RECIPE: Chocolate-Dipped Cake Doughnuts

Nothing beats a good doughnut…seriously. But since I made a decision to up my game in terms of being healthy, I decided that doughnuts fried in oil just weren’t going to cut it. Instead, I bought a doughnut pan and discovered a quick and easy recipe for baked doughnuts. They are not very sweet on their own, so to up the ante a bit, I made an awesome topping for these doughnuts that satisfies that factor. This recipe makes 24 mini doughnuts or 12 regular-sized doughnuts. If you ever have the opportunity to visit King Arthur Flour in Norwich, Vermont do it! The majority of this recipe comes from their site.

Chocolate-Dipped Cake Doughnuts

Ingredients

1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 2/3 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

1/2 bar of milk chocolate (like Milka)

Caramel Sugar to garnish

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Lightly grease your doughnut pan – either for mini or regular.

2. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the butter, vegetable oil, and sugars until smooth.

3. Add the eggs, beating to combine.

4. Stir in the baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, salt, and vanilla.

5. Stir the flour into the butter mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour and making sure everything is thoroughly combined.

6. Spoon the batter into the lightly greased doughnut pans, filling the wells to about 1/4" shy of the rim. TIP: I like to put the batter into a pipping bag and then pipe the batter into the doughnut wells – this ensures they are all clean and the same size.

7. Bake the doughnuts for 10 minutes or until slightly golden brown – DO NOT OVER BAKE! THIS IS A CRIME! Remove them from the oven, and wait 5 to 7 minutes before turning them out of the pans onto a rack.

8. While the doughnuts cool, boil a pot of water (about 1/4 to 1/3 full) on the stovetop and once boiling, turn temperature down to medium-high heat. Place a metal bowl over the pot, making sure the bowl does not touch the water. Melt about half of a bar of milk chocolate in the boil, stirring until completely melted.

9. Dip the top of each doughnut into the chocolate and immediately sprinkle with Caramel Sugar, the set aside to cool. Repeat until all doughnuts have been dipped.

10. Once cool, make some coffee then stuff these in your face! ENJOY!