Baked Cinnamon Doughnuts

Deep fried dough; it's that delightfully evil combination of carbs, sugar and oil. Usually I am very controlled with my doughnut intake. As delicious as they are, the amount of guilt that comes with consuming all that heavy deep-fried carbness always outweighs the positives. So when I came across this baked cinnamon doughnut recipe, I had to give it a go. Would it satisfy my doughnut cravings without the guilt and the hassle of deep-frying at home?

The answer was undoubtably YES. Obviously they are not exactly the same in texture, baking will not completely recreate the golden exterior doughnut that deep-frying does. The flavour was spot on with that lovely crunchy cinnamon sugar coating on the outside and the super fluffy innards. After the doughnuts had cooled they were quite hard on the outside, but a quick 10-20 second zap in the microwave turned them super soft and super doughnut-like. If anything I would suggest keeping them in the fridge overnight and then zapping them in the microwave before serving because it gives them that perfect soft texture.

Screencap from this youtube video of the Extra gum ad

Do you like the little pink doughnut dude? Those of you in Australia might recognise him from the Extra gum commercial with all the animated food running around (not sure if they've used this ad in other countries). I loved the doughnut in this ad when it first came out, but he's been a bit overused since. Since it was my first time making doughnuts, I couldn't resist recreating this little fella. Isn't he adorable? He's covered with a thick strawberry icing, mini M&M eyes and his arms and legs are made from chopped up doughnut holes stuck in with toothpicks. The toothpicks are a little bit of a choking hazard, so if you wanna make these guys to serve you might want to think of a safer way of attaching the arms and legs. But isn't he adorable?!

RAWRRRR!!!!

Speaking of the doughnut holes, they were just as great to eat as the regular doughnuts. For those who can't be bothered making doughnut shapes or would prefer to portion control and only have little doughnuts, just use the smaller cutter to make lots of these little doughnut holes. I couldn't stop popping these little babies into my mouth while I was pottering around the kitchen!

These baked doughnuts are a great healthier alternative to their evilly good deep-fried cousins. Obviously they are still not very healthy with all that sugar, but they definitely satisfy those cravings for a warm cinnamon doughnut. Unfortunately the texture is a little too hard once they cool, so they really need to be heated in the microwave and served warm. I don't know if I will have the heart to eat my little doughnut guy :(

Baked Cinnamon Doughnut
(recipe adapted from Taste, makes 12)
1 cup full cream or reduced-fat milk
15g unsalted butter, melted
400g plain flour
1 1/2 teaspoons instant dried yeast
1/4 cup (50g) caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For cinnamon doughnuts:
35g melted butter
1/2 cup (44g) caster sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Optional strawberry doughnut men decorations:
1 cup icing sugar
1/4 tsp strawberry essence
Pink food colouring
Milk
Brown mini m&ms
Toothpicks (or a safer alternative)

Place milk in a heatproof, microwave-safe jug. Microwave on medium-high (75%) for 30 to 40 seconds or until heated through (do not allow to boil). Stir in melted butter and set aside.

Sift flour into a large mixing bowl. Stir in yeast, sugar and cinnamon. Make a well in the centre. Add milk mixture. Mix to form a soft dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic (or if you are lucky enough to have a mixer with dough hooks like me, beat using dough hooks on high for 5-7 mins).

Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper. Using your fist, punch dough down. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth. Roll dough out until 2cm thick. Using a 6.5cm cutter, cut 12 rounds from dough. Using a 3cm cutter, cut circles from the centre of each round. Place doughnuts (and doughnut holes), 5cm apart, on prepared tray. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C. Cook doughnuts for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. For cinnamon doughnuts combine sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Brush doughnuts with remaining butter. Dip in sugar mixture, shaking off excess.

If you can be bothered making the little doughnut dudes, sift icing sugar in a bowl and add strawberry essence and food colouring. Gradually stir in milk, 1 tsp at a time until the icing is smooth and thick and does not flow too quickly. Dip one side of the doughnuts in the icing and place on a wire rack to set. If you icing is too runny either add more icing sugar or chill it until it is the right consistency. Before the icing is completely set on the doughnuts, place m&m 'eyes' on them. Using the doughnut holes, slice these up using a sharp knife and insert toothpicks into them and attach to doughnut to form arms and legs.

Serve doughnuts while still warm, or can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge and warmed up in the microwave for 10-20 seconds before serving. Avoid serving cold.