Leftover Pizza Dough Chronicles: Doughnuts

glazed doughnuts made with leftover pizza dough

I always make extra dough balls when making pizza. With a dough hydration level in excess of 70% and the goal to use as little bench flour as possible, sticking accidents occasionally happen and it is good to have backup dough so nobody goes hungry.

Throwing leftover balls out after taking such care to develop the flavor and texture over the 48 hour fermentation and proof is out of the question. So over the years I have been on a quest to find ways to use them in creative and worthy ways.

Frying dough is nothing new — stuffed or unstuffed, sweet or savory. Early on I tried forming doughnuts directly out of my pizza dough. The flavor was great, but the texture was too chewy. And there was just too little structure in the wet dough to properly roll out and cut them into rings.

The following method produces soft, billowy, raised doughnuts:

• Dump 2 dough balls (260g each) into food processor
• Add about 1/2 cup of flour — maybe more depending on stickiness of the dough
• Add 1/4 cup sugar
• Add 1/4 cup shortening
• Add 1/4 teaspoon mace
• Run the food processor until mixed to the desired texture, adding more flour as needed
• Roll out and cut
• Allow to proof for several hours until doubled
• Fry @ 365°F (enough oil for the doughnuts to float without touching the bottom)
• Glaze while hot