It’s been a long Lenten season and you are finally ready to put all of your diet restrictions behind you and indulge. What better way to do this than with some Italian Bomboloni donuts. Italians are known for their fried pastries and this little treat is no exception. These little nuggets of perfection made quite a splash in the NY food scene over the past few years with many restaurants creating their own versions. Traditionally bomboloni are filled with an assortment of creams, custards or jams, but many restaurants began to offer the donuts with a variety of dipping sauces served on the side.
Bomboloni are similar to Berliner donuts but with one main difference…many times these donuts will include mashed potatoes in the recipe that adds a very unique tenderness. I wanted to share something decadent with you for Easter morning, so I modified this recipe from my Berliner version that I have made before, and I believe that I like this one much better. These are so moist and tender that it is really hard to pull yourself away from the rest on the tray…so make sure to wear the stretchy pants when indulging with these!
When preparing the potato, make sure to steam them to prevent any unnecessary liquid from being added to the dough. The extra liquid will require more flour and more flour can mean a denser donut, and we don’t want that. So, make sure to add just enough flour to bring it together, but no more than that. Once the potatoes are cool, pass them through a ricer so that they can be well incorporated into the dough. Once the dough is made I allow it to proof once in the bowl and I then roll it out, cut into shapes, proof once more and then fry. Make sure to have all the necessary fillings ready ahead of time. So if you are going to use vanilla pastry cream like I did, make it the day before so once the donuts cool you can fill and enjoy them right away. The dough comes together quickly and is perfect for a breakfast, brunch item and even acceptable as an after dinner dessert. Try them and tell me you didn’t fall in love with the donut all over again…
Bomboloni Donuts
20 grams fresh yeast
125-150 mls of warm milk
3 eggs, room temperature
Zest of 1 lemon
500 grams flour
1 teaspoon salt
300 grams mashed potato
50 grams sugar
50 grams salted butter, softened
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil (for bowl when rising dough)
Remember that your environment will always have an influence on the amount of liquid that you will use in your yeast raised products. So when it comes to adding liquid, it is always better to start conservatively and add more if you need to.
Make sure that you have all of the fillings ready before you begin. The dough comes together quickly and so does the frying of the final product.
Begin by adding the yeast to the bowl of your stand mixer. Heat 125 mls of milk until warm and pour this over the yeast. Use a whisk to dissolve this completely.
Next add all of the flour, mashed potato, zest, eggs, salt and sugar to the bowl and begin mixing the dough with the paddle. Continue mixing until it is all well incorporated. Then, add the softened butter in small pieces until it too is all incorporated.
Remember that we reserved a little milk, so if you feel that the dough is too stiff, add more a little at a time until you have a dough that comes together but is not sticky. You may need to turn this out onto a lightly floured surface to knead for another 5 minutes until it is smooth and not sticky.
Add the oil to a medium stoneware bowl, and use your hand to coat the entire inside of the bowl. Put the ball of dough in the bowl, and swirl around until it is completely coated with a little oil. Cover this with plastic wrap and then again with several tea towels, and allow to rise for approximately 90 minutes.
Once it has proofed the first time, pour the dough out onto your countertop and deflate it by rolling it out to a ½” thickness. Use a 3” cutter to cut out rounds of dough and then place each one on a lightly oiled piece of parchment paper on a half sheet pan.
Cover them gently with plastic wrap and allow them to rest for another 30 minutes before frying…they will puff up a little but they will swell up more when they are in the hot oil.
Make sure your oil is not very hot, or they will get very dark on the outside and stay raw in the center. Try to keep the temperature between 350°-365°F. Fry about 5 or 6 pieces at the same time depending on the size of your pot. Drain on a paper towel lined plate and move to a cooling rack.
Once cooled, cut a slit on one end of the donut and pipe in the custard, then dust with powdered sugar and enjoy!
Leave a Reply