Vegan Jam Doughnuts
Vegan jam doughnuts - these super soft fried yeasted doughnuts are easy to make and taste so much better than shop bought!
Servings 8 doughnuts
Ingredients
- 250 g (2 cups) white bread flour
- 25 g (2 Tbsp) caster (superfine) sugar
- 7 g (2 ¼ tsp) instant yeast
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 150 ml (½ cup + 2 Tbsp) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy)
- 45 g (3 Tbsp) vegan butter melted
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- vegetable oil for frying*
- 100 g (½ cup) caster sugar for rolling
- about 300 g (10 oz) jam (not chunky)
Instructions
- To make the dough, mix the bread flour, sugar, yeast and salt together in a bowl.
- Add the milk, melted butter and vanilla extract and mix to form a soft, sticky dough.
- Knead the dough on an unfloured surface for about 10 minutes, until it is smooth, supple and stretchy. It should still be a bit sticky but not wet. If it is too wet you can add a teeny bit more flour but be careful not to add too much or the doughnuts will be dry.
- Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover, and leave to rise until doubled in size. About 1 ½ to 2 hours in a warm spot or overnight in the fridge.
- Punch down the risen dough and give it a brief knead to get rid of any air bubbles.
- Divide the dough into 8 even pieces. Use a scale for accuracy.
- On a lightly floured surface, shape each piece into a ball. To do this, gather the edges up and pinch them together. Keep going until you have a neat, well-sealed ball. Flip the ball over, cup it with your hand over the top and roll it until it is smooth.
- Flatten the ball with your hand into a disc about 1 ½ - 2cm thick. Repeat with the rest of the pieces of dough. (If you want really fat doughnuts then you don't need to flatten them).
- Place the discs of dough on a sheet of baking parchment on a baking sheet. Cover loosely and leave to rise until puffy, about 45 minutes. They are ready when the dough springs back slowly most of the way when you press it gently with a finger. If it springs back quickly then it needs a little longer, and if it deflates or doesn't spring back at all then the doughnuts are over-prooved and you will need to knock them back, reshape them and let them rise again.
- When the doughnuts are almost ready, heat a deep fat fryer to 170°C/340°F. Fill a shallow bowl with caster sugar and line a plate with kitchen roll.
- Cook the doughnuts two at a time. Slide them carefully into the hot oil; they are delicate so handle them as little as possible. Cook for 2 ½ minutes (use a timer), then flip them over and cook for another 2 ½ minutes. They should be deep golden.
- Remove using a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper. Roll the doughnuts in the caster sugar while they are still warm.
- Use a skewer or small sharp knife to make a hole in the side of each doughnut. Wiggle it around a little bit to make the hole inside a bit bigger.
- Place the jam in a piping bag fitted with a medium round nozzle. A syringe also works well.
- Insert the nozzle into the hole you made in the side of the doughnut and pipe in a good splodge of jam. Serve as soon as possible.
Notes
- * The amount of oil that you need will vary depending on your fryer/pan. Check the manufacturers instructions if using a fryer. Or fill pan no more than ¾ full.
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos. If you have a question I may have already answered it above!
- As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
- If you aren't sure if the doughnuts are cooked through, the best way to check is with a probe thermometer. I cook mine until they reach 100°C/212°F in the middle. Alternatively, a skewer inserted into the middle should meet little resistance and come out clean.