EARL GREY DOUGHNUT HOLES WITH LEMON CURD

PREP + COOK TIME 1 HOUR (+ PROVING, COOLING & REFRIGERATION) MAKES 50

80g butter

1 cup (250ml) milk

3 teaspoons (10g) dried yeast ¼ cup (60ml) lukewarm water 2 earl grey tea bags

¼ cup (55g) caster sugar ½ teaspoon salt

2 egg yolks

3 cups (450g) plain flour vegetable oil, to deep−fry

1 cup (220g) caster sugar, extra 1 teaspoon gold edible glitter

LEMON CURD

¾ cup (165g) caster sugar 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon rind ½ cup (125ml) lemon juice

3 eggs

100g chilled butter, chopped

1 Make lemon curd.

2 Stir butter and milk in a small saucepan over high heat until butter melts. Cool to lukewarm.

3 Meanwhile, place yeast and the water in a small bowl; stir until yeast dissolves.

4 Remove tea from bags; process tea with sugar until finely ground. Place butter mixture, yeast mixture, sugar mixture, salt, egg yolks and sifted flour into a large bowl; beat with a wooden spoon until mixture forms a soft, sticky dough. Cover bowl; stand in a warm place for 1 hour or until dough is doubled in size.

5 Turn dough out onto a floured surface; knead gently until just smooth. Heat oil in a large saucepan to 150°C on a candy thermometer or until a few bubbles form around the handle of a wooden spoon when placed in the oil. 6 Roll rounded teaspoons of dough into balls. Deep−fry balls, in batches, six at a time, for 1½ minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. Drain on paper towel. Toss immediately in combined extra sugar and glitter.

7 Spoon curd into a piping bag fitted with a 5mm plain nozzle. Pipe curd into the centre of each doughnut. Serve warm or at room temperature.

LEMON CURD

Combine sugar, rind, juice and eggs in a medium heatproof bowl; place over a medium saucepan of simmering water. Stir for 5 minutes or until mixture thickens and thickly coats the back of a spoon. Gradually add butter, stirring, until smooth between additions. Cover surface with plastic wrap; cool. Refrigerate for 3 hours or until cold. Stir until butter melts; bring to the boil. Add flour; reduce heat to low. Beat with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes or until mixture forms a smooth ball and leaves the side of the pan. Remove from heat. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl of an electric mixer; cool for 5 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until smooth and glossy.

3 Spoon mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain tube.

Pipe 2cm rounds of mixture, about 3cm apart, onto trays.

4 Bake puffs for 15 minutes. Reduce oven to 180°C/160°C fan; bake for a further 8 minutes or until golden and puffed. Turn oven off. Use a knife to make a hole in the base of each puff. Leave puffs in oven with the door ajar for 10 minutes or until puffs feel dry and crisp. Cool on a wire rack.

5 Meanwhile, place cream, hazelnut spread, milk chocolate, extra butter and liqueur in a small saucepan over low heat; stir for 2 minutes or until smooth. Transfer to small bowl of electric mixer; cool for 10 minutes. Cover; refrigerate for 45 minutes or until cold and thick. Beat mixture with electric mixer until smooth; stir in hazelnuts.

6 Spoon chocolate hazelnut mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 5mm tube. Pipe mixture into puffs through hole in each base.

7 Place white chocolate in a small heatproof bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water (don’t allow base of bowl to touch water); stir until melted. Remove from heat. Transfer half the chocolate to another small bowl; tint each bowl of chocolate with a drop of pink or green food colouring. Dip half the puffs into pink chocolate and remaining puffs into green chocolate. Stand at room temperature until chocolate is set or refrigerate a few minutes until set. Dust with edible dust.