orange + cranberry

With Thanksgiving fast approaching, so do the pressures of the holiday season. It is a busy time for my family, we embark on vacations and celebrate together. A staple of Thanksgiving for us is cranberry sauce, it's one of my mom's favorite things. She could eat it year-round, but it is special on the holiday. Therefore, cranberries are a holiday food to me, and I wanted to dedicate a doughnut to Thanksgiving this year. I struggled to think of a flavor that worked with cranberries, but eventually thought of oranges; a citrus-y sweet partner to the tart, bitter cranberry. Or, in this case, craisins.

This week, I am thankful for the opportunity to be completing a project that is helping me improve many necessary skills.

I am thankful for an acceptance letter and scholarship from the culinary school I have been dreaming of attending for years.

I am thankful for my family, they have supported me and loved me endlessly.

I am thankful for friends who share their sense of humor with me and put up with my antics.

I am thankful for the wonderful life I live.

I am thankful for doughnuts. (Orange & cranberry, to be exact.)

I think you'll be thankful for these lovely, tart, simple doughnuts as well. Here's the recipe.

for the doughnuts

3 tablespoons active dry yeast

1 cup whole milk, heated to 110˚F.

2 to 2 1/2 cups bread flour, plus more for the work surface

2 tablespoons superfine sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large egg yolks

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

Vegetable oil, for frying

1. In a medium bowl, dissolve 2 tablespoons of the yeast in 3/4 cup of the warm milk. Stir in 3/4 cup of the flour to create a smooth paste. Cover and let rest in a warm spot for 30 minutes.

2. Combine the remaining warm milk and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the flour mixture along with the sugar, salt, vanilla, and egg yolks. Mix until smooth. Turn off the mixer and add 1/2 cup of the remaining flour. Mix on low for about 30 seconds. Add the butter and mix until it becomes incorporated, about 30 seconds. Switch to a dough hook and, with the mixer turned off, add more flour, about 1/4 cup at a time. Knead the dough on medium speed between additions until the dough pulls completely away from the sides of the bowl and is smooth and not too sticky. It will be very soft and moist, but not so sticky that you can’t roll it out. (You may have flour left over.) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 12 hours.

3. Line a baking sheet with a lightly floured dish towel. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/2 inch thick. With a doughnut or cookie cutter, cut out 3-inch-diameter rounds with 1-inch-diameter holes. You can re-roll the scraps and cut out additional holes.

4. Place the doughnuts at least 1 inch apart on the baking sheet and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let rest in a warm spot to proof until they almost double in size, 5 to 20 minutes, peeking every five minutes. To test whether the dough is ready, touch it lightly with a fingertip. If it springs back immediately, it needs more time. If it springs back slowly, it is ready. If it doesn’t spring back at all, it has over-proofed, in which case you can punch it down and re-roll it once.

5. While the doughnuts are proofing, heat a heavy-bottomed pot with at least 2 inches of oil until a deep-fat thermometer registers 360˚F. Place the doughnuts in the oil, be careful not to overcrowd the pot of oil. Fry for 1 to 2 minutes per side, until light golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on a wire rack over a paper towel, and let cool slightly before glazing. 

for the glaze

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup orange juice (pulp or no pulp, your choice)

Pour the orange juice into the powdered sugar while stirring. Mix until smooth and no powdered sugar lumps are present.

for the topping

2 cups craisins

2 cups orange juice, or just enough to cover the craisins 

Let the craisins sit in the orange juice while your doughnuts go through the proofing process. Save 3 tablespoons of the craisin/orange juice liquid after soaking, you'll need it for the drizzle mixture! When ready to garnish your doughnuts, chop the craisins until the mixture is made up of mostly small pieces. After your doughnuts are dipped in the glaze, sprinkle the craisins on top.

for the drizzle

3 tablespoons of the orange juice that the craisins soaked in. 

1/2 cup powdered sugar

dash of salt

Mix the juice, sugar and salt together until smooth. Transfer to a pastry bag (if you don't have one, simply put the mixture into a sandwich bag and cut off a very small portion of one of the bottom corners) and cut off a very small portion of the bottom. Drizzle on top of the doughnut topped with cranberries.

For a printable version of this recipe, click here.


There you have it! 'Til next time,