University Eats

My parents have been bothering me to visit them for a few weeks now. It’s only been a month since I came back to Bloomington from spending two weeks with them over Christmas break, but what can I say – they’re very demanding.

So I decided last weekend, with its expected snowfall of blizzard proportions, would be the perfect time to ensconce myself in the idyllic confines of rural Hendricks County.
 
I lit out of town on Thursday evening, and it turns out I made the right choice. Snow started in the early hours on Friday and didn’t let up until nearly a day later. By the time it was over, six inches of snow blanketed my neighborhood, and temperatures had dropped into the mid-20s. 

Hot breakfasts are the perfect antidote to that kind of chilling cold. Although I like to cook, and I cook a lot, I’m usually too busy in the morning to do more than pour myself a bowl of cold cereal or grab a small cereal bar. Also, my stomach starts to get sore if I don’t eat right when I wake up, which leaves little time for whipping up something fancy.

This isn’t a problem at home, though. Parents, as you all probably know, tend to go to sleep at ridiculously early hours and wake up just as ridiculously early. This usually awakens me earlier than I’d like to be, but it also means there’s going to be something warm, greasy and filling waiting for me in the kitchen.

And last Saturday, that something was homemade fried doughnuts. 

Fried doughnuts are easy to make. All you really need is dough, plenty of oil and something to fry in. My dad has a fancy deep fryer that he insists on pulling out every time I come to visit, but a tall heavy skillet works just as well as long as it can maintain a constant temperature.  

From-scratch fried doughnuts

2 packages of instant yeast
1/4 c. warm water
5 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c. warm milk
1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1/3 c. shortening
1 qt. canola or other frying oil

First, activate the yeast by sprinkling it over the warm water and letting it sit for 5 minutes. Then, mix the yeasty water, milk, sugar, salt, eggs and shortening and about 2 cups of flour.

After that’s well blended, beat the rest of the flour in a little at a time to keep it from clumping. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover and let it rise until it’s doubled in size. After the dough has risen, cut it into half-inch balls or other shapes and let those rise until they’ve doubled again.

Get the oil in your deep fryer or skillet going at 350 degrees (use a candy thermometer to test) and drop the dough shapes in a few at a time. They should rise as they fry and turn golden brown when they’re done. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar or ice as desired.