Sufganiyot

No, I'm not Jewish, but I like doughnuts. The SF Chronicle chose to put this recipe behind its paywall, so I'm duplicating it here. I have a batch rising right now; watch this space to see if they're as good as they sound.

Make-Ahead Sufganiyot (Jelly Doughnuts)

Makes 12 large doughnuts or 36 doughnut holes

1 cup milk
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 package (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
4 tablespoons butter
2 cups bread flour
2 egg yolks + 1 whole egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed

Vegetable oil, for frying
Preserves or jelly, for filling
Powdered sugar, for dusting

In a small saucepan, warm the milk, sugar and salt until dissolved. Pour out ¼ cup of the warmed milk (not too hot) into a small bowl, and mix with the yeast. Let sit for 5 minutes, until it bubbles.

Meanwhile, place the milk back on the stove and add the butter, stirring just until the butter melts. Pour the milk and butter mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, and mix in the 2 cups of bread flour until combined. Add the yeast mixture, eggs and vanilla, and continue to mix on medium speed until incorporated. Add 1½ cups all-purpose flour, and mix for 3-5 minutes, until dough is well combined and slightly tacky.

Pour the remaining ½ cup all-purpose flour on a work surface and turn dough out onto the flour. Work in the flour, kneading the dough with your hands as you go, for 5 minutes or so. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover, and set in a warm place until it has doubled in size, about 1½ hours. Turn out again onto a floured surface, punch down, and roll out to ½-inch thickness.

To make doughnut holes that you will fill after frying, use a small 1-1½-inch round cookie cutter, floured, to cut out the shapes, setting them on a parchment-lined baking sheet as you cut. To make large doughnuts, cut out the dough into 2½-inch circles.

Set doughnuts aside to proof, letting them again double in size, about 45 minutes.

At this point you can freeze the doughnuts by placing the whole cookie sheet into the freezer and letting flash-freeze for at least 30 minutes before transferring the doughnuts to a zip-top bag. When ready to fry, leave at room temperature until thawed, about 1 hour. Do not let sit too long at room temperature once thawed, or the doughnuts will overproof.

To fry: Pour oil to a depth of 3 inches in a medium saucepan. Heat until the oil reaches 375 degrees, or the deep-fry stage. Working with about 2 larger doughnuts or 4 doughnut holes at a time, drop into the hot oil and fry, flipping once, until cooked through and golden brown all over. The holes will be cooked in about 2 minutes, and the larger ones in 3-4 minutes (take care not to burn the outside). Remove to paper towels to drain.

To fill, fit a pastry bag with a small tip or use a squeeze bottle, fill with jam and squirt into the center of each doughnut or doughnut hole before sprinkling with powdered sugar and serving.

Per large doughnut: 321 calories, 19 g fat (6 g saturated), 60 mg cholesterol, 238 mg sodium, 31 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 6 g protein.