Thanksgivukkah is taking over: the menurkey (turkey + menorah) is the coveted item of the season and the interwebs are exploding with recipes, decorating ideas and kitschy paraphernalia to celebrate this “once in an eternity” event.
Not being one to turn up my nose at a Jewish fad, I set out to come up with my own perfect Thanksgivukkah recipe.
I didn’t want to come up with some turkey-topped latke or cranberry Manischewitz sangria (although those are good ideas too). I wanted to think a bit sweet, since dessert is always my go-to. Pumpkin pie is my favorite traditional Thanksgiving dessert. But yet again, my mind kept straying to something slightly different. I thought…jelly doughnut…cranberry relish…it seemed almost too obvious.
Ingredients
For the cranberry relish:
12 ounces fresh or frozen cranberries
½ cup fresh orange juice
1 Tbsp grated orange zest
1 cup sugar
Pinch salt
1 tsp corn starch
For the dough:
2 Tbsp dry yeast
½ cup lukewarm water
¼ cup plus 1 tsp sugar
2 ½ cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp butter, softened
Vegetable oil for frying
Special equipment: wooden skewer, piping bag, round piping tip
Directions
To make the relish:
1. Add cranberries, orange juice, orange zest and sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a low boil and continue to simmer for around 5 minutes. Add corn starch and stir vigorously. Cook another 5 minutes or until cranberries have completely softened.
2. Remove from heat. Place cover on pot and let the cranberries sit for another 5 minutes.
3. Allow the cranberries to cool slightly.
4. Place cranberry mixture into food processor fitted with a blade. Pulse until completely smooth. Chill.
To make the dough:
1. In a small bowl combine yeast and warm water. Sprinkle sugar on top and mix lightly. Allow to sit until foamy, around 10 minutes.
2. When yeast mixture is ready, in a large bowl combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, eggs, butter and yeast mixture using a wooden spoon until a sticky dough forms.
3. On a floured surface knead dough until it is smooth, shiny and bounces back when touched, around 8-10 minutes.
4. Place in an oiled bowl and allow to rise 1 ½-2 hours, or until doubled in size.
To assemble:
1. On a lightly floured work surface, roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Using a 2 1/2-inch-round cutter or glass, cut rounds. You may have to roll out dough a few times. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise another 20-25 minutes.
2. Heat oil in a pot on medium heat until a thermometer measures 370 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer, raise the heat to low-medium heat and test one of the doughnuts. If the oil immediately starts bubbling and the doughnut begins browning, it is the right temperature. If it doesn’t bubble at all, heat needs to be higher. If the oil splatters or the doughnut starts browning too quickly, heat needs to be turned down.
3. In a pyrex dish or large plate, combine around 2 cups of sugar with orange zest and combine lightly with a fork.
4. Using a slotted spoon, place 3-4 doughnuts into the oil. Allow to fry on each side around 40 seconds or until golden brown. Remove from oil and place onto a plate lined with paper towel. Once excess oil has been removed, roll in sugar-zest mixture while doughnuts are still warm so that the sugar sticks.
5. When all the doughnuts have been fried and sugared, begin to fill the doughnuts. Place the cranberry relish in a microwave-safe bowl and heat for 20-30 seconds, just to soften slightly.
6. Fill pastry bag with a few heaping tablespoons of cranberry relish. If you don’t have a tip, you can just snip the corner of the pastry bag with a scissor.
7. Using a wooden skewer or toothpick, make a hole in the side of each doughnut. Fit the pastry tip into a hole, pipe about 2 teaspoons jam into doughnut. Repeat with remaining doughnuts.
Tip: when filling the doughnuts it might seem like you are over-stuffing with relish, but you will want to make sure you are not skimping on the filling. When you insert the wooden skewer, wiggle it around a bit in the middle to create a relish-ready cavern. And don’t try to be too delicate with the piping bag–get it in there and squeeze away.
