Oliebollen

Ahh the Dutch delicacy Oliebollen! These delicious little donuts are often eaten during New Year's celebrations. I have so many fond memories of being at my Grandma & Opa's every New Years and have continued the tradition with our children. You can find most ingredients in store.

Ingredients:

2 & 1/4 tsp dry yeast

3 tbsp white sugar

1/2 cup warm water

*Sprinkle yeast & sugar on top of warm water and let sit for 10 min. The yeast should bubble up, if it does not this means your yeast is not active.

2 eggs (well beaten)

1.5 cups lukewarm milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

*Mix these ingredients in a small bowl

2 tsp salt

4 cups flour

*blend flour & salt in a large bowl

***optional add ins - chopped apples or raisins***

Next steps:

Add yeast mixture to egg mixture and mix well. Slowly add the liquid to the flour & salt and mix until incorporated.

If you are adding chopped apples or raisins, now is the time to mix in your add ins. You can split the dough in half to do half plain and half with raisins or apples. If splitting in half add approx 1 cup of your desired add in.

Cover the dough with a beeswax wrap and a tea towel and let rise in a warm place for 1.5 hours until doubled in size.

Fill a wok with enough vegetable oil for oliebollen to float. Set to medium heat & the oil is ready when bubbles form when a wooden spoon is dipped in the oil. If your oil is too hot they will burn on the outside & be raw on the inside. Finding the perfect temperature can be tricky, so I recommend doing a test donut.

Dip two spoons in oil so the dough doesn't stick to the spoons.  Spoon approximately 1/4 cup of dough into hot oil. Do not over crowd the wok as most times they will flip over naturally when they are done on the first side. If they do not flip on their own you can gently flip them over. They are done when they are golden brown on the outside and insides are fully cooked. Using a slotted spoon remove from the oil onto a well draining surface. 

Serve sprinkled with icing sugar & be careful as they will be very hot!