••••MINIATURE JAM DONUTS••••

(Source: tinascookings.blogspot.com & photos also)

••••MINIATURE JAM DONUTS!!!

Ingredients
450 grams plain flour
2 ½ teaspoons dried yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
200 ml milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 large egg yolks
5 tablespoons butter, softened
300 grams thick jam (to fill the doughnuts)

Preparation

Take a large bowl, pour in the warm milk, add the sugar and the yeast, mix it well and let it sit for about 10 minutes in a warm spot, so the yeast can activate. While the yeast is dissolving, sift the flour twice, set it aside. Take a medium bowl, add in the egg yolks and quickly whisk them to break them up, then add vanilla and combine it.

Once the yeast has activated, add in about half of the flour, mix well, add the yolks and combine everything with a wooden spoon. Keep mixing the dough and adding the rest of the flour, until a smooth dough forms. Transfer the dough to a floured surface, then gently knead it for about 5 minutes, gradually adding the diced butter as you knead. If the dough starts getting too sticky, add another tablespoon of flour.

Once everything is well kneaded, transfer the dough to a clean bowl, and cover it with a kitchen towel. At this point you can leave the dough to rise overnight in the refrigerator, or let it rise in a warm spot for about an hour to an hour and a half. Either way, once the dough has risen, gently knead it on a floured surface, then let it rise for another hour. Once again knead the dough lightly, then roll it out to about 1 cm thickness, and cut out circles of dough with a small cookie cutter (2.5 cm; 1").

Let the dough circles rise for about 30 minutes, while the oil is preheating. If you have a thermometer, heat the oil to about 160-170˚C (around 325˚F), otherwise just make sure the oil isn't overheated, because the doughnuts will burn. Take only a few doughnuts at a time, place them into the hot oil, cover with a lid, and let them cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side. Once they are lovely and golden, remove them on a paper towel so it can absorb some of the oil. When they are cool enough to touch, fill them with a jam of your choice (using a narrow piping nozzle helps a lot), dust them with some icing sugar and serve. Yields 45 mini doughnuts.