photographs of fasnacht day from this full-blown pa dutchy

With a sigh of relief and an upward puff to brush the remaining flour off my forehead, I completed my second year of whipping up over a hundred fasnachts for my family and friends. As I previously wrote about here, the recipe is one of my grandmother's, a woman who wowed the Strausses' tastebuds day in and out with the best of her Pennsylvania Dutch cooking.

However, adamant about good-health, Fasnacht Day is one of my only baking days that I shy away from my recipes pumped with nutrition-hidden ingredients like whole-grain flour, raw sugar, soy milk and agave nectar syrup. So, in honor of doughnut lovers who have recently scarified their sugary addictions and also, being that the fattest day of the year has passed, I've decided to offer you a much simpler and healthier version of browned rounds that sing victory for your lent-crazed ways and also assist in dejellying your belly.

Doughnut Muffins

makes 10 regular muffins

(also published here and adapted from here.)

3/4 cup raw sugar

1 egg

1/4 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup soy or rice milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups flour (whole-grain, spelt or flaxseed meal)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

blueberries or strawberries (optional for fruity doughnuts)

Coating

2 tablespoons butter or vegan butter, melted (optional)

1/2 cup superfine sugar (or raw sugar pulsed for 30 seconds in your blender)

Lightly grease a muffin tin with vegetable oil or spray.

In a large bowl, beat together sugar and egg. Add vegetable oil, milk, and vanilla to sugar mixture and combine.· In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Then pour into liquid mixture and stir to combine.

Fill muffin cups 3/4 full, and bake in a 350 degree preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, or until nicely browned and when the center is poked, it comes out clean.

And, only after you enjoyed the nutrition of the healthy-version of the above-mentioned doughnut bites, I leave you with photographs of my escapades of Fat Tuesday.

Roughing the doughnut dough the night prior to frying, quite a pleasant experience.
Although traditional fasnachts are cut rectangular or just circular, minus the hole, the Strauss way was to use a round dough cutter and then, cut the center out with the thimble. I still have my grandmother's cutter and I most definitely use it every year.
The most time consuming part of the doughnut making, but possibly only because I can only fit 10-12 rounds in my fryer at a time.

Being a local reporter at a nearby newspaper group that has a coverage area that spreads to Lancaster County, I was in pure, traditional bliss pitching that I journey through the land of Dutchies finding the best bakers around.

Laura Jenkins of Eliza's Bakery of Phoenixville offered the sale of lard-ridden doughnuts all last week. Just entering into her shop left me intoxicated by the fresh smell of sugary sweets.
Closeup of Eliza's decadent offering of granulated and powdered sugar fasnachts.

Jim Chudnovsky of Bird-in-Hand's Bakery and Creamery cheerily continued throughout the day of Fat Tuesday whipping up the bake shop's distinct version of the Dutch doughnut. Hundreds stopped in the Lancaster County sweet spot to celebrate the tradition of the fasnacht.

a doughy day of Dutchy fastnachts

Although I am not the type to give up one thing or another for Lent (not a celebrator here, sorry), I am guilty of jumping at any opportunity that will allow me to guiltily fulfill my closeted sweet tooth, or furthermore, my need to scandalously scarf anything that's remotely bad for me.

Enter: Fat Tuesday!

Born in the common land of apple butter barrels, pickled chow-chow jars and hogmaw feasts, such a fattening day only means one thing: an incredible chowdown of the Pennsylvania Deitsch's finest potato doughnut, the fastnacht.


Like any other individual within my sacred ancestry, the recipe for the favored fried dough comes passed from generation-to-generation, each adding a little more sugar or spice to make it just a tad bit more nice. Last from my grandmother, Naomi Strauss, who was keen in teaching me the precise measures in the art of doughnut shaping and hole-punching -- all with a promise to enjoy as many sugary pieces as I'd like.

Now, with a wish to carry on her hardy baking task that's in serious need of continuing, I tackled the six-dozen, two-day recipe that overall, left me covered from head-to-toe in floury dough. But more importantly, showcased that I may be able to someday slip into her tiny shoes.

Naomi's Fastnachts
Makes 6 dozen

• 2 yeast packets
• 1 cup mash potatoes
• 3 cup potato water
• 1 cup shortening
• 1 cup milk
• 3 eggs
• 5 lbs. flour
• 2 cup granulated sugar

The evening before, begin to prepare the dough, which must rise overnight. First, activate the yeast packets in a cup of warm water with a spoonful of sugar. Combine the remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl omitting four pounds of the flour (using only 4 cups), which will be used later. Add the yeast water to the liquid mixture and let set for an hour. Slowly, add the remaining four pounds of flour to the mixture until the dough stiffens and is shaped into a large ball. Cover; allow dough to sit overnight.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough 3/4"-1" thick. Use a doughnut cutter to cut the dough or cut as typical Fastnachts (square-shaped). To allow the center of Fastnacht to fry completely, cut a small slit in the center of each piece, or use a thimble to punch holes. Allow shaped doughnuts to sit for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the dough pieces have raised to about double in size.
Heat oil to 300 degrees. Fry each doughnut for one to one-and-a-half minutes on each side until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
Serve doughnuts plain or shaken in a nice coating of confectioner's sugar and a dash of cinnamon. But, from a fatherly perspective, my dad twists open the vault to reveal the proper way to down these fried Tuesday pleasures: slice crosswise, butter each slice and drizzle with some marvelous molasses.