Cook up a Memory

Kelly Wambach

Isn’t it funny the memories that are brought back to the surface of our brains by a smell? The memory of my mother’s donuts was triggered recently by a visit to an elderly friend of mine. As I entered her home, the smell of hot lard filled the air. Immediately, mom’s homemade raised donuts and bismarks came to mind. On her stove was a huge cast iron pot filled with pork fat from last fall’s butchered hog slowly melting and separating the pure fat from any bits of meat that might be left.
A homemade donut is a rarity these days. Most of us donut-lovers grab a donut from the bakery department of our grocery store or are treated to donut shop donuts in our employee break rooms. There are some good ones out there, but nothing can compare to my mom’s light and fluffy glazed donuts and powder puff bismarks filled with homemade jelly, jam, or sometimes pudding and covered in vanilla powdered sugar frosting. I don’t remember mom ever making the nutmeg flavored old-fashioned cake-style donuts. Those she saved for my aunt Gertie and grandma to make. Farmer donuts they called them. Always served with a hot cup of coffee. Tough as nails. Dunkers, for sure!
I’ll be honest and tell you in all my years of cooking, I don’t ever remember making donuts, so we’ll be learning and creating a memory together. Hopefully, it’s a good one. I’ll share my notes and tips as we go.
Mom made donuts just once or twice a year. Always on a cold winter day and always when us kids were in school. It does require some time, and knowing my mother it was partly because she didn’t want the kids around the hot fat while she was frying. Mom was a bit of a worry wart that way.
As always, when frying with hot fat, be attentive! DO NOT LEAVE YOUR FRYER UNATTENDED! Use a fryer with a reliable thermostat or a heavy metal pot and a tested and reliable thermometer.
The first thing I do when making any recipe using yeast is to check the expiration date. If in doubt, throw it out. There’s nothing worse than preparing your dough and watching it just sit there and not rise! See my photo of good active yeast.
Once you have your dough prepped and tucked away to rise, prepare your frying station. I lay down a layer of newspaper covered with a good layer of paper towels to place your fried donuts on once out of the fryer to absorb excess fat.
Once your dough has gone yeast is active. through its second rise, you
will roll and cut them.
Cut them into rounds for bismarks and with a donut cutter for donuts. I just removed the hole attachment from the donut cutter for the bismarks. At this point, my mother’s recipe says to let them raise again uncovered. My experience was they dried out too much on the tops, so I covered them with a slightly damp lightweight dish towel to keep them moist while rising. You could also turn your oven on to warm for just a bit, place a pan of very hot water on the bottom, and turn the oven off. You want a moist and warm environment for good proofing. No more than 75 to 80 degrees.
All in all, I think it took me roughly 4 good hours from start to finish. Including filling and frosting the bismarks. Time will vary depending on how long it takes your dough to rise each time. Take your time. Patience is key for light and fluffy results.
Mom’s Raised Donuts/Bismarks Ingredients:
2 packages dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 1/2 cups lukewarm milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp salt
2 well beaten eggs
1/2 cup very warm, but not melted soft shortening such as Crisco
7 1/2 cups flour
Makes 3 dozen.
Soften yeast in warm water. About 15 minutes. Mix lukewarm milk, sugar, and salt until dissolved. Place in a large mixing bowl and stir in eggs. Add 3 cups of flour and soft shortening. Now add your yeast and water mixture. Mix well. Shortening will be lumpy. Add the remaining flour and stir until well blended. Turn out on a floured board and knead 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Place in a greased bowl and turn to coat the dough. Cover with a towel and let rise until doubled. Punch down and let rise again until doubled. Punch down and roll out to about 1/3 inch thick. Cut into desired shapes. Cover with a damp lightweight towel and let rise until very light. Fry in 375 degrees fat for about one minute on each side or until golden brown. Place on paper towels to drain and cool. Coat donuts with sugar, cinnamon sugar, or powdered sugar glaze while still warm. For bismarks, allow to cool. Once cooled, cut a quarter sized hole in the top. Save the “hole.” Fill with jelly, jam, or pudding. Cover with the reserved hole and top with vanilla frosting.
Notes:
I cut mine too thick. It took longer to proof and fry them, so they got a bit dark. They also retained more fat. Cut as the recipe indicates at about 1/3 inch thick.
The oven method of proofing I mentioned earlier worked as well as covering with a damp towel. Just don’t get your oven too hot.
The final raise of your cut donuts is the most important. Be patient and let them rise until very light. Longer is better for light and airy results. Keep in mind that they will rise a bit while frying, too.
The next time I make these, I’m going to try baking rather than frying them. I’ll start with a temperature of 375 degrees, then reduce the temperature after 5 minutes to 350 degrees and bake until done. I’m guessing on times, but maybe another 15 minutes.
There’s plenty of chilly days ahead, so drag out your deep fryer and cook up a memory!
Remember, “The most important ingredient in a recipe is the memory it conjures.”