Once upon a time, I went to the store for butter and eggs. Butter and eggs only. That was my purpose in the grocery store. I had a plan.
I secured my goods quickly and efficiently, but as I turned a corner, I saw it… A distraction. Something that was not on my shopping list… A whole case dedicated to the good stuff. I think you know what I’m talking about…
That’s right. Eggnog. A whole case of Eggnog. So naturally overwhelmed by a huge case of the holiday feels I bought a carton.
It was a good decision. A happy decision. I enjoyed a glass as soon as I got home, and my mind began to wander to all the things I could bake with eggnog…
There are so many things… but you gotta start somewhere. And as far as I’m concerned, starting with donuts is always a good idea….
So here we are… with Eggnog donuts in hand. Can I be honest with you?
These donuts are the bomb. Soooo pillowy soft, covered in eggnog glaze and crunchy spiced pecans… I want these for you.
Perhaps the best thing about making donuts, means that you will also get donut holes amiright? Little bite sized bundles of donut joy. The perfect donut snack….
Honestly, what more could you ask for?
Now I know what you’re thinking…
Frying donuts at home? Well that seems overwhelming…
I hear you. I feel you. I support you. Believe me when I say… if I can do this, you can do this.
Trust me, frying donuts is not nearly as scary as you think it is. Take the homemade donut plunge with me here today, because I promise you, the risk will be worth the reward.
The most important thing when it comes to frying donuts is your oil. Just take care, move slowly with the hot oil and make sure your temperature is just right.
If your oil temperature is too low, your donuts wont fry quick enough and they will get too oily – but if your temperature is too high, you run the risk of having them burn on the outside without fully cooking on the inside.
The best way to measure your temperature will be with a candy thermometer, but if you don’t have that on hand (I actually broke mine recently and have not replaced it) you can still work without a thermometer.
No thermometer? Simply test scrap pieces of dough to see how they fry. Ideally you want a 45-60 second fry time on each side to a light golden brown colour. If you put in a scrap piece to test and you find it fries too quickly, turn down your element temperature. If you find it takes too long to fry, simply allow your oil to heat a few minutes longer and test again.
You got this! Recipe is below friends.
Happy donut making!
Eggnog Donuts with Spiced Pecan Crumbles
Makes 11-12 doughnuts + extra donut holes
Things you need…
Yeast Donut Dough
1 pckg active quick rise dry yeast
1/2 cup of whole milk, warm
1/2 cup egg nog, warmed
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 3/4 – 4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
Eggnog Glaze
1/3 cup eggnog
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 1/2 – 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
Quick Spiced PecansQuick Spiced Pecans
1 /2 cup pecans
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp granulated sugar – extra for when your pecans are toasted
How to make…
Donut Dough
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine the warm milk, warm eggnog, 1 tbsp of the sugar, and the yeast. Allow to stand for 5-10 minutes or until frothy.
Next add in your eggs, remaining sugar and turn the mixer onto low to begin to combine. Add in your vanilla and room temperature butter in chunks to allow it to get evenly distributed in the mixture.
Next add in 1 cup of the flour, the cinnamon, nutmeg and salt, and continue to work the mixture on low until all of the flour is combined. Add in the remaining 2 3/4 cups of flour – one cup at a time, allowing the flour to incorporate after each addition.
Once all your flour is incorporated, set the mixer to high and allow the hook to work the dough for about 5 minutes – you want the dough to appear smooth and elastic. If after a few minutes your dough is a bit wet and sticking to the bottom of the bowl, add in an additional tbsp of flour at a time until this stops, adding up to an additional 1/4 cup of flour only.
Remove the dough from the bowl and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface, and knead the dough with your hands for another few minutes, and shape it into a smooth ball.
Butter your bowl and return the ball of dough to the bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and set it in a warm place to rise for about 1 1/2 hours or until it has doubled in size.
Once the dough has risen, punch it down and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a rough circle that is about 1/2 – 3/4 inch thick.
Use a round donut cutter, whichever size you prefer to cut out as many donuts as you can. I used a 2 inch round donut cutter, and it made really nice medium sized donuts, but you could use a 3 inch if you want them a bit larger.
** Note: Don’t re-roll the scraps. Use a small circular cutter to cut out donut holes and just set the rest aside under some plastic wrap to use for testing your oil later.
Place your donut cut outs onto a parchment lined baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Set them aside in a warm place to rise again for 30 minutes.
Frying the donuts
When your donuts are about 10 minutes away from being ready, begin to heat your oil. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, heat about 2 inches of canola oil over medium low heat, until the temperature reaches 350F degrees.
Once your oil is heated and your donuts puffed and ready, gently place 2 -3 donuts at a time into the oil to cook – depending on your pot size, just be careful not to overcrowd the pot.
Cook your donuts for about 45 seconds – 1 minute on each side before flipping and frying for an additional one minute on the other side. You can always look to see the colour before flipping to check that your donuts are a nice light golden brown and then flip them.
Once cooked, use a slotted spoon and allow the donus to drip off any excess oil into the pot. Place the cooked donuts directly into the vanilla sugar while they are still warm, and gently toss them to coat.
Once coated, place them on a wire rack with some paper towel underneath. Allow the donuts to cool to room temperature before you glaze them.
Eggnog Glaze
While your donuts are cooling, prepare your glaze.
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggnog, powdered sugar, maple syrup and spices until smooth and creamy. You will notice the eggnog makes for a different, more sticky consistency than a usual glaze, but don’t worry – this is good.
If your glaze is too thin, add in extra powdered sugar until you reach desired consistency.
Quick Spiced Pecans
In a fry pan, melt the butter with maple syrup, salt and spices over medium heat. Add pecans and toss to coat evenly. Toast over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, tossing them around with a spoon constantly to keep the sugar from burning.
Once the sugar has crystalized and stuck to the pecans, remove from heat and toss them out onto a piece of parchment paper. Sprinkle with additional 1 tbsp of granulated sugar and allow to cool completely.
Once cooled, finely chop your pecans and set aside.
Glazing & Decorating
Once your donuts have cooled, working one donut at a time, submerge 1/2 of the donut into your prepared glaze and gently pull back and allow any excess glaze to run off. Set the donut back on the rack and repeat this process with each donut.
Once your donuts are glazed, allow them to set for 5 minutes before sprinkling the tops with spiced pecan crumbles.
Enjoy!!
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