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Crullers and Doughnuts

Fried dough cakes, cut into rings or twists and fried in hot lard until light brown.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Women of the First Congregational Church (Marysville, Ohio) · From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 3 ingredients
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Crullers and Doughnuts

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the dough

  1. Mix to a moderately stiff dough with teaspoon soda, half cup lard and nutmeg to flavor.

  2. Roll the dough to half an inch thickness.

  3. Cut in rings or twists.

  4. Cut the dough about half an inch thick.

Prepare the fat

  1. Clarify the fat by frying a cut potato in it, letting it settle, then straining it into an earthen pot and setting it in a cool place.

  2. Fry in an iron kettle rather than a common skillet.

  3. Heat the fat until it stops bubbling and is perfectly still.

  4. Test the heat with a bit of batter; if it is right, the dough rises to the top and bubbles in the fat.

Fry and drain

  1. Drop into boiling lard and fry to a light brown.

  2. Watch carefully while frying and regulate the fire.

  3. Fry for five to eight minutes, breaking one open as a test.

  4. Drain well in a skimmer and place in a colander.

By Women of the First Congregational Church (Marysville, Ohio). Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Lard
Provides the frying medium and richness, carrying heat evenly to brown the dough.
Baking soda (in the method)
Reacts with the dough to lighten it and help it puff while frying.
Nutmeg (in the method)
Adds aromatic spice flavor to the dough.

The step that matters

Testing and controlling the fat temperature. If the fat is too cool, dough absorbs grease and turns heavy; if too hot, the outside browns before the inside cooks. A test piece of batter that rises and bubbles shows the fat is ready, and the fire must be adjusted during frying to hold that heat steady.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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