In honor of Fat Tuesday this week, I thought I would post this recipe for homemade Paczki! These amazing Polish donuts are so delicious and come in a variety of flavors. My favorite Paczki is filled with raspberry jam. Yet, you can fill it with any jam or even custard that you prefer.
How is a Paczki different than a jelly donut?
Well, they are very similar, yet the traditional Paczki is made with an additional amount of enriching ingredients such as yeast, eggs. even higher gluten flours or even grain alcohol. This helps create a richer than brioche dough with a chewier bite and little to no crumbs.
What flavor is a traditional Paczki?
Traditionally these yummy donuts were filled with prune. However, over the years they have become known for fillings of raspberry, apricot, lemon, blueberry and even custards. Today you can find almost any flavor of these amazing donuts, especially on Fat Tuesday. They have taken on a life of their own.
What is in a Paczki dough?
- Yeast-These are a leavened dough product. I like to use instant yeast so that you don’t have to bloom it first, but active dry works well here too
- Milk- Whole milk here is keep. Let’s be honest, you are not making a low-fat version of a fried donut. So, go for the whole milk and the fat content really helps with the overall product
- Egg yolks- Again, going with the fat here in the dough. This helps make a silky, smooth and rich dough
- Sugar- regular old granulated sugar here. You can’t have a donut without sugar
- Melted Butter- This again helps with the richness of the dough. This helps with flavor and fat content
- Vanilla Extract- This is all about flavor
- All Purpose Flour-Here you want the gluten content of an ap flour. You want to make sure not to add too much flour. You want a smooth, not sticky dough, but you don’t want it dense
- Topping/Fillings- Here is personal preference. You can use granulated sugar or powdered sugar. You can even use chocolate if you don’t mind being less traditional. You can fill them with your favorite jam or vanilla custard. Make them your own and enjoy them!
Chef’s Tips-
The biggest thing here is when you are making the dough, you do not want to add too much flour. You want a soft, not sticky dough without too much flour. Also, mix just until combined and don’t over knead the dough.
Make sure you have your oil at the proper temperature for frying. Which for these is 360 degrees. Make sure you have a spider or something good for flipping them over and cook them until lightly browned on one side and then flip them and lightly brown on the other side.
Lastly, you only want them to cool for about 30 seconds or so before rolling them in the sugar. You want to dry them on a cooling rack, but you want them to still be able to grab that sugar. So, out of the oil and onto a cooling rack for about 30 seconds and then roll in. Once they are fully cooled that is when you can fill them! Enjoy!
Paczki
Ingredients
- Ingredients
- 2 1/4 tsp dry active or instant yeast not rapid or quick-rise yeast
- 1 cup whole milk scalded and cooled
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1/4 cup granulated white sugar
- 2 Tbsp butter melted
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 3 - 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour use only as much as you need to make a moist, but not sticky dough
- Oil for frying
- Powdered Sugar or Granulated sugar for dusting after frying
- Jam or custard for filling (suggested: Raspberry, Blueberry, Apricot or Strawberry Jam) or Vanilla Custard
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, heat milk until steaming with small bubbles forming around the edges (about 180F). Remove from heat and let cool to lukewarm (about 105F).
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve yeast in the lukewarm milk and let stand for 5 minutes. Add 1 cup of the flour. Mix together and let stand for 20-30 minutes, until really bubbly. Almost making a starter.
- In the meantime, beat the yolks in a small bowl until they are light and fluffy.
- To the proofed yeast mixture, add the melted butter and sugar and mix. Add salt and vanilla. Add beaten egg yolks. Slowly add more of the flour to bowl in small increments, adding just until you have a soft dough that is moist, but not sticky. Remove dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead 1 minute (adding a bit more flour if it is sticking to your hands or the work surface). Form dough into a ball. Do not over knead.
- Grease a clean bowl and add dough. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in warm place until doubled. (This dough is a bit of a slow riser, so expect this rise to be up to 90 minutes).
- Deflate dough and pat out onto floured cutting board. With a rolling pin, gently roll into a 1/2-inch-thick circle. Gently cut out circles with 3-inch biscuit cutter. Place onto a parchment lined baking sheet, cover with a clean tea towel and let rise until doubled (about 30 minutes). *You can re-roll the scraps and cut more pieces, though they are never quite as neat as the first cuts. I like to use the ugliest of these ones as "test" ones, to test the temperature of the oil. I fry one, let cool, then cut it open to make sure it is cooking all the way through. I can then adjust time/temperature, as needed from there.
- Meanwhile, heat oil to 360°F. Fry paczki until golden on one side, flip and fry the other side. Don't try to cook too many at a time so you don't reduce the temperature of the oil by adding too many at once. Don't rush the frying, to be sure they are cooked through well. Fry until they are a deep golden color. Remove paczki to a cooling rack for about 30 seconds, then immediately roll in granulated sugar. Let stand until completely cooled.
- Once cooled, using a sharp knife, poke a hole on the side or pop a hole with a tip of a pastry bag. Use a pastry bag with a large plain tip to pipe the jam or custard filling inside. These are best when freshly made, but you can freeze any extras.
