Chestnut Sufganiyot 栗子猶太甜甜圈
Hanukkah is one of my favorite Jewish holidays- because my husband have been giving me eight gifts every year for Hanukkah since we met. And I have been obsessed with Hanukkah ever since the first year. I mean, who wouldn’t fall for receiving gifts for eight days straight? Let’s be real here.
I am a dessert person. Chestnut type of desserts is some of my winter obsessions. So it was only a matter of time before I developed a recipe or two using chestnut- oh wait I already have some of them, check out my hojicha chestnut cheesecake! This year’s sufganiyot is a new member of the chestnut recipe family- I
filled the fried donuts with freshly made chestnut cream. Sprinkled wih powdered brown sugar. Every bite is a delight- literally.
Chestnut Sufganiyot 栗子猶太甜甜圈
Yield 12-15
Ingredients
Whole milk, 120g at 110-115F
Yeast, 4g
Sugar, 10g+20g
Egg, ½, about 25g
Vanilla extract, 6g
All purpose flour, 260g-280g
Salt, 2g
Unsalted butter, 30g, at room temperature
Canola oil for frying
Pastry cream ingredients
Chestnuts, 165g, cooked and peeled
Water, 54g
Light brown sugar, 105g
Heavy cream 180g
Vanilla extract 5g
Powdered sugar, 45g
Instructions
Activate the yeast in milk with 10g of the sugar. Once bubbly and the yeast is activated, add in the egg, vanilla extract, and the rest of the sugar, mix a little bit.
Combine the flour and salt, add the mixture into the wet ingredients. Mix until all ingredients come together into a dough, add in the room temperature butter. Knead until smooth and not sticky. And preferably pass the windowpane test. Transfer the dough into an oiled container, cover and let it rise until it’s doubled in volume.
While the dough is resting, make the chestnut puree- Melt the sugar in water in a small saucepan. In a small food processor, puree the chestnut with the sugar water. Once it’s smooth, transfer the puree to a bowl, cover and set aside. The puree might seem wet when it’s hot. It will solidify once cooled.
Cut parchment paper into 3”- 4” squares. Once ready, roll the dough out into to about ½” thick and use a 2” round cookie cutter to cut out about 12 rounds and place them on the square parchment paper. Cover and rise for another 30 minutes or until it’s almost doubled in volume again.
Line a large plate with some paper towels. Heat enough oil in a heavy bottom pot to reach 340-360F. In batches, carefully place 3-4 dough into the pot with the parchment paper, flip once and fry until golden brown. Make sure to check the temperature periodically, if the oil becomes too hot, the dough will brown too fast and the center will be raw. Bring the temperature back to 340-360F before starting the next batch.
Place the donuts on the lined plate. Let them cool.
While the donut is cooling, make the whipped cream- whip the heavy cream until medium peak. Add in the vanilla extract and continue to whip until stiff peak. Fold in the cooled chestnut puree.
When the donut is cooled. Use a piping tip to open a hole on the side of the donut. Transfer the whipped cream into a piping bag with the piping tip. Pipe the cream into the donut through the holes. Repeat for the rest of the batch. Sprinkle on some powdered sugar. These are best enjoyed fresh or on the same day.
