Bake Off Bake Along: Week 2 - Iced Biscuits

Another week has flown by, with this week in the tent of dreams seeing the contestants try their hand at biscuits. Not my most favourite week, its pretty much the same each year. Challenge one being something iced, challenge two being something fiddly and the final challenge always being a 3d sculpture.

I don't have the nerve to make eleventy hundred pieces and make a sculpture so it was a choice between Viennese whirls and iced biscuits. In the spirit of challenge, I don't really rate myself as being the most patient when it comes to decorate so I opted to make these doughnut iced biscuits.

No intricate designs here I'm afraid, but you've seen make jaffa cakes, I can't really ice within the lines so I'm surprised these turned out so tidy! Almond sugar biscuits topped with either plain or chocolate icing and plenty of doughnut sprinkles.

I C E D   D O U G H N U T   B I S C U I T S
(Makes 2 dozen biscuits)

170g unsalted butter, softened

170g white caster sugar

1tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

1 egg

2tsp baking powder

500g plain flour

For the icing:

225g icing sugar

few drops of chosen flavouring/colouring

2-3tbsp boiling water

sprinkles to decorate

• Heat the oven to 180 degrees and line two cookie sheets with baking parchment.
• Beat together the butter and sugar on a medium heat until pale and fluffy.
• Add the egg and the extracts and continue to beat on a low speed until well combined.
• Sift the flour and baking powder into a large separate bowl. Add slowly to the wet mix whilst continuing to beat on a medium speed until well incorporated and the dough forms one ball around the beater attachment.
• Flour a work surface and roll out the dough to a quarter inch thickness. Use round cutters to cut the doughnut shapes and a drink lid to cut out the centre of the doughnut hole.
• Place evenly spaced on the prepared cookie trays and bake for 6-8 minutes until they just start to turn golden. Leave to cool for 5 minutes before transferring onto a wire rack to cool fully.
• To make the icing, sieve the icing sugar into a bowl. Add one tablespoon of water and begin to stir, add a few more drops as necessary until the icing mixture is smooth but thick enough to decorate the biscuits. If you want other flavours or colours, divide the icing mixture into smaller individual bowls for each flavour or colour. To make chocolate icing, from the 225g icing sugar, substitute 2tsp for cocoa powder.
• Once the biscuits are fully cooled, pour the icing into individual piping bags to frost them. Sprinkle with toppings and leave to fully set before serving.

F O L L O W   M Y   B A K E   O F F   B A K E   A L O N G...

     

Week 1 - Jaffa Cakes
Week 2 - Iced Doughnut Biscuits
Week 3 - Chocolate Twist Babka
Week 4 - Giant Churros
Week 5 - Cherry Bakewell Tart
Week 6 - Brownie Bottomed Coffee Mousse Cake
Week 8 - Cherry, Marzipan and Cherry Cake

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Cinnamon Bun Doughnuts

After running a Twitter poll, the Internet told me that I should either bake cinnamon buns or doughnuts on the weekend. Not am I always only going to make all important decisions via Twitter polls from this point forward, it's also reassuring to see that, like me, many people can't choose between the two. They both had pretty much the same number of votes.

I mean, cinnamon buns or doughnuts? How can you possibly choose between the two?

And so, like many other fully fledged adults, I chose the sensible, responsible answer. That answer being trying my very hardest to combine the two. Life is about balance and compromise afterall.

Without further ado, I present to you...cinnamon bun doughnuts.

Soft cinnamon baked doughnuts covered in a cinnamon glaze, cinnamon crumbs and maple vanilla drizzle.

Whilst cinnamon buns are still pretty fancy, I'm kind of sold on the idea that you can make baked doughnuts in under 30 minutes. No folding and overnight proving required here.

C I N N A M O N   B U N   D O U G H N U T S
(Makes 6 regular or 12 mini doughnuts)

Cinnamon doughnuts:

175g plain flour

2tbsp corn flour

1tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

75g caster sugar

1tsp ground cinnamon

80ml buttermilk

1 egg

1tbsp butter, melted

Cinnamon crumbs:

1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1tbsp unsalted butter, softened

Cinnamon icing:

240g icing sugar

2tbsp milk

1tsp cinnamon

Maple vanilla icing:

240g icing sugar

1 1/2 tbsp maple syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Heat the oven to 180 degrees and thoroughly grease a doughnut pan.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl to remove any lumps. Set aside.
3. In another, smaller bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg and melted butter until bubbly.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk together until smooth.
5. Pour the batter into a piping bag, snip off the end and fill the doughnut pan, about two thirds full.
6. Bake in the oven for 7-9 minutes, until the doughnuts have puffed up and start to turn golden.
7. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the pan for 2 minutes for the doughnuts to firm up. Then tip onto a wire rack to cool fully.
8. To make the cinnamon crumbs, combine the ingredients and rub between your fingers until the mix comes together into a breadcrumb type form.
9. For the cinnamon icing, sift the icing sugar and cinnamon into a bowl before whisking in the milk.
10. For the maple vanilla icing, again, sift the icing sugar into a bowl before whisking in the maple syrup and vanilla. Pour into a piping bag ready for drizzling.

To assemble:

Dip the cooled doughnuts into the cinnamon icing and sprinkle over cinnamon crumbs to stick. Leave for 15 minutes for the icing to set before finishing with a good drizzle of the maple vanilla icing. 

These doughnuts are best served fresh, but at a push can be made the day before and assembled on the day needed.

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Recipe: Mini Cinnamon Doughnuts with Brown Butter Drizzle

I'm late to the brown(ed) butter party, I know. But either way, here's my offering. Baked doughnuts, rolled in cinnamon sugar and topped with a drizzle of browned butter glaze. These doughnuts took me an hour to make from start to finish, which is a feat in itself. With minimal mess and effort, these mini guys are great if you're short of time.

And if you haven't tried browned butter before now, its essentially burnt melted butter...sounds appetising? No, didn't think so. But when you call it beurre noisette it sounds heaps better! In recipes it lends a rich, nutty depth and smells incredible.

Cinnamon sugar doughnuts
(Recipe adapted from Lakeland, makes 6 mini doughnuts)

75g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
55g caster sugar
60ml milk
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp olive oil (you could substitute this with 10g browned butter instead)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Cinnamon sugar coat:

60g unsalted butter, melted
60g soft brown sugar / golden caster sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Browned butter glaze:

250g icing sugar, sifted
pinch of salt
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
3-4 tbsp milk

Heat the oven to 160 degrees and lightly brush a doughnut pan with oil. If you don't have a doughnut pan you could use a small cupcake tray or similar instead.

Add the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon to a large mixing bowl and gently whisk. (This does the same job as a sieve, but much easier). Add the sugar and stir together.

In a separate bowl or jug, whisk together the milk, egg, oil and vanilla.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.

Using either a teaspoon or a piping bag, fill each doughnut hole 3/4 full with the batter. Bake in the oven for 8 - 10 minutes, until firm and springy to touch.

Prepare the cinnamon sugar coat whilst the doughnuts are baking. Put the melted butter in one bowl, and the sugar and cinnamon mixed together in another. When the doughnuts are slightly cooled from the oven (this should take only a few minutes as they're so small), gently dunk each doughnut into the butter before rolling in the sugar mix. Place on a plate and leave to cool.

For the glaze, start by making the browned butter (notes below). Use a pan with a light colour bottom to monitor the colour of the browning butter easier. Place on a low heat and leave to melt, stirring occasionally. The butter will foam up and start to brown. Continue to watch and stir (occasionally) as the butter turns from a lemony-yellow colour, to a golden tan and then toast colour. This should only take a few minutes for this small amount. Remove from the heat and pour into a heatproof bowl to cool slightly.

Sift the icing sugar into a bowl and add the salt. Continue to add the wet ingredients and whisk together. Start with 2 tablespoons of milk and add more as necessary to get a smooth, glossy glaze.

Use a piping bag or spoon to drizzle over the cooled doughnuts.

N.B. Browned butter is the result of the butterfat and milk solids separating when melting. The milk solids will sink to the bottom and start to brown first. These dregs are perfectly fine to use in recipes, providing you don't burn them. However, I drained them for this glaze as it would look a little unsightly. But, in a cookie dough, for example, they would be completely fine.