Hanukkah Chocolate Sufganiyot (Doughnuts) with a Ganache-Glaze

Dough Ingredients

¼ cup (60ml)

warm water

½ ounce (2 envelopes; 14g)

active dry yeast

1/3 cup (80mL)

unsweetened almond milk

½ cups (50g) + 1 teaspoon

sugar, divided

½ cups (40g)

SCHARFFEN BERGER's Unsweetened Dark Chocolate Cocoa Powder

¼ teaspoon

salt

1

large egg

2 tablespoons (28g)

margarine at room temperature

1 teaspoon

pure vanilla extract

2- 2½ cups (240-360g)

all purpose flour, plus extra for dusting

grapeseed oil for frying

Dark Chocolate Ganache Ingredients

5 ounces (140g)

SCHARFFEN BEGER's 70% Cacao semisweet chocolate, chopped

¼ cup (60ml)

unsweetened almond milk

1 tablespoon

confectioners’ sugar

1 tablespoons (14g)

margarine

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, place the yeast, warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar. Stir. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes, or until thick.
Add the remaining sugar, almond milk, margarine, egg, salt, vanilla, cocoa, and 1 cup (120g) flour and mix on low speed either with a dough hook in a stand mixer or with a wooden spoon. Add another ½ cup (60g) flour and mix well. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add another ¼ cup (30g) flour and mix again. If the dough is still sticky, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time, and mix it into the dough until it becomes smooth, but not sticky. Each time you add flour to the dough, make sure you mix it in thoroughly.
Place the dough in a well oiled bowl and cover it with plastic wrap sprayed with oil.
Let rise for one hour in a warm place.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper
Sprinkle some flour on your counter or a piece of parchment paper and roll the dough out until it’s about ½ inch. Use a 2½ round cookie cutter or drinking glass to cut out circles and place them on the prepared cookie sheets. Re-roll any scraps but keep a some to use later for checking the oil. Cover the doughnuts with plastic wrap sprayed with oil. Place the cookie sheet somewhere warm to rise. Let the doughnuts rise for 30 minutes.
Heat 1 ½ inches of oil in a medium saucepan for a few minutes and use a candy thermometer to see when the temperature stays between 365ºF and 370ºF; adjust the flame until the oil stays in that temperature range.
Line a cookie sheet with paper towels. Place a wire rack on top and set it near your stove top. Test one of the pieces of scrap and if they rise in the oil start you can start adding the doughnuts. If not, let them rise 15 more minutes and check again. Add the doughnuts, top side down into the oil and cook for 1 ½ minutes, about 5-6 at a time. Use tongs to turn the doughnut over and cook another 1 ½ minutes. Remove the doughnuts with a slotted spoon, letting any excess oil drip off, and place them on the wire rack to cool. Repeat for the remaining doughnuts.
As these cool, you can start on the ganache. Break the chocolate into small pieces and melt it in the microwave oven for 45 seconds, then stir; heat again for 30 seconds and stir. Heat for another 15 seconds and stir until melted. Heat the almond milk until it’s hot, not boiling. Whisk it into the chocolate mixture a little at a time and then whisk it again after each addition. Add the confectioners’ sugar and mix. Add the margarine and whisk well. If the chocolate ganache hardens, heat it in the microwave for a few seconds and stir.
Dip the smooth side of the doughnut into the ganache and swoosh it around a few times for a generous coating on one side, and then lift it out of the ganache. Eat the doughnuts immediately or store them covered at room temperature for up to one day. Reheat to serve.