Easy Ricotta Doughnuts
This is one super treat for breakfast. These little ricotta doughnut holes will quickly become a family favorite. They are quite addictive for two reasons:
1. They are SO tasty! The texture is wonderful, they are soft, moist and fluffy inside. They have a mild sweet flavor that goes with coffee, tea or milk. And, you can easily fill them with some jam or custard as soon as you pull them out onto a wire rack. (Just use a long pastry tip to fill the doughnuts.)
2. These doughnuts are unbelievably easy to make. First time I made them, I was really surprised just how fast it was to make these from start to finish. Dough takes about five minutes and cooking will depend on the size of the pan you are using and how many doughnuts can you cook at a time. Each batch takes about 5-7 minutes to cook. All in all, it’s an easy, tasty treat for breakfast.
Tips To Make My Ricotta Doughnut Holes
- Ricotta – use whole milk ricotta! This will provide the best moisture and richness to the dough.
- Use a #40 cookie scoop (which is a 1 1/2 Tb) to scoop out the dough. This will keep all the doughnuts nice and even.
- Dip the scoop into the hot oil before starting to scoop and after every few doughnuts to keep the dough from sticking to the scoop.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan/pot, fry in batches of a few doughnut holes.
- Remember to use metal utensils to turn doughnuts if needed and to take some out.
- Don’t make the oil too hot or the doughnut holes will darken too fast without cooking through.
Storing and Reheating
- At room temperature, these donut holes should be good for up to 2 days. To store them any longer or if you live in a humid climate, make sure to refrigerate them.
- Store donut holes in an air-tight food storage container whether you are storing on the counter or in the refrigerator. I always recommend storing them in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- To reheat, you can always simply pop one or two in the microwave for a few seconds.
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Ricotta Doughnuts Recipe
Ingredients
- 10 oz whole milk ricotta cheese
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Oil for frying
- 2-3 tbsp Powdered sugar for topping
Instructions
- Preheat about 5 cups of oil in a medium pot or deep skillet, over medium heat. Heat oil to about 320-330℉ degrees. (Note: 350℉ will cook doughnuts too fast on the outside and leave them raw on the inside.)
- Set out a wire rack and cover it with a paper towel or two.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk ricotta, vanilla extract, sugar, and eggs until all incorporated.
- Add flour baking soda and salt. Mix with a rubber spatula until completely mixed throughout.
- I recommend using a #40 (1½ Tb.) cookie scoop to get even amounts of batter each time.
- Dip the scoop into the oil, shake it off, and scoop the doughnut batter. Scrape the excess on the side of the bowl and carefully drop the dough balls into the hot oil. Repeat with a few more doughnut holes. Work quickly and remember not to overcrowd the pot.
- Fry doughnut holes in batches of about 6 (as fitting to your sauce pot) for 5-7 minutes, until deep golden brown.
- Take out the cooked doughnut holes and place them on a paper towel. After they are cooled for a couple of minutes, dust them with powdered sugar.
Video
Notes
- Storing: At room temperature, these donut holes should be good for up to 2 days. To store them any longer or if you live in a humid climate, make sure to refrigerate them.
- Store donut holes in an air-tight food storage container whether you are storing on the counter or in the refrigerator. I always recommend storing them in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- To reheat, you can always simply pop one or two in the microwave for a few seconds.
Nutrition
More Breakfast and Brunch Recipes
Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles in December 2015.
All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
I use to make these when I was young and my children were small about 25 years ago. My full blooded Italian mother in law gave me the recipe and this is it. You can also put some lemon zest, chocolate chips, orange zest and other flavors. My favorite is plain with powdered sugar coating and dip them into a little hot fudge!
A little lemon zest does sound amazing! I will have to give that a try! 🙂
So very easy – and delicious!
Thanks, Maggie!
I’m about to make them for the 2nd time – they’re delicious & the fact they’re so easy & quick to make is a winner.
One question: can they be prepped & fried next day?