Want to make your own doughnuts? You better 'know the dough'

Seven months ago, Ottawa musician Connor McGuire ditched his guitar and picked up a mixing bowl.

With help from his three-year-old son and taste-tester Rufus, McGuire whipped up a doughnut recipe worth selling. He then opened McGuire's Doughnuts, the first artisanal doughnut shop in Pembroke, Ont.

"As a musician, I used to go to sleep in the early morning," said McGuire. "And now, I am waking up early in the morning to start the day."

McGuire told CBC Radio's All In A Day that, like playing a song with a different instrument, each batch he creates is unique.

He uses a yeast dough, which produces a pastry that's thicker than typical cake doughnuts. 

"You have to know the dough," said McGuire. "Temperature and humidity affects the rising of the dough, which is a huge part of this recipe.​​​​​​"

You can find McGuire's recipe below.

McGuire's yeast doughnut recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. white all-purpose flour
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 8 g fresh yeast
• 80-90 ml warm water
• 150 ml warm buttermilk 
• 2 oz. melted vegetable shortening
• 2 oz. white, granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp. salt
• white sugar
• cinnamon

This batch of dough will make between 12 and 20 doughnuts. 

Directions:

1. Crumble the yeast in water and set aside.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine all the liquid ingredients and set mixer on low setting.
3. Slowly add flour, salt and sugar before finally adding the yeast and water mixture. Mix for seven to eight minutes. The dough should cling to the mixer's hook and not stick to bottom of the bowl. If it's too sticky, add more flour and mix for another 30 seconds.
4. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest until it has risen to one-third its original size. 
5. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a height that's roughly the width of your thumb. The evenness of dough will dictate how uniform the doughnuts turn out when fried.
6. Using a doughnut cutter or a cylinder, cut out as many doughnuts as you can. Use a bottle cap to cut the doughnut's holes if you don't have a proper doughnut cutter.
7. Place the doughnuts on a lightly floured baking sheet, leaving at least a centimetre of space between them. 
8. Cover the sheet in a large clear plastic bag and set it room temperature for a few hours to proof
9. Fry in oil heated to 375 degrees F.
10. Once fried, toss the warm doughnuts in a four-to-one mixture of white sugar and cinnamon.