Malasadas (Portuguese Donuts)

Directions

DONUTS:

1. In a medium-sized bowl, combine sifted flour, sugar, salt, and yeast and mix well with a wire whisk.
2. In a separate bowl or measuring pitcher mix warm milk, melted butter and eggs, and mix together with a fork or whisk. 
3. Add dry ingredients in a stand mixer with hook attachment, then wet, mix on medium speed until kneaded well, about 8 minutes. if you need to use a rubber spatula to mix occasionally to ensure all ingredients become well incorporated. FYI, this dough is on the wet side. 
4. Transfer to a greased bowl; I use a teaspoon or so of lard or tallow rather than non-stick spray. Once the dough is transferred to the greased bowl, roll around slightly to coat the dough and form into a nice tight dough ball. Cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap, let proof until doubled in size, about 2-3 hours, or place in the fridge for a slow overnight proofing (careful not to overproof). 
5. Transfer dough to a lightly dusted and clean surface and roll out to about 1/2 inch thick. Use a circle cutter about 2 1/2 – 3 inches in diameter and punch out donuts; place onto a lightly dusted floured surface or cookie sheet, cover again with a damp towel or plastic, and allow to double in size again, about 2-3 hours.
6. In a pot or deep fryer, add tallow or lard (my personal favorite to fry in is tallow), and heat to 350-360 degrees. Carefully add doughnuts, cooking 2-3 at a time, making sure not to overcrowd your frying pot. Once light golden brown, flip the donuts using a fork or chopsticks; also work very well; cook on the remaining side until golden brown. Total cook time is about 2 minutes. Remove the donut and place onto a tray fitted with a wire rack to cool slightly. While still warm, toss in sugar until evenly coated and serve warm. Some fun and optional variations include filling the donuts with vanilla pastry cream (see recipe below) or adding some ground cinnamon to your sugar. Either way, these perfectly light but slightly chewy pillows will surely bring a smile to your face.  

VANILLA BEAN CUSTARD:

1. In a sauce pot, add cream and milk. Take the vanilla bean and split it lengthwise down the center. Use the back of a knife to scrape the seed and place it into the milk and cream mixture. Place the vanilla pod in as well. Place over medium heat and scald the milk until skin forms on top. Remove from heat. Let sit for about 20 minutes, then remove the vanilla pod.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together yolks, cornstarch, sugar, and salt, mixing well until smooth and pale in color. Use a ladle and add about 4 oz of cream to the egg mix, whisking vigorously to temper the eggs. Then, add the tempered egg mix to the milk/cream. Place over low heat and whisk continuously until the first signs of the custard start to bubble. 
3. Immediately remove from heat and pour the custard into a bowl by passing it through a fine sieve strainer. Use a rubber spatula to help push the custard through. Cool immediately. Once completely cooled, the custard is ready to use. 
4. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a medium-sized round tip with the custard. Use a chopstick to poke a hole into one side of the donut until the tip of the chopstick is a little over halfway into the donut. Gently move the chopstick around in a circular motion to make the opening a little bigger. Insert the pastry tip into the side of the donut and squeeze in pastry cream slowly, adding about 1.5 oz per donut.