I learned how to make baked doughnuts last fall, because I was obsessed with the idea of serving them at F's first birthday (I was spending way too much time on Pinterest, ended up making 3 dozen for the party). I think I got the first recipe from the PETA website, but quickly modified it into my own creations, most of which are recorded on the back of envelopes. Just recently I was thinking about them again, and how I'd love an iced doughnut that didn't rely on white icing sugar - then I remembered that we live in the era of cashew cream! So these aren't glazed exactly, rather topped with a sweetened, lemony cashew cream. Sold? Ok, here we go:
For the doughnuts:
Dry bowl:
1 cup spelt flour (or 1/2 cup spelt, 1/2 cup plain white flour, if you want a less health-foody taste and texture. I usually go full spelt, but I would do half and half if I were serving to omnivore guests.)
3 tbsp fruit sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp cornstarch
Wet bowl:
1/2 non-dairy milk
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp orange extract
1 tbsp ground flax meal
1/4 cup neutral tasting oil, like canola
Spray oil for the pan
For the 'icing':
1/2 cup cashews, soaked in water overnight
2 tbsp Sweet Freedom fruit syrup (brown rice syrup, maple syrup or agave nectar should work as well.)
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water (more or less, depending on your blender)
Lemon zest, a good pinch.
Chopped pumpkin seed 'sprinkles' are totally optional. Actually, no. They are mandatory and adorable.
You start the night before, I'm afraid, by soaking the cashews in a bowl of water. Hardly taxing:
When your kid is finally asleep you're ready to make doughnuts, start by zesting and juicing a lemon. A small lemon is plenty, unwaxed. Pre-heat the oven to 180C (350F). Mix the wet ingredients together along with the flax meal. Give it a minute - two kinds of magic are working here, the lemon juice is curdling the milk (making a bit of a buttermilk effect, for leavening), and the flax is miraculously transforming into an egg, essentially. In a large bowl, mix together the rest of your dry ingredients. Add wet to dry, and mix up with a fork.
Spoon the batter into your doughnut pan (it should make 6 perfectly), and bake for 12 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
While they are baking, you can make your cashew cream. Drain the soaked cashews, and blend with the lemon juice, zest and syrup. I needed to add 2 tablespoons of water to get some purchase in my rubbish blender, you may need a little more or less depending on the power you're working with. Add it a little at a time, because the thicker and creamier, the better. Blend until smooth and transfer to a shallow bowl.
To glaze, you just dip and add your sprinkles! As described below.
Some notes and tips:
I have a doughnut pan, which I consider a totally worthwhile purchase. Doughnuts are the new cupcakes, guys. But if you don't, I suppose you could make 'doughnut holes' in a mini-quiche pan like I've got here. Come to think of it, I should do that too. I only ever use that pan to make mince pies at Christmas.
I'm using fruit sugar. I'm not that keen on feeding my kid refined sugar all the time, and with this you can use less. Natural sugars, however, are still sugars. They still have calories, are still hugely concentrated, and they are still a 'treat' food in our house. They supposedly have a lower GI, and macrobiotic types might say that they are more balanced, but I don't consider them 'healthy'. Are they better than white sugar? Probably. Would we be better off eating an actual piece of fruit? Certainly. But sometimes you want doughnuts.
Oil the pan! I use sunflower oil in a can, 'cause I'm classy.
You don't need to pipe it or anything, a spoon works fine. Have you ever worked in a restaurant where you had to make little quenelle shapes of clotted cream with the side of a spoon (no? me neither...)? Anyway, that method works really well, three of those from a normal spoon for each doughnut.
Lick the bowl. Because you're vegan and won't get salmonella. High five.
As with the fruit sugar above, let's be grown-ups and not pretend this isn't a sugar. But it is honey-like, easy to find, and does the job! I'm actually a big fan of this company. They also make a great chocolate syrup.
Pretty self-explanatory glazing method here, but bear in mind that this is a cream, not a sugar glaze, so it won't harden up like a normal icing would. I think it's best to serve them straightaway, but my fella was very happy to eat the leftovers hours later.
And that's it! Enjoy!
Just wholesome enough for her.
Certainly good enough for me.
Demolished.
And what they look like after a few hours - as you can see the cream is a little different from a normal sugar icing.
No comments:
Post a Comment