Blackberry season is upon us. I went to the farmers market, spent a small fortune on a huge box of them. Had big plans for making this thick, dark, gorgeous blackberry cordial laced with mint and lime juice. But It seems like fall has really made its presence known as far as my health is concerned. I was down with a cold the past few days. So blackberry cordial NO, fresh, sweet smelling local blackberries eaten straight out of the box YES.
Let's hope this is just my immune system (wanting to get stronger) playing tricks on me and getting ready to dodge all the viruses that might come my way this winter.
When I'm sick I'm always hungry. Weird, I know. I have strange cravings. I'm not talking about a healthy helping of hot soup needed for that oh so essential boost of vitamins and overall comfort of the soul. Oh, no. I'm talking fried dough. Lots of it. Drenched in some sort of luscious syrup or dusted with powdered sugar and cinnamon. And in this case served with a big bowl of blackberries.
But let's keep this short, sweet and addictively delicious. These are the easiest doughnuts ever. They are shortened by olive oil and sweetened by freshly squeezed orange juice. The blackberries are just a bonus.
Olive oil doughnuts
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup table cream
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup olive oil
60 g sugar
90 g icing sugar
475 g self raising flour
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
Combine egg and 60 g of sugar in a large bowl. Add cream, orange juice, olive oil and vanilla. Add flour to make a soft dough. Knead until it all comes together neatly. Divide dough into 10 equal pieces, then form 15 cm cylinders. Pinch ends together to make doughnut shaped rings. Combine icing sugar with cinnamon. Heat oil to 350 F and fry doughnuts until golden (turning once) about 5 to 6 minutes. Cool completely. Coat with cinnamon sugar. Let go of your willpower. They're worth it.
Recipe adapted from GT magazine.