.
• Mix 1 cup of icing sugar with 1 tbsp water and heat up until you get a smooth consistency.
• When the donuts are still warm, fill them up with jam or pudding using a big syringe (like this). You will need about 30-50ml of filling per donut.
• If you are using sugar glaze, pour them onto warm pączki. You may add candied orange peel as well.
• Alternatively, you may use icing sugar. Sprinkle it when the pączki are cold.

POLISH PRE-LENTEN JELLY DOUGHNUTS: PACZKI

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients, except vegetable oil together in a large mixer fitted with a dough hook for 11 to 12 minutes or until dough reaches 78 degrees F. Set dough aside to rise for 30 to 45 minutes.
• Divide and round dough into golf ball-sized pieces, put onto sheet pan and proof until the balls grow to around the size of soft balls, about 30 to 45 minutes.
• Preheat a fryer to 360 degrees F.
• Deep fry in vegetable oil until golden brown. Cool. Using a piping bag fitted with a plain tip, fill with your favorite preserves and top with powdered sugar.

POLISH DOUGHNUTS - PACZKI

Steps:

• Scald milk and allow to cool to lukewarm, add yeast and stir.
• Beat sugar and butter until fluffy, add eggs, salt, vanilla and mace.
• Add flour and yeast-milk gradually, beating well.
• Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk.
• Punch down and let rise again.
• Roll out dough, on a floured surface, 3/4 inch thick.
• Cut out 1 1/2 inch circles.
• Top half of the circles with 1 tsp jam, cover with the remaining circles and seal edges.
• Heat oil mixed with 1 tbls water to 375°F.
• Fry, turning once, to a medium golden brown.
• Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with sugar.

PULASKI'S FAVORITE PONTSHKI ( POLISH DOUGHNUTS)

Steps:

• Mix crumbled yeast cake in lukewarm milk. Add the smaller amount of flour & set to rise in a warm place, covered with warm cloth, 20-25 minutes.
• Stir butter, lemon rind (optional) sugar, mace or nutmeg & salt together.
• Add the warm flour & egg yolks.
• Mix this with yeast sponge & add enough lukewarm milk to make a dough as thick as bread dough.
• Add butter, melted & cooled, & beat thoroughly for 10-15 minutes or until bubbles appear on surface of dough.
• Cover& allow to rise about 20 minutes, then mix it lightly again.
• Flour a board & take out small portions at a time.
• Roll out to 1/3-inch thickness & cut in 2 to 2- 1/2 inch rounds.
• For filling, use prune jam, marmalade or jelly.
• Place filling in center of each dough round, leaving enough space around filling to press down & top round.
• Wet edges before doing this.
• Close edges tightly but do not spread dough out too large, trim edges again with cutter.
• Lay on floured board to rise for about 1 hour or more.
• They must be about twice their thickness.
• Cover with warm cloth.
• FRY in deep hot fat (360-370°F )& when golden brown on both sides, drain & sprinkle with powdered sugar.