Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Baked Doughnuts

These moist and delicious chocolate chip studded, banana bread doughnuts are dipped in a rich chocolate ganache before being sprinkled with chopped pecans for added crunch. You'll be back for seconds, or even thirds.

Banana bread is one of my favourite, and most baked recipes in the world.  There's nothing better than the rich fug emanating from the kitchen when you've got a banana bread or two in the oven. It's the first thing I recommend for baking novices, and the first thing I think to bake for friends and family. It truly is a staple in my life.  That being said, I've never turned it into doughnuts... until now.

Chocolate chip banana bread baked doughnuts, it just rolls right off the tongue, doesn't it? Well, I can promise you that these little buggers are a much better mouthful than their name.  Just don't try to say it with your mouth full of doughnut, trust me.

I just love baked doughnuts, aren't they just the cutest? All the fun of the fair without the big old hassle of deep frying. Not that I don't like fried doughnuts, they're just more of an event.  I'm an equal opportunities doughnut fan.

You're gonna need a 6 hole doughnut pan for this recipe. If you don't already have one, this is the one I use. I've had it for absolutely years now and it's still going strong.

Still looking for bananary inspiration? Check out my other banana bread recipes here: Double Chocolate Banana Bread / Hazelnut Banana Bread / Banana & Chocolate French Toast / Banana Bread

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Baked Doughnuts

Ingredients:

• 2 medium, very ripe bananas, mashed
• 100g light brown sugar
• 75g unsalted butter, melted
• 150g plain flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 large, free range egg
• 100g chocolate chips
• 200g dark chocolate, chopped
• 400ml double cream
• 50g chopped pecans

Cooking Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 175C and grease the hollows of a doughnut pan.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer mix together the mashed banana, melted butter and egg. Stir through the flour, baking powder and cinnamon until just combined. Stir through the chocolate chips.
3. Pour the batter into a large piping bag and pipe into the prepared doughnut pan, filling each hollow to the top. Bake for 15 minutes before turning out onto a wire cooling rack.
4. To make the chocolate glaze place the chopped chocolate into a bowl and set aside. Heat the double cream to just below boiling point, pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and let sit for a few minutes. Stir the cream and chocolate together until fully melted and glossy.
5. Dip each cooled doughnut into the chocolate glaze and sprinkle with the chopped pecans.

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Churros with Hot Chocolate Dipping Sauce

To me, churros are reminiscent of a good time.  A sunny day, having fun with your friends kind of treat.  I've never been sad with a churro in my hand.

That fist bite of churro is like nothing else.  They may look like squiggly doughnuts but that texture is something else, a crisp sugary shell hiding the silkiest, softest filling.  They're dangerously delicious and ridiculously easy to make, although I have no idea how people manage to make them perfectly straight.  I kinda like the wiggly wormies I managed to fry up.

The hardest part of this whole process is also the most fun.  The squeeze and snip! If you're not confident in doing this all yourself, drag in an accomplice.  You squidge the dough over the hot oil (careful now) while your frying buddy snips the dough to form lovely little crispy delights.  Giggling over the silly shapes you make is entirely optional. 

I highly recommend getting yourself a cooking thermometer for the frying process, it really takes the stress out of heating the oil and ensuring it maintains the correct temperature.  Mine was a grand total of £2.50, treat yourself!

Churros with hot chocolate dipping sauce

Ingredients

• For the churros :
• 50g unsalted butter, melted
• 250g plain flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1ltr sunflower oil for frying


• For the sauce :
• 250g plain chocolate, broken into squares
• 150ml double cream
• 75ml whole milk
• 3tbsp golden syrup
• For the cinnamon sugar :
• 150g caster sugar
• 1tbsp cinnamon

Cooking Directions

1. Start off by making the dough for your churros. Take 350ml of boiling water and add in the melted butter. In a large mixing bowl combine the flour and baking powder before slowly pouring in the water mixture, stir as your pour to make a smooth, lump free batter. Don't be scared to give it a good beating, it can take it. Allow the dough to rest for 15 minutes.
2. While your dough is resting, make the sauce. Take a medium, heavy bottomed saucepan and place all of the sauce ingredients in together. Melt over a low heat until you have a silky smooth sauce. Set aside.
3. Back to the churros. Take a large, heavy bottomed sauce pan or I used a big cast iron casserole pan and fill half way with the sunflower oil. Place your thermometer on the side of the pan with the bottom in the oil and heat to around 375ºF/190ºC. Mix your cinnamon and sugar together and pour onto a large baking tray ready for rolling your churros.

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Doughnuts with Sriracha Glaze

In our house we're a big fan of chilli sauces, our cupboards are heaving with dozens upon dozens of bottles.  Only one brand makes it out of the cupboard and into the counter top collection, you guessed it, sriracha.  We're obsessed, a little too obsessed, we even have the hoisin sauce variety.

It was only a matter of time before I found away to incorporate sriracha into my baking.  After contemplating a few different ideas I finally settled on doughnuts.  I mean, what doesn't go well in a doughnut?!  

What can I say about these babies, these little doughnuts don't half pack a punch.  We all know peanut butter and chocolate are a match made in heaven, but once you add a spicy element into the mix then you're really onto something special.  I know they might sound a little out there but once you try them you'll never look back!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Doughnuts with Sriracha Glaze

Makes 24 mini doughnuts

Ingredients:

150g plain flour

50g cocoa powder

1/2tsp baking powder

100g light brown sugar

120ml buttermilk

1 large free range egg

50g butter, melted

Peanut butter glaze:

125g chocolate flavoured peanut butter

175g icing sugar

4tbsp whole milk

Sriracha drizzle:

4tbsp sriracha hot sauce

100g icing sugar

Method:

Preheat the oven to 170C and grease the hollows in two mini doughnut pans (spray release is awesome for this).  Set aside.

In a large bowl mix together the dry doughnut ingredients, in another bowl stir together the wet ingredients.  Pour the wet over the dry and fold together until combined, making sure there's no lumps of flour.  Fill each hollow until around 2/3 full, I like to do this with a disposable piping bag filled with the batter.  Bake the doughnuts for 10 minutes until springy to the tough.  Allow to cool for five minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack.  

Once the doughnuts are cooled make the glaze.  In a bowl above a pan of simmering water melt the peanut butter together with the icing sugar.  Stir through the milk one tablespoon at a time until you reach a good dipping consistency.  

For the sriracha drizzle stir the hot sauce and the icing sugar together, if it's a little too thick add a teaspoon of milk.  

Dip each doughnut in the peanut butter glaze and place on a cooling rack till the excess drips off.  Fill a disposable piping bag with the sriracha drizzle and pipe it over the glazed doughnuts.  Let the glazes set for ten minutes and enjoy.

Shared with Fabulous Foodie Fridays

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Maple Bacon Doughnuts

I bloody love doughnuts, to be honest who doesn't?!  These little sweet rings of delight are the treat I always fall back on.  Sad, drown your sorrows in a  doughnut.  Happy, celebrate with a doughnut. Hungover, eat your weight in doughnuts.  There is nothing in my life that can't be improved upon with the addition of doughnuts.  

With all of this in mind, I must admit that I have never actually made a doughnut in my life.  I needed something epic to break my doughy virginity, something truly awesome.  I think these maple bacon doughnuts hit the nail on the head perfectly!

The sweet, smokey maple syrup paired with the salty bacon made the perfect accompaniment to my favorite snack.  I have to admit, owning a deep fryer makes this process a whole lot easier but you can always use a big old heavy pan if you aren't as into kitchen gadgetry as me.  I treated myself to this little bugger a few month ago and have been resisting the urge to deep fry everything since.

You will need:

For the doughnuts:

200ml full fat milk, lukewarm

3tsp dried active yeast
1tsp caster sugar

50g light brown sugar

325g plain flour

3tbsp vegetable fat

1tbsp maple syrup

1/tsp salt

1 large egg
Vegetable oil for frying

For the glaze:

250g icing sugar

60ml pure maple syrup

8 rashers of streaky bacon

50g brown sugar

In a large glass jug mix the warmed milk, caster sugar and dried yeast together.  Leave for around 5 minutes till the mixture begins to look frothy.

In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the remaining doughnut ingredients and mix together on a low speed.  Slowly add the yeast mixture to the bowl and continue mixing until the dough forms.

Coat the inside of a large mixing bowl with vegetable oil and place the dough inside, cover with an oiled sheet of cling film and allow to prove until doubled in size.  This should take around 30-40 minutes.

While your dough is rising, cook your bacon.   Lay the rashers of baking on a prepared baking tray, sprinkle each side of the bacon with the brown sugar and grill until crispy.  Set aside and once cool chop into shards.

Once your dough has risen line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper and set aside.  Lightly flour your work surface and roll out the dough to 1/2 and inch thick.  Using a round cutter (you can choose to make your doughnuts as large or small as you please) cut out rounds and transfer to the prepared baking sheet.  Take a piping nozzle or a small round cutter and cut small circles out of the center of your doughnuts. Re-roll out your remaining dough until you've cut out as many doughnuts as possible, you should get around 10 - 12.

Allow to rise again on the baking sheet for 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, heat your oil in a deep fat fryer or in a large heavy bottomed pan until it reaches 175°C, use a candy thermometer for best results. (I use this one)

Fry the doughnuts for 2 minutes on each side, ensuring not to over crowd the pan.  Remove and allow to cool on a tray lined with kitchen roll.  Continue until all your doughnuts are cooked. 

To make the glaze simply mix the maple syrup and icing sugar together in a bowl.  If it's too thick add a little water until it reaches your desired consistency.  Dip the doughnuts in the glaze and sprinkle with shards of bacon. 

Enjoy your epic doughnut!

 

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