Cake donuts or raised or cruellers? That's the first decision you have to make.

Although all-purpose flour has commonly been used for making raised yeast doughnuts I suggest bread flour.

But when it comes to cake doughnuts (leavened with baking powder), you want lower-gluten flour, so try them with cake flour. I like to make mine with low-gluten spelt flour. Keep mixing to a minimum so you don't get a lot of gluten development.

Deep frying hints:
-Temperature of the fat, the temperature of the food, the amount of fat in the fryer, and the amount of food are an all-important mixture to be considered.

-When the food is fried at a high temperature, the item browns quickly and needs to be taken out of the fat before it runs out of moisture. When it runs out of moisture, it begins to soak up fat and get greasy.

-The shorter the frying time, the less fat is absorbed.

-You need enough fat in the fryer to maintain the temperature when the food is added. If too much cold food is added, the temperature will drop. So don't overload your fryer.

-Use a fat with a smoke point much higher than the frying temperature.

-Old helpful hint - Add 1 T. vinegar or 1 t. ginger to oil before heating. This prevents the dough from absorbing too much grease while frying.

-Something interesting to do with the doughnut holes:
(source: Recipes from the Old Mill)

Doughnut Hole Sticky Muffins (make with raised dough)
Grease 12 muffin cups. In the bottom of each cup place 1 T. brown sugar, 1 t. light corn syrup, 1/2 t. water, and 1 t. chopped nuts. Arrange 4 doughnut holes in each cup. Cover with plastic wrap (or a cloth) and let rise until double. Bake at 350-degrees F for about 20-25 minutes. Carefully invert pan as soon as they come out of the oven on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

-You can also bake raised doughnuts. Cut the dough with a doughnut cutter that has a large hole. Place on a greased cookie sheet and let raise until light. Bake at 375-degrees F for about 12-15 minutes. Brush with butter on all sides while still warm and roll in granulated sugar/cinnamon mixture.

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Old-Fashioned Buttermilk Cake Doughnuts Turtorial

I've used this recipe a few times. Very easy to make.

Yeast Raised Donuts

Yeast-Raised Glazed Doughnuts From the King Arthur Flour All-Purpose Baking

1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
1/4 cup (1 3/4 ounces) sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
3 cups (12 3/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 cup (8 ounces) milk
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 cups (2 pounds) vegetable oil or shortening (2 1/2 pounds), for frying

Glaze

1/4 cup (2 ounces) milk
2 cups (8 ounces confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whisk together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine the egg, milk, butter, and vanilla and stir into the flour mixture, mixing until well combined. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes, then knead for 6 to 8 minutes by hand or mixer until you have a smooth, soft dough. Place the dough in a buttered bowl, turn it over to grease the top, and let it rise, covered, in a warm place for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until doubled in bulk.

Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Gently roll the dough out to 1/4-inch thickness and cut with a round cutter (or, using a pizza wheel, cut into strips to make crullers, see pg 40 of KAFAPBC). Cover loosely with greased plastic wrap and let rise again for about 1 hour, until doubled again.

Place oil or shortening in a heavy pan or deep skillet and heat to 350F. Place the doughnuts in the oil, two or three at a time, and fry until golden brown. Turn over and cook the second side. This should take no more than a minute for each side. Overcooking will make the doughnuts tough. Drain on paper towels.

To make glaze, stir the milk into the confectioners' sugar until it is smooth, then add the vanilla.

When the doughnuts are cool enough to handle (but still warm), dip the tops of the doughnuts in the glaze, then place on a rack or plate to let the glaze drip down.

Here is a link that might be useful: Yeast Raised Donuts

Thank you for the replies. Lindac, they all sound good! ann t, your doughnuts look delicious! And grainlady, thanks for the tips. I do have a question regarding the ginger added to the oil. Do you mean fresh/ground/crystallized?

Initially, we had been thinking of old fashion cake doughnuts - ones you would sprinkle with cinnamon sugar after frying. Now, we are exploring all options.

amck-

I'm assuming it's powdered ginger, not fresh or crystallized. It's one of those tidbits I have in my "Book of Odd Knowledge" I've accumulated over the years; and may be nothing more than an old wives tale.

I make baked doughnuts and have used this recipe from the Kansas Wheat Commission for over a decade now. I have baked doughnut pans (small and standard-size doughnuts) that I use, but the recipe calls for a muffin pan. -Grainlady

Best Baked Do-Nuts
(Source: Kansas Wheat Commission)

2/3 c. shortening (I use coconut oil or butter)
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 c. milk
3 c. all-purpose flour (I use 100% freshly-milled spelt.)
4-1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Cream fat with sugar. Add eggs and beat well. Combine or sift dry ingredients together. Add alternatively with milk. Fill greased muffin pans 2/3 full. Bake about 15 minutes or until lightly brown. Prepare topping. Dip warm do-nuts in melted butter and roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Yield: 2-dozen medium do-nuts

Topping:
1/3 c. butter or margarine, melted
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon

Here is a link that might be useful: Standard Doughnut Pan - King Arthur Flour

I stumbled across this on another site. They looked interesting.

http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977495021

Ann t those donut look incredible. While I missed someone's birthday a couple of weeks ago this will more than make up for it. Thanks for posting the recipe and gorgeous pictures.

Here is a link that might be useful: TROPICAL TASTE - Malasadas