These cinnamon doughnuts are incredibly scrummy and worth the time and effort. They are best served warm or within a couple of hours of frying. This is why the measurements are a little odd. All the recipes I have tried ended up making more doughnuts than specified and as they can go stale quickly it was inconvenient to have too many. Therefore, even though using half an egg is strange there is method to this madness. I also love this recipe as it is so flexible to different diets. This recipe is dairy free but can easily be made completely vegan by substituting the egg with a flax egg or equally cow’s milk and butter can be used instead of plant-based alternatives. In a similar way, you can experiment with the spices that you add to your doughnuts. Cinnamon can be paired perfectly with nutmeg or even add a dash of orange extract to create a more Christmassy treat.
Makes about 12 doughnuts.
½ cup plant milk
½ egg
2tbsp unsalted plant-based butter
1 packet of instant yeast
1 ¾ cups of plain flour
¼ granulated sugar
1tsp cinnamon
½ tsp salt
Sunflower oil
Cinnamon sugar to coat
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Place the milk and butter in the microwave until the milk is warmed and the butter is melted.
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In a large bowl whisk the milk and butter mixture with the egg and yeast. Once combined add ¾ cup of flour, the sugar, cinnamon and salt to create a batter.
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Add the remaining flour and knead until a dough starts to form and no longer clings to the side of the bowl.
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Remove the dough from the bowl and continue to knead on a lightly floured surface for about 15minutes until the dough is smooth.
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Place the dough back into the bowl with a little bit of oil to coat the dough. Cover and set aside.
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After an hour perform a stretch and fold. Do this by taking one edge of the dough pulling it upwards, making sure the dough doesn’t break off, and then fold into the middle. Repeat this on the other three sides of the dough. Flip it over and cover the bowl and set aside.
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Repeat this two-three more times at hour intervals. After four hours the dough should be elastic and close to double in size. Cover and place in the fridge overnight.
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The following day remove the dough from the fried and while still cold roll, on a lightly floured surface, until the dough is the thickness of a £1 coin.
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Line baking tray with a thin layer of oil. Cut your doughnuts into whatever shape and size you wish. If you don’t have cutters a wine glass or mug works incredibly well. Just place it with the rim down and press hard, twisting to cut the dough. If you wish to make a ring doughnut then use a champagne flute in the same manner to create cut out the inner circle. Reroll the scraps of dough and repeat this process until there is no dough left.
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Place the doughnuts on the baking tray with some space in between doughnut. Cover and set aside to rise. You know the dough is ready when you gently poke it and the dough slowly fills the dent. If the dough bounces back straight away it is not quite ready and needs to be left for longer.
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While waiting make the cinnamon sugar by combining a large dash of cinnamon with caster sugar in a bowl.
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When the dough is ready, heat a large amount of oil in a large pot. If you have a thermometer the oil needs to be around 175°C, if you do not wait to hear the oil pop and place a little bit of dough into the oil. The oil is ready when it begins to bubble around the dough. Frying the doughnuts is probably the hardest bit of the process as the oil needs to remain at a constant temperature so that the outside of the doughnut doesn’t burn and the inside cooks through completely. This may require turning the heat off at times to allow the oil to cool down again.
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Fry the doughnuts until they are golden brown and puffy on each side. Once removed from the oil immediately roll in the cinnamon sugar to coat the entire doughnut. Ideally use the sugar in batches as the excess oil on the doughnut will cause the sugar to clump together and hence it won’t adhere to the doughnuts.
Recipe by Francesca Byrne @ FAB by Nature