Doughnut Muffins

I found a few recipes for doughnut muffins recently and I decided to try one. They are called doughnut muffins because they are made with the same basic dough as doughnuts (at least, a similar recipe to that traditional doughnuts in Baking Illustrated), but they are baked in muffins tins rather than fried. Once baked, doughnut muffins are usually dipped in melted butter and rolled in sugar. Orangette has a recipe where they are dipped in powdered sugar, but the one that looks the most appealing to me is the Baking Bites version, with granulated sugar, which I must say is more my idea of an appetizing donut. However, I skipped this step and decided to simply dust mine with powdered sugar. How you do it is up to you.

The recipe for this dough is a slightly modified version of Molly Wizenberg’s (if you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time, you’ll know her as the author of Orangette and A Homemade Life). I loved these muffins when they were still a little warm from the oven; the top was crispy and the crumb was delightfully chewy. Remember to check on them after 25 minutes in the oven; I checked on mine at about 30 minutes and they were already a bit dry. They were delicious on their own, paired with strawberry jam or served with apple juice.

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 ½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
scant 1 tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground nutmeg
¾ cup plus 1 Tbsp milk (lactose-free or not)
2 Tbsp buttermilk (or milk with a dash of lemon juice)
1 ½ sticks (6 oz) unsalted butter at room temperature (or cold margarine)
¾ cup plus 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
2 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 °F, and set a rack to the middle position. Spray a standard-size muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg, and whisk to mix them thoroughly. Set aside.

Combine the milk and the buttermilk in a measuring cup, and set aside.

Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for a few seconds, until the butter is soft and creamy. With the motor running, add the sugar in a steady stream. Continue beating, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice, until the mixture increases in volume and lightens to pale yellow. It should look light, fluffy, and wonderfully creamy, like frosting. This could take a couple of minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until they are just combined.



With a wooden spoon, mix ¼ of the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Add 1/3 of the milk mixture. Continue to add the dry and wet ingredients alternately, ending with the dry. Mix until the dough is smooth and well combined, but do not overmix.



Divide the batter between the cups of the muffin tin. Bake until the muffins are firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes.