Halloween Donuts

Method

1. 1. Add the milk to a small saucepan and heat to a lukewarm temperature (37°C/99°F), before mixing with the sugar and yeast in a separate bowl. Leave for 10 minutes to allow the mixture to froth.
2. 2. Add the flour to the bowl of a stand mixer along with the sea salt. Pour in the yeast and milk mixture, the eggs and the melted butter.
3. 3. With the dough hook on the mixer, beat at a low for 10 minutes until you have a smooth, glossy elastic dough. Tip onto a worktop, grease the bowl lightly with neutral oil and return the dough to it. Cover and leave to stand somewhere warm until it has doubled in size, which can take around 1 -2 hours.
4. 4. Punch the dough down with your hands and tip onto a lightly floured worktop, before rolling out so that it is about 2cm thick. Use a round 8cm plain cutter to cut out as many discs as you can, combining and rolling out the trimmings to ensure no waste.
5. 5. Place each cut out on a sheet of baking parchment on a worktop or baking sheet and then use a small 3.5 cm cutter to cut holes in each donut. Save the holes to fry as well if you’d like. Cover and leave to double in size again, for about 30 - 40 minutes.
6. 6. Heat the oil in a deep pan to 180°C/350°F (or when a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds). Add up to 3 donuts into the oil at a time, if you used baking parchment and they are stuck, carefully lower the paper and they should detach once they are in the oil. Fry for 1 minute on each side until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a plate lined with a paper towel. Repeat with the rest of the donuts and the holes, if using.
7. 7. To make the icing, divide icing sugar into separate wide bowls (depending on the number of colours you want) and blend each with a little water to make a stiff paste. Leave one bowl white and add food colouring to the others.
   Spoon some of the coloured icing into small piping bags, along with the melted dark chocolate and snip a tiny hole in the end.
   
8. 8. Dip the donuts in the colours and then use the coloured icing & chocolate in the bags to draw decorations. Stick on the edible googly eyes and allow to set before serving.

• Halloween
• Baking
• Halloween
• doughnuts
• halloween donuts

Ingredients

• US
• METRIC