Chocolate Doughnut Holes

I woke up from a strange dream. It didn't matter that all the people in the dream were not people I know in real life or the odd situation about how  I didn't have enough money to pay to get out of the parking garage at work. In this strange dream, I went to a family style restaurant with the parking attendant and some other people I didn't know and we were eating chocolate doughnut holes with white icing.  I haven't had doughnuts in years.

Unlike a lot of people in the world, I can't just go to a doughnut shop and buy some doughnuts to eat. When you walk into a bakery and ask if they have anything gluten free, they look at you like you are from another planet.  With all the flour in a normal bakery, the cross contamination would be so high that even if they used gluten free flours to bake, it would no longer be a gluten free finished product. So I decided to satisfy my craving. I set out to make a gluten free chocolate doughnut like I was eating in the dream.  

I have never made doughnuts before. This was a challenge I was thrilled to take. I searched for recipes online. I found a few I liked and then looked into gluten free recipes to compare notes.  It's always good to see how the original is made before modifying something into gluten free.

I mixed the dry ingredients together. Then added the wet ingredients. Mixed it a little with my mixer and put the batter in the fridge for a half hour to chill.  In the mean time, I prepared my deep fryer. This was the first time I've used my new deep fryer.  

After the batter was cooled a bit, I rolled the batter into balls around two chocolate chips each to give them a chocolate center.  Then I realized I didn't add any butter to this recipe.  It was too late to do anything about that.  I'd just have to roll with it and see how they came out.

I fried the first batch.  I let them cool, then cut into one.  As I bit into the chocolate doughnut hole, I realized that it didn't need butter. It was amazing just the way it was.  It didn't have the texture of a cupcake. I didn't want that. It was the chocolate doughnut hole from my dream.  I whipped up the icing, rolled them in it, and ate a few more.  Fantastic!

1 1/2 cups gluten free all purpose baking flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/8 teaspoon xantham gum

2 eggs

1 egg yolk

1/4 cup butter milk or home made butter milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

32-40 60% bittersweet chocolate cacao baking chips

Frying oil for your deep fryer

Icing:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon cream

1/8 teaspoon vanilla

Mix gluten free flour, cocoa, baking soda, xantham gum, and salt in a large mixing bowl.  Add eggs and yolk, vanilla, and buttermilk.  Mix on low speed with a hand mixer until combined, careful not to over mix.  Chill dough in refrigerator for a half hour to an hour.

Roll dough around two chocolate chips and place on wax paper or parchment paper. If you line a cookie sheet, it is easy to move them around without disturbing them.  After they are all rolled into balls, preheat your fryer to 350.  Place a few in the fryer basket so none are touching.  Fry for two to three minutes, turning them occasionally. Place them on a plate to cool and repeat until all of them are cooked.

Make the icing by combining the milk, cream, vanilla, and powdered sugar in a small bowl.  After each doughnut hole is cooled, roll them in the icing one at a time.

They should last for two days.