#donut magic

Prep - 40 min

Serving - 20

INGREDIENTS

1 cup apple cider

1 cup granulated sugar

5 tbsp butter unsalted, softened at room temperature

2 large eggs

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon ground

1/2 tsp nutmeg freshly grated

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 tbsp vanilla extract

vegetable oil for frying

Cinnamon Sugar

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

3 tbsp cinnamon ground

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the apple cider in a large saucepan over medium high heat until reduced to 1/3 cup, should take about 10 minutes.

Cream the butter: In a large bowl using a hand-held or standing mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat together the sugar and the butter until mixture is pale, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and continue beating for another 2 minutes until light and fluffy.

Combine wet ingredients: Pour the buttermilk, reduced cider, and vanilla into sugar/butter/egg mixture. Mix well, and don't worry if the mixture looks a bit curdled; it'll smooth itself out.

Combine the dry ingredients: In a medium-size bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg; set aside. Add the flour mixture to the bowl with the wet ingredients and combine gently just until fully moistened. 

Form the dough: Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead it a few times until it comes together; form it into a ball. Roll out the dough so that it's 1/2-inch in thickness. Cut out rounds with a 3-inch cutter donut cutter. Don't discard the donut holes, fry those too.

Make cinnamon sugar: In a shallow bowl combine the 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar with the 3 tbsp of ground cinnamon. Set aside.

Heat vegetable oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium high heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 375 degrees F.

Fry the donuts: Working in batches, add donuts to the Dutch oven and cook until evenly golden and crispy, 1 minute per side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate for 30 seconds; then roll warm donuts in cinnamon sugar mixture to coat.

Notes:

Recipe yields 20 donuts and 20 donut holes. Nutritional information is for 1 donut and 1 donut hole.

Sadly these little cake donuts lose their appeal when not eaten hot and fresh. Frying them up when you're ready to feast is half of the magic!

So while I don’t recommend storing these cooked, lucky for us the uncooked dough can be stored for future use!

You can refrigerate uncooked dough for 1 day if stored in an airtight container. Just be sure to take it out of the fridge and allow to come back up to temperature before frying, You never want to add cold dough to a fryer.