Once more, with feeling.

This isn't my first attempt at yeast donuts.  I first tried them for a holiday get together with Pete's family, and I was so excited.  The dough seemed to be following the recipe's description (note when baking gluten-free: this doesn't and, most of the time, shouldn't happen), and I was gleefully rolling out the dough and chomping away with my donut cutter.  But when I came back to check on them after an hour, I found to my horror that they didn't rise.  I killed the yeast!  Flat as pancakes and I only had a few hours until the get together!  Worst.  Baker.  Ever.  I fried them with tears in my eyes, and served them with a thousand apologies.  Pete's family, god bless 'em, were good sports and ate them.

I stuck with cake donuts for a few weeks after that.  

But today, with the failure still gnawing at me, I decided to try again.  This time I figured I'd follow Gluten Free Girl's advice and follow Alton Brown's recipe (not that the first recipe I followed was bad, but GFG has never steered me wrong)  And this time, I'd pay attention to the yeast water's temperature.  Et voila:

Yeast donuts with plum jam filling

Crispy on the outside, light as air on the inside.  I busted out the "flavor injector" Pete's mom had given me for Christmas and filled those puppies up with plum preserves.  

Hello.

The dough was nice and wet (quite a difference from my first attempt) which creates a lighter, fluffier donut.  I used a giant pipping bag to pipe circular disks onto squares of parchment paper- this makes dropping the sticky dough in hot oil a breeze.  As soon as they hit the oil they puffed up- I couldn't help but do a little dance as I fried them.  There may or may not have been singing.  

I cannot wait until our next holiday gathering to redeem myself.

Maybe just one more.