doughnuts

Bicho Bicho is a traditional Filipino doughnut so good they had to name it twice. It’s great for breakfast especially served with a hot cup of coffee. Even better, its great dipped in melted chocolate. The only draw back is that it can be a little time consuming to make, so it’s best to cook it when you have adequate time. It’s a favourite Filipino sweet bread and most Filipino bakeries make them. Unfortunately, if there are no Filipino bakeries in your area, then you have a problem that only time and a bit of baking can solve. Or you can eat a regular cinnamon doughnut and dip it in melted chocolate – if you squint hard enough and use your imagination, it’s almost like a bicho bicho. But not quite.

To make the real thing, first you have to wash your hands, roll up your sleeves and collect the following ingredients:

1 C lukewarm water
2 Tbs active dry yeast
1 tsp salt
2 C self raising flour

Combine the above ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly. Cover and allow it to rise about 30 mins.

Add:

1/2 C melted butter.
2 eggs, beaten.
1 C sugar
2 C self raising flour

Beat the dough well. Cover and allow it to rise about 1.5 hours.

Punch the dough down. Turn out onto a floured surface and add more flour if the dough is too soft to handle.

Divide the dough into two portions.

Cover and allow it to rest for about 20 mins.

Roll out the dough to about 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into 8x 1 inch strips.

Cover and allow the dough to rise for about 1.5 hours.

Fry in hot oil until golden brown. Roll in caster sugar and serve warm.

It’s getting noticeably cooler these days as Summer begins to make way for Autumn. The hot, balmy mornings are gradually being replaced by cool, fresh ones. It’s just the right weather for waking up to a tall cup of coffee and warm freshly made doughnuts on lazy weekend mornings.

Most doughnut recipes take a long time to make and though its generally enjoyable to make traditional raised doughnuts, sometimes I just want to whip up a quick batch for breakfast. Thankfully, I’d come across a doughnut recipe in the past which I recently (and gratefully) dug out again. Its an uncomplicated recipe and great if you want to make doughnuts but do not have the time or inclination to make the traditional raised kind.

Ingredients

Doughnut
1 cup milk
4 tsp yeast
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups self raising flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup mashed potatoes
4 Tbs oil

Chocolate Glaze

1 cup icing sugar
2 Tbs hot water
2 Tbs melted butter
2 Tbs hot drinking chocolate

Cooking Instructions

Heat milk until warm. Add yeast and 1/4 cup sugar. Allow it to stand about 10 minutes.
In a large bowl, mix the flour, 1/2 cup sugar and mashed potatoes. Add the milk mixture and oil.
Mix the dough well.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until the ingredients have combined well (about 8 minutes)
Roll the dough to about 1/2 inch thick.
Cut the doughnut shapes.
Set the dough aside and prepare the glaze.
Heat the oil then fry the doughnuts until golden (ensure your oil is about 375F to prevent the doughnuts becoming soggy).
Drain the doughnuts on kitchen paper.
Dip one side of the doughnut into the glaze and add sprinkles if desired.

Glaze

Mix the icing sugar, water and butter until well combined.2
Mix in the powdered chocolate. Add more or less to taste. If you prefer a thinner glaze, add a little more hot water to the mixture.
Cover one side of the cooked doughnuts in glaze. You can also sprinkle toppings on top of the glaze if you prefer.