Leonard's Malasadas

These are sugary donuts with no hole. The WARM chocholate filled ones were hands-down the best thing I have ever eaten in my life!!!!!!!!!! (They are far superior to Krispy Kreme, which I dearly love.)

I saw this place on Food Network and made a point to go there while in Hawaii. It was to die for! Although the chocolate ones were best, I only have the recipe for the plain ones which were also delicious. Don't worry, figuring out how to make the chocolate ones is on my adgenda and it's pretty high up on the list!

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons dry active yeast

1/4 cup warm water

1 tablespoon sugar plus 1/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 eggs, well beaten

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Vegatbel oil for frying

Cinnamon-sugar for coating (about 1/4 cup suagr mixed with cinnamon to taste)

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine the yeast with 1/4 cup lukewarm water and 1 tablesppon of sugar. Mix until the yeast dissolves then set aside for 5 minutes. Stir the milk, vanilla, eggs and butter and reserve.

In a large bowl, mix the flour with the 1/3 cup of sugar, salt and nutmeg. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Pour the yeast and milk mixture into the well. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry, forming a soft, smooth dough. Cover the dough with a clean towel and set aside to rise in a warm place until dough doubles in size, about one hour. (A good place that is warm, is the back portion of your stove top after you have been using your oven. Also, depending on the humidity, it may take them longer to rise. Use your eyes and do not rely on the time alone.)

Punch the dough down, then with oiled fingers, pinch off pieces about the size of golf balls. Place the dough balls on greased baking sheets. Cover the malasadas with a clean towel and set aside to rise in a warm place for about 15 minutes.

In a heavy, high-sided pot (or electric fryer if you have one) heat about 2-inches of oil over medium to medium-high heat until the oil reaches 325 degrees F. Working in small batches, fry the malasadas until they are uniformly golden brown, 7-10 minutes per batch. Drain the malasadas on a plate lined with paper towels just until they are cool enough to handle, then roll in cinnamon-sugar and serve.

To help you, check out the website for photos of them being made....

http://www.leonardshawaii.com/malasadas.html

Recipe courtesy Chef Leonard Rego, Leonard's Bakery - Hawaii