Light, fluffy, airy, soft glazed doughnuts!!! These may just be the best homemade doughnuts you will ever make and they are sinfully addictive!
Ingredients
1 and 1/2 cups milk, lukewarm (whole milk or 2%)
1 stick unsalted butter ( 1/2 cup ), room temperature
4 and 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 large eggs, room temperature
6 tablespoons sugar
1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
5 cups + 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons all purpose flour, divided
additional flour for dusting
vegetable oil, for deep frying
Glaze
3 cups confectioners sugar
5 to 6 tablespoons water
1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 pinches salt
Instructions
To make doughnuts
Combine first 7 ingredients (milk through nutmeg) and 2 cups all purpose flour in the bowl of your stand mixer. Beat on medium speed with a flat beater for 2-3 minutes (dough will look like slightly curdled cake batter).
Add remaining all purpose flour ( 3 cups + 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons ) and switch to a dough hook, knead on medium speed for additional 3 minutes (dough will be very soft).
Remove bowl from the mixer, scrape the sides of the bowl and cover bowl with a clean kitchen towel and place in the warmest spot in your kitchen. Let dough rise for about 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in size.
Dust working surface liberally with all purpose flour, Dump dough and dust flour on top. Gently roll into 1/2 to 3/4th inch thick, cut circles with a doughnut cutter ( if you don’t have one, then use a 3-inch circle cookie cutter and with a small cookie cutter in the middle of each doughnuts, to make the holes). You can cut more holes out of the scraps.
Place doughnuts and holes on two lightly floured cookie sheets, spacing about an inch apart. Cover with a kitchen towel, let rise again for 45 – 60 minutes.
Line a large baking sheet with paper towels and place a wire rack on top.
When ready to fry, add vegetable oil in a large dutch oven until comes to about 2-inches height. Place over medium high heat until 330 to 340 degrees (use a deep fry thermometer , refer notes if you do not own one). Deep fry about 4 doughnuts at a time (do not overcrowd the pan), until golden brown on both sides (45-60 seconds per side). Remove doughnuts onto the cooling rack.
Repeat until all doughnuts and holes have been fried.
Glaze doughnuts
In a medium bowl, whisk all glaze ingredients until smooth. Begin by adding 5 tablespoons water and then a touch more if glaze seems thick.
Working with one doughnut at a time, dip one side of each doughnut into the glaze and return to the wire rack.
Let glaze set for about 20 minutes before serving.
