Tangerine doughnuts
I guarantee you won’t miss the dairy and eggs commonly used in doughnuts. Instead, these are made with olive oil, which makes them rich and velvety. You can use other types of alcohol and fruity juices in the glaze, if you like, but please don’t leave out the sprinkling of salt at the end – it makes these doughnuts so much more special.
10 mins
Prep
1 hr 50 mins
Prove
40 mins
Cook
Makes 8
Serving size
Prep 10 min
Prove 1 hr 50 min
Cook 40 min
Makes 8
Ingredients
130ml lukewarm water
1 tsp fast-action dried yeast
1 tbsp caster sugar
¼ tsp salt
215g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
½ tsp grated tangerine zest
½ tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
1 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing
1 litre sunflower oil, for frying
For the glaze
150g icing sugar
2½ tbsp Grand Marnier
2 tangerines – zest finely grated, to get 1½ tsp, then juiced, to get 2 tbsp
½ tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
Flaked sea salt, to serve
Method
1. Put the first eight ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook in place. Knead on a medium-high speed for seven minutes, or until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl (it will be quite sticky), then transfer to a lightly greased bowl. Cover with a damp cloth and leave to rise in a warm place for about an hour and a half, until soft, pillowy and doubled in size.
2. Meanwhile, whisk all the glaze ingredients in a medium bowl, until well combined and smooth.
3. Lightly flour your hands and a clean work surface, then tip out the dough on to it. Punch down to release the air, then use a sharp knife to cut the dough into eight equal pieces (about 45g each). Clean and dry the work surface, then grease with a little olive oil. With lightly greased hands, shape each piece of dough into a smooth, round ball. Transfer to a tray lined with greaseproof paper, spacing them well apart, then leave to prove again, uncovered, for 20 minutes, or until the dough springs back slowly when touched.
4. Heat the sunflower oil in a medium saucepan on a medium flame until it reaches 180C. Line a tray with plenty of kitchen paper. Once the oil is hot, use your hands very lightly to flatten each round of dough so it’s got two sides but without squeezing out much of the air. In batches of three, carefully lower the doughnuts into the hot oil and fry for two to two and a half minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked doughnuts to the lined tray and repeat with the remaining balls of dough.
5. Once you’ve fried all the doughnuts, drop them individually into the bowl of glaze, turning them a few times with a spoon until coated on all sides. Transfer to a wire rack to dry for five minutes, then coat again with a second layer of glaze. Sprinkle with some salt and leave the glaze to set for another 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.