Raisin-Cinnamon Doughnut

These are baked, not fried, which means you get fresh doughnuts without heating up a pot of oil. The dough is a simple biscuit base with shortening cut in for flaky tenderness, studded with chopped raisins and lightly spiced with cinnamon.

Cutting the shortening into the flour is the same technique as making pie crust or biscuits. You want pieces the size of small peas. Those little pockets of fat melt in the oven and create a layered, tender crumb instead of the dense, cakey texture of traditional fried doughnuts.

Brushing with melted butter before and after baking serves two purposes: the first coat helps browning, the second gives the warm doughnuts a glossy, rich finish that makes cinnamon sugar stick.

Kitchen Tips

• Keep the shortening cold and work it in quickly. Warm shortening blends into the flour instead of creating distinct layers.
• Roll the dough to a full ½ inch thick. Thin doughnuts dry out fast in a hot oven.
• Flour your doughnut cutter between cuts so it releases the dough cleanly.
• Brush the second coat of butter while the doughnuts are still hot from the oven so the cinnamon sugar adheres.

Variations

• Roll the warm, butter-brushed doughnuts in the cinnamon-sugar mixture for a full coating instead of just brushing.
• Swap raisins for dried cranberries or currants for a different fruit flavor.
• Add a pinch of nutmeg to the dry ingredients for a more complex spice profile.