Apple Cider Spudnuts

Peel potatoes and cut them into small pieces, then place into a pot of lightly salted water and boil for 15 to 20 minutes until fork tender. Drain potatoes and then put them back into the pot allow them to sit and steam for about 5 -10 minutes. Then add milk and butter, and with a hand held electric mixer beat until all lumps are gone and you have fluffy mashed potatoes. Set potatoes aside.

Place warm cider in a small mixing bowl and add yeast, cover bowl with a clean cloth and set in a warm place to allow the yeast to bloom.

In a sauce pan over medium heat scald the milk (heat it until right before boiling) then remove from the heat and add the shortening. Whisk until the shortening is completely melted and incorporated into the milk. Pour into the bowl of your stand mixer. To the milk mixture add sugar, salt, and 2 cups of flour, blend with the wire whisk attachment until you have a thin batter.

Peel and finely shred the apples, discarding the core. Place the shredded apple in a bowl and toss with the 3 Tablespoons of granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice. Add the apple mixture into the batter and blend until incorporated.

In a small bowl whisk the eggs. Once they are beaten fold in the yeast mixture, the lemon extract, and the mashed potatoes, then pour this mixture into the batter and blend well.

Change your whisk attachment out for the dough hook and slowly add the remaining flour as you blend the dough. Depending on altitude and humidity you may need to add more or less flour. I live at about 5,000 feet above sea level in a very dry climate and I ended up using about 7 cups of flour at this point in the recipe. Add enough to make a soft dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl – when you mix, it will be slightly sticky.

Lightly mist a large bowl with cooking spray and place the dough into it, cover with a lid or a clean cloth or plastic wrap. Place in a warm area and allow to rise until doubled. Punch down dough and cover it again and allow it to rise until doubled a second time.

After the second rise, punch down the dough and then turn it out onto a floured surface. Gently roll it out until about 1/2 inch thick. Cut out your donut shapes, place them on lightly floured cookie sheets, cover with a clean cloth, place somewhere warm and allow to rise again until at least doubled in size.

In a large stock pot or fryer, heat your oil to 375F. Place a section of newspaper on your counter and cover it in paper towels.

Carefully add 2 or 3 donuts into the hot oil and all to fry for about 30 seconds on each side or until they are golden brown. You can use a chopstick or the end of a wooden spoon handle to flip them over and remove them from the oil. Place donuts on the paper towels to drain. Continue until all donuts and holes are fried. Clean the cookie sheets off and place the donuts on them.

In a clean bowl mix the powdered sugar, cider, and cinnamon until you get a nice even glaze. Dip the top half of the donuts in the glaze and place them back on the cookie sheets and allow the glaze to set.

Serve immediately. They can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. To freshen older spudnuts just place them on a paper towel and microwave them for about 7 or 8 seconds before eating.

Tips and tricks:
– You can substitute 1 cup of instant mashed potatoes if you want, just make sure to add about an extra Tablespoon of butter when you prepare them.
– Strongly flavored apples work best in this recipe. I tend to like tart old fashioned varieties like Jonathan, Cortland, Winesap, or Granny Smith.
– Keeping the mashed potatoes warm until they are added will help make the spudnuts fluffy. I don’t know why this works but it does.
– If your house is like mine (cold and very dry) and yeast products don’t seem to want to rise, try this: Fill your dryer a little more than half full of towels, run it on high for 5 minutes and then turn it off, place your bowl of dough on top of the towels in the dryer and allow the dough to rise in there. I learned this from my friend Patience and it has worked really well. I even added my sweater drying rack to the dryer and could put 2 cookies sheets on it, side by side.