Kieran’s favourite flavour combination is peanut butter & jelly, so I have a folder full of PB & J related recipes that I know he’ll love. This one was a little bit more unplanned. I fancied making some donuts and came across this recipe for black cherry donuts by John Whaite. I’m not actually the biggest fan of cherry flavour, so while I wanted to make them, I decided to mix up the flavour combo.

The filling for these is therefore a raspberry jam and I mixed some peanut butter into the icing. I went for crunchy because that’s what I had in my cupboard, but smooth peanut butter would probably work a little better. The dough is lovely; super soft and pillowy and I was quite impressed with myself that they all seemed to have the right amount of jam in them! You do need the right equipment for this; so either a piping bag with a hard nozzle (which is what I used) or a syringe.

The trick with these is to make sure that your oil is the correct temperature – if it’s too hot the middle of the donut will not be cooked before the outside burns. If it’s too cold, you’ll end up with a greasy donut. Would recommend a temp controlled deep fat fryer here, or using a thermometer if frying in a pan, to make sure the temperature is exact.

Preparation Time: 45 minutes, plus proving time
Cooking Time: 3-4 minutes
Yields: Makes 10

• 500 g strong white flour
• 10 g salt
• 50 g caster sugar
• 7 g fast-action yeast (1 sachet)
• 240 ml milk
• 40 g unsalted butter
• 370 g raspberry jam
• 150 g icing sugar
• 3 tbsp peanut butter
• Dough scraper

You’ll need:

• Deep-fat fryer or large saucepan filled with 3L sunflower oil
• Pastry syringe

1. Make the dough. Put the flour in a large mixing bowl and stir the salt and sugar into it, then add the yeast.
2. Put the milk and butter in a saucepan over a medium heat and warm up until you can just hold your finger in the milk without needing to snatch it back quickly. Mix well to melt the butter, then add the eggs and beat them in.
3. Slowly add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients, mixing them together with a dough scraper or wooden spoon. When the liquid has been incorporated, tip the contents of the bowl onto the worktop and knead for 10 minutes. The mixture will be extremely sticky, so the best way to knead it is by picking it up and slamming it on to the counter top, then folding it over. This is why a dough scraper is a great tool. If you have a freestanding electric mixer with dough hook attachment, it might be easier to knead the dough in that for five minutes on a low setting.
4. When the dough is smooth and elastic, place it in a floured bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Leave to rise for one hour.
5. After the dough has risen, weigh it into 10 equal pieces (around 86 grams each). Roll these pieces into perfect balls, place on a floured baking sheet or board well spaced apart, and cover in cling film to rise again for 45 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, put the jam into a saucepan and heat just until the jam is runny. Sieve the jam into a bowl to remove any bits.
7. Mix the icing sugar and peanut butter together with just enough water to make a dripping consistency. Set to one side.
8. Fifteen minutes before the dough balls are ready, heat the deep-fat fryer to 180°C. Test the heat of the oil (if you don’t have a thermometer) by dropping a cube of bread into it; if it sizzles, the oil is ready. Fry the doughnuts two or three at a time, for about three to four minutes per side. Remove from the fryer using a slotted spoon, then place on the rack.
9. Put the jam into the syringe. Inject each doughnut with a little jam, aiming to get it in the centre. If jam starts to ooze out, simply stand the doughnut up so the hole is on top.
10. Ice the donuts by dipping or drizzling over the peanut icing and leave to set. These are best on the day they are made, but will be fine for a couple of days if stored in an airtight container in the fridge.