I made Coconut Cake Donuts from my book Donuts that I bought at William Sonoma. I think this is one of the best things I have ever made. They are A-MAZ-ING! Fresh out of the fryer they tasted like a funnel cake. The next day they tasted like a beautiful cake donut.
Coconut Cake Donuts
adapted from Donuts by Elinor Klivans
NOTE: These are cooked using extremely hot oil. Read all the directions carefully and make sure you have the proper equipment.
Ingredients
2 1/4 cup of plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup whole milk (I used soy)
2 tbs melted unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
Canola or Rapeseed oil for frying
1. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer set on low speed, beat the eggs and sugar until creamy.
Add half of the flour mixture and beat until incorporated. Add the milk, melted butter, and vanilla and beat until well blended. Add the remaining flour mixture and beat, still on low speed, just until the mixture comes together into a soft dough.
Cover and refrigerate the dough until firm about 1 hour
2. Line a baking sheet with paper towels. Pour oil to a depth of 2 inches into a deep fryer or deep heavy pan and warm over medium-high heat until it reaches 360 F/182 C on a deep frying thermometer (I used my candy thermometer).
3. On a generously floured work surface, roll out the dough into a circle about 1/2 inch thick.
Using a round donut cutter, cut out as many donuts as possible.Gather up the scraps and repeat rolling and cutting.
My dough was too sticky to make cut outs. Maybe it needed to be chilled longer or it could have been the soy milk. So instead I generously floured my hands and made little donut balls and fried them.
4. Don't make the dough too big as it cooks in the oil it will expand. Carefully lower 5 balls into the oil and cook for about 5 minutes turning over about halfway through. When golden brown transfer to the baking sheet to cool. Do a tester first and check that it's cooked through. Allow the oil to return to 360 F in between batches.
Coconut Glaze
Ingredients
6 tbs unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 cups icing sugar
1/2 tsp coconut extract (I couldn't find any so I used vanilla)
1 tsp vanilla extract
5 tbs hot water (plus more as needed)
1-2 cups dessicated coconut
1. In a bowl, whisk together the melted butter, icing sugar, vanilla and coconut extracts, and 5 tablespoons of hot water until smooth. Whisk in 1-2 tablespoons of hot water if needed to give the glaze a thin, light consistency.
2. When the donuts are cool enough to handle but still warm, dip in the glaze, letting the excess drip into the bowl. Then roll the donut in the coconut to lightly coat. Best served right away.
