Picarones (Chilean Pumpkin Donuts)
Picarones are Chilean style donuts. These soft, squash or pumpkin donuts are soaked in an orange infused syrup made with panela. Yield: 19 donuts
Servings: 19 people
Ingredients
- 2 cups squash or pumpkin puree
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 1 ¼ cups milk, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 3 cups vegetable oil (for frying)
For The Syrup
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups shredded panela, dark muscovado sugar, or dark brown sugar
- Zest of one orange
- 4 whole cloves
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
Instructions
For The Dough
- In a big bowl, mix squash or pumpkin puree, sugar, milk and yeast.
- Add flour and mix well. The dough is very sticky. Cover the bowl and leave it to rise for an hour and a half at room temperature.
For The Syrup
- In a medium saucepan, add all the ingredients for the syrup. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, for about 5 minutes. Keep warm.
To Make The Donuts
- Heat 3-4 inches of oil in a deep saucepan over medium/low heat.
- Flour a ¼ measuring cup and scoop out some dough. Flour your hands, shape the dough into a ball. Using your thumbs, poke a hole through the center of the ball to create a donut shape.
- Place donut on hot oil and fry for about 3 minutes on each side.
- Remove the donut from the hot oil and drain on paper towels. Continue with the remaining dough.
- Soak the fried donuts in the hot syrup.
- Serve them while they are still warm.