Chocolate filled doughnuts

This is what chocolate dreams are made of: doughnuts filled with a coffee-infused chocolate ganache, and covered with a delicious butter-sugar-cinnamon coating.

Credit: The Chocolate Queen

• makes

  12

• prep

  1 hour

• cook

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

Chocolate coffee ganache

• 330 ml fresh cream 35% fat
• pinch of sea salt
• 4 tbsp roasted coffee beans
• 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 420 g good quality milk couverture chocolate 33%            

Doughnuts

• 115 g baker’s flour (A)
• 50 g caster sugar
• 2 tsp instant yeast
• ¼ tsp salt
• 175 ml milk, warmed to 40˚C
• 40 g unsalted butter, melted
• 2 egg yolks
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 200 g baker’s flour (B)
• plain flour, for dusting

To finish

• 130 g caster sugar
• pinch ground cinnamon
• 60 g unsalted butter

Cooling time: 4 hours. (The doughnut dough is made, risen and shaped during this time.)

Instructions

1. For the filling: Place the cream and salt into a saucepan and bring to the boil.
2. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the coffee beans. Cover the saucepan with plastic wrap or the lid and allow the cream to infuse for 10 minutes.
3. Strain the cream through a sieve into a saucepan, add in the vanilla bean paste and bring to the boil.
4. Once boiling, remove from the heat and pour over the bowl of milk chocolate. Whisk until the chocolate has completely melted and incorporated into the cream mixture.
5. Cover with plastic wrap touching the surface of the ganache. Allow to cool at room temperature for 4 hours before transferring into a piping bag fitted with a 10mm plain piping tube.
6. For the doughnuts: to create the starter dough, place the flour (A), sugar, yeast and salt into a bowl and whisk to combine.
7. Add the warm milk, melted butter, egg yolks and vanilla to the bowl and whisk vigorously to combine.
8. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for 20 minutes, until bubbles begin to form on the surface.
9. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a hook attachment, add the starter dough and flour (B). Mix on medium speed for 10 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as required. Alternatively, you can knead the dough by hand.
10. Once the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl and looks shiny, remove from the mixer, roll into a smooth ball and place it back into the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a warm tea towel. Set aside at room temperature for 1 ½ hours, until the dough has doubled in size. Heat the oven to 180˚C, fan forced and line a baking tray with baking paper. Lightly dust the workbench before turning the dough out and rolling to 12mm in thickness.
11. Use a round cutter, 60mm in diameter, to cut the dough. Gather any scraps of dough and place them into the refrigerator for 20 minutes before re-rolling. Place the cut dough onto the prepared baking tray, cover with a tea towel and set aside at room temperature for 45 minutes. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 10-12 minutes, until lightly golden on top.
12. Prepare the butter and sugar coating while the doughnuts are in the oven. Melt the butter and set aside to cool. In a bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon.
13. Allow the doughnuts to cool completely. Using the prepared piping bag of ganache, pierce the sides of the doughnuts and fill with ganache. Brush the doughnuts with melted butter and roll them in the sugar.

Note

• The doughnuts are best served fresh.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.