Loukoumades (Greek doughnuts)

One of the pleasures of a Greek holiday comes in those moments after dark (and after dinner) when everyone moves to the tables in a local square to drink coffee and eat plates of tiny cinnamon-scented doughnuts. Whether your preference is for the sugar-dusted variety or those soaked in honey, try making them at home for a crowd-pleasing dessert with a difference.

Enjoy these Greek-style loukoumades for a sweet treat, then check out our jam doughnuts, mini doughnuts, doughnut holes and more delicious doughnut recipes.

Ingredients
plain flour 175g
light muscovado sugar 2 tbsp
orange zest of 1, finely grated
fast action yeast 1 tsp
warm water 160ml
oil for deep frying
cinnamon 1 tsp
caster sugar 100g
Greek honey to drizzle

STEP 1

Put the flour, sugar orange zest and yeast in a bowl with a pinch of salt and stir in 160ml warm water. Keep stirring until you have a runny, sticky dough. You can do this in a food mixer if you like. Cover and leave to rise until doubled in size. This will take at least an hour, or longer if your kitchen is cool.

STEP 2

Scoop your dough into a plastic piping bag. Fill a saucepan or wok no more than 1/3 full of oil. Heat until a pinch of flour will sizzle vigorously. Lay some kitchen paper on a tray and mix the cinnamon and sugar t ogether in a large bowl.

STEP 3

When the oil is ready, snip the end off the piping bag so you can squeeze out marble-sized blobs of dough. Use a pair of scissors to snip small blobs of dough (no bigger than walnuts) straight into the oil. Do this very carefully so you don’t splash yourself. Cook the doughnuts in batches, turning them over until a deep golden brown. Lift them out with a slotted spoon, tip them onto the paper to drain briefly and then toss them into the sugar. Repeat with the remaining dough.

STEP 4

When all the doughnuts are cooked roll them around in the sugar. If you like them with honey, drizzle some over the top.