In one of my many, many cookbooks, (Giada’s Kitchen by Giada de Laurentis) there is a recipe for orange and chocolate zeppole, which are little Italian doughnuts. I’ve always wanted to try them, but I never have. I decided to make them this week for my dessert. I modified them very, very slightly (so that they were no longer orange and chocolate) and rolled them in a ginger sugar. They’re pretty easy
to make and best when eaten warm.
---Karly


ITALIAN DOUGHNUTS WITH 
GINGER & CINNAMON SUGAR

1 stick unsalted butter
¼ cup sugar
Pinch of salt
½ cup water
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs
Zest of 2 lemons
Vegetable or peanut oil, for frying 

Ginger Sugar:
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1-2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Combine ginger, cinnamon, sugar  and half of the lemon zest by whisking the ginger and sugar together in a small bowl. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, sugar, salt, and water over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Take the pan off the heat. Stir in the flour. Put the pan back on low heat and stir
continuously, until the mixture forms a ball, around 4 minutes. Put the dough ball into a medium bowl, and using a mixer on low speed, beat in the eggs, one at a time. Stir in the other half of the lemon zest.

Bring about 2 inches of vegetable oil to 350 degrees in a large frying pan. Using 2 small spoons, drop about a tablespoon of dough into the hot oil. (Be careful!) Drop in 3 more doughnuts, making sure you don’t overcrowd the pan. Turn each doughnut once or twice and cook until they are puffy and golden, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oil, roll in the sugar mixture, and transfer to a paper-towel lined plate. Cook the remaining doughnuts in batches of 4. Serve immediately.

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