On Diets and Krispy Kreme

One of my favorite things in the world to eat is a chocolate glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut. I admit this with some reluctance because Natasha would call me plebian. So much more chic to love the Napoleons at a little out-of-the-way patisserie in Provence. Nope. Apparently, I am all American in my adoration of sugar and oil.


Unfortunately, my fondness for food also leads me to the vulgar necessity of dieting. Ho hum. So boring. Over the years, I have come up with my own little tricks to keep myself on a diet. Here's where Krispy Kremes come in. When I see something in the grocery store that I want to eat but that would blow my diet, I tell myself, "Sure! You can eat that. If you bake it yourself."


Now I have to tell you that this trick works verrrry well. Ninety-nine times out of one hundred, I will
A) have forgotten all about said sinful item by the time I get home
B) not have the necessary ingredients
C) not have the time
D) be too lazy
E) realize that I need to stick to the diet and be proud of myself for being so strong.

And that, as they say, will be the end of that. But eventually, I was bound to hit that one hundredth time. So there I was, shopping amid frenzied people who were busy wiping shelves clean thanks to the pending snowstorm. The Krispy Kremes called my name. "Krista . . .  Krista . . . You'll want us after you shovel the snowwww." I swear the lights overhead gleamed on them like jewels. Big, luscious, chocolate iced jewels. They would be soft and pillowy. Light as air. I checked the calories. I could have one. I could! But they came in a box of six. (If you work for Krispy Kreme and you're reading this, you could make a fortune selling doughnuts in individual boxes. They're $3.77 for six doughnuts, and I would gladly have paid an entire dollar for a fix, er, one doughnut.)

So my dieting rule kicked in. You can have one if you bake them at home. Hmm . . . Normally A through E above would have followed, but this time, my mother said something about Mardi Gras being around the corner. In Germany, that means doughnuts. I can take a hint. Time to make doughnuts. And it was Valentine's day. Wouldn't it be fun to make some doughnuts as a little gift?


In years past, the "make it at home" rule was easier to follow because I didn't have a recipe for something like Krispy Kremes. But now the stinking Internet has recipes for everything. So I found a Krispy Kreme Copycat recipe that people were raving about. Raving! And I made it. That loud noise you just heard was me falling off the diet wagon.


This recipe is by scoochmaroo and can be found at http://www.instructables.com/id/Krispy-Kreme-Donut-Doughnut-Recipe/?ALLSTEPS .


My take on it? In a blind taste test, I feel confident that I would be able to pick out the real Krispy Kreme doughnut. But these are REALLY GOOD! She's dead on with the chocolate glaze. It tastes just like the real chocolate glaze. The doughnuts are close, very close.


It's worth noting that someone who says he worked at Krispy Kreme didn't recall milk in the recipe. He thought they used water. Next time, I'll try water instead of milk.


Happily, that fall off the wagon woke me up. This recipe makes 39-40ish doughnuts. I only made 1 dozen, and most of those went straight to my mom, who will eat half of one and then freeze the rest. The other two dozen plus went all the way through the second rising, and I popped them (still raw) into the freezer. Sometime when I have a bunch of guests, I'll pull them out for breakfast, cook them, and see how well they held up. Of course, I had to try some. For you! Really, that was the main reason for eating a couple of doughnuts. And the middles, and the scraps. And licking the chocolate glaze bowl . . .

Krispy Kreme Doughnut Copycat Recipe

by scoochmaroo 

Doughnuts

3 packages Rapid Rise yeast
1/2 cup water (105-115F )
2 1/4 cups milk, scalded, then cooled
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 eggs
1/2 cup shortening (Crisco)
7 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
canola oil for frying

Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Stir and set aside for at least 10-20 minutes while you scald the milk and let it cool. Then mix everything except the flour. Add the flour one cup at a time. By cup number seven, you'll see the dough coming together very nicely. If your mixer cannot handle the quantity, knead the last cup of flour in by hand.

Place the dough in a large bowl or divide and place in two large bowls. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise for one hour.

Dust a rolling pin and a board with flour. Roll out the dough to 1/2 inch thick and cut into doughnut rounds, placing them on a baking sheet. Cover with kitchen towels and let rise for 30-40 minutes.

Make the glaze.

Glaze

1/2 cup butter
3 cups powdered sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
6 - 9 tablespoons evaporated milk
6 squares (ounces) unsweetened chocolate (I used Bakers.) OPTIONAL
water

I wanted both the glaze and the chocolate glaze, so I melted half the butter and placed it in a mixing bowl. I melted the other half of the butter with 3 ounces of chocolate and placed it in another mixing bowl. Then I added half of the remaining ingredients to each bowl and whisked them. I found them both to be just a bit too stiff and added one tablespoon of water to each bowl. That was perfect.

Fry

Pour canola oil into a wide and deep pot. Doughnuts float on the surface, so a couple of inches of oil will do. Heat to 350. Slide the doughnuts into the oil using chopsticks, a wooden spoon, or a pierced spoon. Watch the time! Try frying a scrap first. Expect to cook doughnuts about 1 minute on each side, though you may need less time. Doughnut holes will definitely require less cooking time.

Scoop doughnuts out of the oil and place on a rack or paper towels. When they are cool enough to handle, dip each one into the plain glaze, turning it to cover the whole doughnut. If you are using chocolate, then dip the top into the chocolate glaze as well. Place on a rack over a tray (to catch drips). 

Makes a very lovely dough.

Ready, set . . .

fry!

Yummmm!

Return to diet the following day.