[recipe] Fasching Doughnuts

June 20, 2013

[recipe] Fasching Doughnuts

I’m a very adventurous cook. I’m not afraid of baking either, even though that was not a natural strong point for me. It took years of practice, now I’m baking at, I’d say maybe an intermediate level. Maybe advanced. I can make a perfect crème brulee and master a soufflé.

Lately I’ve been diving into the cookbook world, to try new things and see what’s out there. My husband LOVES it when I undertake food projects because he gets to eat all my work. I was recently introduced to Austrian Desserts from Toni Morwald and Christoph Wagner. This book has over 400 cakes, pastries, strudels, tortes and various types of candies. It’s AMAZING! The recipes are endless and full of all my favorites: soufflés, doughnuts, ice cream, cookies… It’s phenomenal.

I recently tackled making my first ever Fasching Doughnuts. They are actually a really popular carnival doughnut that makes a splash during carnival season. From what I’ve learned, the carnival season lasts for months, getting the craziest February and March. These doughnuts are incredible.

Ingredients

6 egg yolks

7 tablespoons butter, melted but not hot

5 tablespoons active dry yeast

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup lukewarm milk

4 cups flour

Dash salt

Apricot Marmalade [can make your own or use store bought]

Vegetable oil for frying

Confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Directions

Beat the egg yolks until they are creamy. Mix in the melted, but not hot, butter in little bits, stirring well in between. Dissolve the yeast with some of the sugar into the milk.

Mix into the milk and yeast mixture, 2 cups of the flour, then mix in well with the yolks.

Cover with a towel and let it rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until everything is very well incorporated. Cover again and let the dough rise until it has double in size. This only takes about 30 minutes, to an hour max. Knead the dough again.

Roll the dough out on a floured work surface until it’s about a little less than a quarter inch thick. Try to keep the shape slightly squared when rolling out. Then cut the dough into 2 inch strips, keeping the numbers even [so 2 strips, or 4 strips, or 6 strips]. Brush each strip with the marmalade.

Cover each strip with one of the other strips, keeping the marmalade to the inside and lightly press on the edges.

With a 2 inch cookie cutter, or a round glass like I used, cut out all of your doughnuts. Flip each one over and place them on a floured surface. Brush each one with lukewarm oil, cover and let them rise one final time for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oil to 350 degrees. Fry the doughnuts until golden brown on each side. This takes 1-2 minutes per side. Remove and drain on a paper towel, dust with the confectioner’s sugar and enjoy!