Pampukhy z Povydlom (пампухи з повидлом, jam doughnuts)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A large mixing bowl or stand mixer
• •A rolling pin and 7cm round cutter or drinking glass
• •A wide heavy pot for frying
• •A slotted spoon or spider
• •A piping bag with a small plain nozzle

Instructions

1. 1

   Wake the yeast

   Stir the yeast and a spoonful of the sugar into the warm milk and leave it until the surface looks foamy and alive. If it sits flat and sulky, start again with fresher yeast. Doughnuts are generous, but dead yeast is dead yeast.

2. 2

   Mix the dough

   Put the flour, remaining sugar, salt, and lemon zest in a large bowl. Add the foamy milk, yolks, whole egg, vodka or rum, and the spoon of oil, then mix until a rough dough forms. Work in the butter last, a little at a time, until the dough turns soft and slightly glossy.

3. 3

   Knead until supple

   Knead by hand or mixer until the dough smooths out and pulls away from the bowl in long elastic strands. It should feel tender, warm, and alive under your palms, not stiff like bread dough. If it clings badly, dust with flour by the pinch, not the handful.

   The alcohol is not there for flavour first. It helps the dough take up less oil, an old kitchen trick, and the heat cooks it off.
4. 4

   Let it rise

   Cover the bowl and leave the dough somewhere warm until it has grown light and doubled. Press it gently with a floured finger; if the dent slowly fills back, it is ready. Watch the dough, not the clock. A cold kitchen is allowed to be slow.

5. 5

   Shape the rounds

   Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll it to about 1.5cm thick. Cut rounds with a glass or cutter, then cover them with a cloth and let them puff until they look soft at the edges. Scraps can be pressed together once, but don't bully them or they'll fry tough.

6. 6

   Fry until gold

   Heat the oil in a wide heavy pot until a scrap of dough rises with small eager bubbles around it. Fry a few rounds at a time, giving them space, and turn when the underside is deep golden. Listen for a steady lively hiss. If the oil roars, lower the heat; if it goes quiet, wait for it to recover.

7. 7

   Drain and sugar

   Lift the pampukhy onto a rack or paper-lined tray and let the oil drip away. While they are still warm, roll them in caster sugar or dust them with icing sugar. They should feel light in the hand, with a thin golden skin and a soft middle.

8. 8

   Fill with povydlo

   Spoon the thick povydlo or rose jam into a piping bag fitted with a small plain nozzle. Push into the pale side of each doughnut and fill until you feel the doughnut grow a little heavier in your hand. Stop before the jam tries to announce itself out the other side. Eat one while standing. Quality control is holy work.

Chef Tips

• •Povydlo is plum butter cooked down until dark, tart, and thick. If your jam slides off a spoon like syrup, simmer it down first or it will leak into the oil.
• •For a leaner Sviat Vechir version, use water instead of milk, skip the egg and butter, and add two extra tablespoons of sunflower oil. It is a bit older in spirit, less plush but still festive.
• •Fry in a heavy pot and keep the oil steady. Too hot gives you brown outsides and raw middles; too cool makes the dough drink oil.
• •Fill after frying if you're nervous. Some cooks sandwich the jam between two dough rounds before frying, but post-fry filling forgives more and keeps the oil cleaner.
• •These are best the day they are made. Leftovers revive with a few minutes in a warm oven, then a fresh snowfall of sugar.

Advance Preparation

• •The dough can rise slowly in the fridge overnight after kneading. Bring it back toward room temperature before rolling, until it feels soft and workable.
• •Povydlo can be cooked down several days ahead and chilled. Use it cold or cool so it stays thick inside the pampukhy.
• •Fry close to serving if you can. Christmas tables forgive many things, but a fresh doughnut has its own argument.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 75g)