Cake-Alicious

Was browsing the web last week when I stumbled upon this “secret” recipe for homemade doughnuts. And whats so secret about it you ask? It’s made with mashed potatoes. You heard me right, potatoes. I too was in shock. That’s the secret ingredient.  I had never heard of donuts made with potatoes before so ofcourse I had to try them. They came out nicely and the mashed potatoes made them fluffy inside. Here’s the recipe, it comes with a video of the funny Fabio making the donuts so you’ll have a good visual to rely on as well. 

Perfect Homemade Doughnuts

Recipe by Fabio Viviani
Yields 1-2 Dozen, depending on size  (I made 28)

Ingredients:

4 small potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 cup plus ¼ cup milk, warmed
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
¾ cup lard (I used butter)
¾ cup sugar
1 package (or 2 ¼ tsp.) active dry yeast
4 ½ cups bread flour
1 tsp salt
Extra light olive oil for frying
1 Tbsp. butter, melted
Additional sugar

Method:

Boil potatoes and allow to cool before mashing.
In a stand mixer with the hook attachment, mix milk, eggs, sugar and yeast on low for 2 minutes allowing the yeast to activate.  Add the mashed potatoes, then lard, then flour one cup at a time, until it is all added. Then add the salt and mix until dough is soft and supple.

Knead and add additional ¼ to ½ cup flour if necessary: the dough should be really soft, but NOT sticky.  Roll out dough to ½-inch thickness with a rolling pin.

Cut out doughnuts with a pizza cutter/large round cookie cutter/or a wine glass.
Place on greased baking sheets; cover with a damp, lightweight towel and let rise until almost doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

Cook in oil heated to 340 degrees F, till browned on both sides, flipping them over a few times to get even color. Remove from oil and place onto paper towels to dry.
If desired, brush warm doughnuts with melted butter and dip in powdered sugar.

Here are my homemade doughnuts