Wild Berry Donuts

Donuts are amazing, while there is much more to say about them, we can all agree on that. If you are looking for a way to one-up your next donut experience, you should try your hand at making them. Moreover, if you are looking to go above and beyond, try filling them with wild berries.

Berries will soon be coming to fruition, if that is a little to on the nose. I am excited that the west has had this abundance of moisture, because it means lush flora will bless our landscapes. Also, my foraged frozen berry stocks are basically gone.

I wanted to find a way to incorporate wild berries into donuts legitimately. These are not your quick and easy cake donuts, these are real donut shop style donuts. Delicious ad fluffy yeasted donuts, fried to a beautiful golden brown, with a delectable wild berry flavor.

There are a few technical aspects to these donuts, and they really help in the outcome of the final product. Namely, high protein bread flour, and diastatic malt. Diastatic malt is a more suitable choice of food for the yeast, since the malting process converts starches to sugars. This makes it more readily metabolized and results in a better rise, which results in better texture. Then there is the high protein bread flour, with the protein being gluten. An extended kneading process, and a double proof develops gluten, and having an added amount of protein in the flour makes it even more so. The gluten adds elasticity to the dough and gives it the strength to hold the CO2 gas given off by the yeast. It gives it that bouncy, pillowy texture that good donuts have. Also, the protein creates a good barrier to protect the dough from soaking in any extra oil during the frying process.

All the shop talk aside, have fun with these, and make them your own.

Ingredients

For Jelly Filling

2 C Wild Berries ( i used frozen serviceberry)
3 C Sugar
1/2 Stick of butter
1 C Water
Juice of 1 Lemon
6 T Cornstarch
1/2 t of Kosher Salt

For Donuts

3 C of High Protien Bread Flour (plus extra for dusting)
3 T of Diastatic Malt
1 T of Kosher Salt
3 T of Sugar
1 T of Yeast
1 C of Milk
1/2 Stick of Butter
1 Egg (plus 1 extra egg yolk)
Powdered sugar + Milk ( for dusting and glaze )

Step 1

Place 1/2 C of water, berries, sugar, butter, lemon juice, and salt into a sauce pan. Bring to a simmer.

Step 2

Place simmered berry mixture into a blender, and puree until smooth. Place back into pan. Mix cornstarch with 1/2 C of cold water until incorporated, then place in the sauce pan and bring back to a simmer. Being sure to stir constantly to avoid scorching.

Step 3

When mixture is brought up to a simmer and thickened, remove from heat and place in a bowl to chill. It can be sped up by placing the bowl in another bowl with ice, or placed in the fridge for donuts the next day.

Step 4

To start the donuts, place milk, 1 egg, sugar, and butter into a sauce pan. Bring the mixture up to 110*F . Then place into a bowl and add the yeast. Mix well and let rest for 10 min until yeast starts to foam.

Step 5

When yeast is foamed, place in a stand mixer with a dough hook. Mix together flour, malt, salt in a separate bowl, and incorporate into the yeast mixture. Adding only a spoonful at a time, on MD speed.

Step 6

After flour mix is all in the mixer, let knead for 10 minutes, then transfer to a greased bowl and place in the fridge for 1-2 hours.

Step 7

After the dough has chilled, punch down and roll out on floured surface. Till about 3/8 to 1/2 inch in thickness.

Step 8

Next, cut out donuts and place into a greased baking sheet, and grease tops. Cover and set aside to rise.

Step 9

To make use of all the scraps left behind make fritters. Chop up into small cubes, and toss with 1 egg yolk, 1 t of flour, and 1/2 cup of berries in a bowl. Set aside in bowl to rise.

Step 10

Get a fryer setup with oil, and get it up to 350* F.

Step 11

After donuts have risen till doubled in size (apprx 30 min) carefully place a few donuts in, as to not overcrowd. Turning them after about 2-3 mins. Good donuts should be golden brown with a nice blonde ring around the center. Place cooked donuts on cooling rack. Let cool till room temp.

Step 11

For fritters, simply grab a handful of the risen dough tails mixture and drop into the fryer, repeat cooking process and place on cooling rack.

Step 12

Fill a pastry bag with jelly filling.

Step 13

Cut slits into those destined to be jelly-filled, and pipe in the filling. Set aside and dust with powdered sugar.

Step 14

For fritters glaze, simply mix 1 cup of powdered sugar with 2T milk and a pinch of salt. Then slowly pour over the fritters, getting all the nooks and crannies filled.