Combine luscious dark chocolate with salty bacon and a satisfyingly spiced doughnut, and you'll forget about any ill your day can throw at you!
INGREDIENTS:
3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon all-spice
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons whole milk
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract (not oil)
vegetable oil or shortening for frying
For the Glaze:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup evaporated milk
2 tablespoon light corn syrup
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 recipe candied, salted bacon
DIRECTIONS:
For The Doughnuts: Place 2 cups flour (reserve one cup for later use), sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and all-spice in a large bowl. Whisk until combined. Work the shortening into the flour with your fingers until it forms a course meal and isn't sticky. Set aside.
In a small bowl combine milk and vinegar, and let them sit for 5 minutes. Add the egg, egg yolk, vanilla, and lemon extract and stir until yolks are incorporated. Next, mix the wet milk mixture into the dry flour mixture. Use a fork to stir until wet ingredients are incorporated. Mix the reserved cup of flour into combined mixture.
Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Turn dough onto a liberally floured work surface. Roll dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Using two cookie cutters (3" and 1" work fine), punch out the doughnuts. As you work, make sure that each doughnut isn't stuck to the work surface below. Reroll the scraps and cut out additional doughnuts with remaining dough.
In a deep, heavy-bottomed pan, heat 2-5 inches of oil or shortening to 350°F -360°F. Smaller pans with deep oil mean you only fry one or two doughnuts at a time, while larger pans with shallow oil mean you can fry more, but they are trickier to turn. It is also essential that you keep your oil within this temperature window while frying. Too low and the insides don't get cooked; too high and the donuts start to burn.
Place one doughnut in the oil as a test and to get the hang of flipping. Cook for 2-4 minutes. Using wooden chopsticks, flip the donuts over: place one chopstick in the hole and use the other to flip the bottom side of the doughnut (it makes sense when you actually do it). Be careful not to splash your oil. Cook an additional 2-4 minutes and carefully remove from oil. Place the cooked donut on a plate lined with a paper towel. Cool completely.
For The Glaze: Once doughnuts are completely cool, it's time to glaze them! The process isn't tricky but they do need to set for 30 minutes to allow the chocolate to firm up.
To start, combine the butter, milk, corn syrup, and vanilla in a medium saucepan and warm over medium heat until the butter has melted. Decrease the heat to low, add the chocolate, and whisk until melted. Turn the heat as low as it will go and add the powdered sugar. Whisk until smooth. Dip the doughnuts immediately, pushing them gently into the glaze and then twisting as they are removed to avoid drips. Add bacon or additional toppings within 5 minutes of glazing. Allow glaze to set for 30 minutes before serving.
Photo and recipe courtesy of: http://www.thekitchn.com/spiced-doughnuts-with-bitter-chocolate-bacon-glaze-165990
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