1
In medium bowl, beat eggs, granulated sugar, buttermilk, 3 tablespoons butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla with whisk until blended. Stir in cocoa. Stir in all remaining doughnut ingredients except oil just until moistened. Grease another medium bowl with shortening. Place dough in bowl, turning dough to grease all sides. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; refrigerate 1 hour.

2
Place dough on generously floured surface. Roll dough in flour to coat. With floured rolling pin, roll dough to
3
⁄
8
-inch thickness. Cut with floured 3-inch cookie cutter.

3
Line 2 cookie sheets with cooking parchment paper. Place dough rounds on cookie sheets about 1 inch apart. Cut out centers using floured 1-inch cookie cutter. Reroll scraps to cut additional doughnuts. Cover cookie sheets loosely with towels; let stand at room temperature while heating oil.

4
In 4-quart Dutch oven or heavy 3-quart saucepan, heat 2 inches oil to 375°F. Place cooling rack on cookie sheet. Fry doughnuts in oil, 3 or 4 at a time, about 2 minutes, turning over every 30 seconds, until deep brown and puffed (do not undercook or centers will be raw). Remove from oil with slotted spoon to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 20 minutes.

5
In 1½-quart microwavable bowl, microwave ¼ cup butter, the milk, corn syrup and
1
⁄
8
teaspoon cinnamon on High 45 seconds or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in chocolate chips. Microwave an additional 30 seconds; carefully stir until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth (stirring too quickly can cause air bubbles in glaze). Stir in 1 cup powdered sugar and the vanilla until smooth. Stir in additional powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until consistency of thick syrup. Dip top of each doughnut into glaze; let excess drip off. Place doughnuts on cooling rack, allowing excess glaze to drip onto cookie sheet. Let stand until glaze is set, about 30 minutes.

1 Doughnut:
Calories 290 (Calories from Fat 130); Total Fat 14g (Saturated Fat 6g; Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 55mg; Sodium 220mg; Total Carbohydrate 36g (Dietary Fiber 2g); Protein 4g
Exchanges:
1½ Starch, 1 Other Carbohydrate, 2½ Fat
Carbohydrate Choices:
2½

bake smart
For the best results, maintain the temperature of the oil. Heat the oil back to 375°F before cooking each new batch of doughnuts. Also, turning the doughnuts frequently helps ensure that they cook thoroughly.

Aztec Chocolate Doughnuts

applesauce doughnuts

prep time:
40 minutes
·
start to finish:
1 hour 40 minutes
·
18 doughnuts

3
1
⁄
3
cups all-purpose flour
1
cup applesauce
¾
cup sugar
2
tablespoons shortening
3
teaspoons baking powder
1
teaspoon ground cinnamon
½
teaspoon salt
2
eggs
Vegetable oil
Cinnamon-sugar mixture, if desired

1
Beat 1
1
⁄
3
cups of the flour and all remaining ingredients except oil and cinnamon-sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on low speed, scraping bowl constantly, until blended. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in remaining 2 cups flour. Cover and refrigerate about 1 hour or until dough stiffens.

2
In deep fryer or 3-quart saucepan, heat 2 to 3 inches oil to 375°F. Divide dough in half. Place half of dough on well-floured cloth-covered surface; gently roll in flour to coat. Gently roll dough to
3
⁄
8
-inch thickness. Cut with floured doughnut cutter. Repeat with remaining dough.

3
Fry doughnuts in oil, 2 or 3 at a time, sliding in with a wide spatula and turning as they rise to surface. Fry 1 to 1½ minutes on each side or until golden brown. Remove from oil with slotted spoon; drain on paper towels. Sprinkle hot doughnuts with cinnamon-sugar.

1 Doughnut:
Calories 230 (Calories from Fat 100); Total Fat 11g (Saturated Fat 2g; Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 20mg; Sodium 150mg; Total Carbohydrate 29g (Dietary Fiber 1g); Protein 3g
Exchanges:
1 Starch, 1 Other Carbohydrate, 2 Fat
Carbohydrate Choices:
2

bake smart
The key to perfect doughnuts is maintaining the oil temperature at 375°F. Use a deep-frying thermometer for best results.

Do you like your doughnuts completely coated? Place the cinnamon-sugar in a plastic or paper bag, and shake one or two doughnuts at a time in the mixture until coated.

Applesauce Dougnuts

lemon-filled doughnuts

prep time:
1 hour 30 minutes
·
start to finish:
4 hours
·
32 doughnuts

doughnuts
1
cup warm milk (105°F to 115°F)
2
packages fast-acting dry yeast (4½ teaspoons)
4½
to 5 cups all-purpose flour
½
cup granulated sugar
1
teaspoon salt
3
eggs
1
⁄
3
cup butter, softened
Vegetable oil
filling
2
jars (10 oz each) lemon curd
topping
1½
teaspoons powdered sugar

1
Pour warm milk into large bowl; stir in yeast until dissolved. Add 2 cups of the flour, the granulated sugar, salt, and eggs; mix with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping bowl occasionally. On medium speed, beat 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Add butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in enough remaining flour, ½ cup at a time, to form a soft dough.

2
Place dough on lightly floured surface. Knead dough 2 minutes or until dough is smooth and springy. Grease large bowl with butter. Place dough in bowl, turning dough to grease all sides. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; let rise in warm place about 1 hour 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

3
Sprinkle 2 cookie sheets with flour; set aside. Place dough on generously floured surface. Roll dough in flour to coat. With floured rolling pin, roll dough into 16×8-inch rectangle. Using sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut dough into 8 rows by 4 rows, forming 32 squares (pieces may be slightly uneven in shape, especially corners, since dough stretches when cut). On lightly floured surface, dust both sides of each piece with flour; place on cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Loosely cover doughnuts with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray; let rise in warm place 30 to 40 minutes or until slightly risen.

4
In 4-quart Dutch oven or heavy 3-quart saucepan, heat 2 inches oil to 325°F over medium heat. Cover cooling rack with paper towels. Fry doughnuts in oil, 4 or 5 at a time, about 1 minute per side, until golden brown on both sides. Remove from oil with slotted spoon to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

5
Fill decorating bag fitted with writing tip (¼-inch opening) with lemon curd. To fill each doughnut, while holding doughnut in hand, insert tip into side of doughnut. Slowly squeeze about 1 tablespoon lemon curd into center until you feel the doughnut plump up, moving tip from one side to the other to completely fill doughnut. Sprinkle filled doughnuts with powdered sugar.

1 Doughnut:
Calories 200 (Calories from Fat 70); Total Fat 8g (Saturated Fat 2.5g; Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 40mg; Sodium 105mg; Total Carbohydrate 28g (Dietary Fiber 0g); Protein 3g
Exchanges:
1 Starch, 1 Other Carbohydrate, 1½ Fat
Carbohydrate Choices:
2

bake smart
You can make the dough the night before. Instead of letting it rise in a warm place for the first rise, place the covered bowl in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours. Then continue as directed in the recipe.

Try to keep the oil temperature as constant as possible. Too cool, and the doughnuts will absorb more oil and take longer to cook. Too hot, and the doughnuts will get done on the outside too quickly, leaving the centers still doughy. It will take about 20 minutes to heat the oil to 325°F.

These doughnuts can be filled with a variety of fillings. Try lime curd or any flavor of jelly.