Eggless brioche doughnuts

Ingredients

For the sponge:

• 2 1/2 teaspoons (1 envelope) active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup whole milk, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar

For the dough:

• 2 to 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• l/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 6 tbsp crumbled tofu
• 4 tsp cornstarch
• 1/4 cup milk
• 60 gm unsalted butter, softened
• oil for frying (I use blended rice bran and sunflower oil)
• 1 cup powdered sugar for coating, or more to taste

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Preparation

• The sponge:
  Combine the yeast and milk in a bowl and whisk until the yeast is dissolved. Let stand for 5 minutes, then stir in the flour and brown sugar, forming a thick batter. Cover with plastic film and let rest at room tempera¬ture for 30 to 45 minutes, or until bubbles form.
• The dough:
  Run the crumbled tofu, cornstarch and about 3 tbsp of milk (out of the 1/4 cup milk) in the mixer/ blender till it becomes a smooth paste. Keep aside. Add the flour, salt, cardamom, and cinnamon to the sponge and mix well using a wooden spoon. Then add the tofu paste, butter and the remaining milk. Knead well till you have a a smooth and elastic dough for about 5 to 8 minutes, dusting with just enough flour to prevent the dough from sticking. Scrape out the dough, wash and dry the bowl, and coat it lightly with oil.
• Place the dough in the oiled bowl and turn it so that the top is coated with oil. Cover with plastic film and let rise at room tempera¬ture until doubled in volume, about 2 hours. When the dough has doubled in volume, punch it down by folding it two or three times. Cover with plastic film and let rise at room temperature until doubled in volume, about 45 minutes.
• Using a rolling pin, roll it out to a thickness of 1/2 inch. If the dough is difficult to handle after rolling, refrigerate it for about 20 minutes. Cut the dough using a doughnut cutter or two round cutters of gradu¬ated size. Dip the cutters in flour each time to make it easier. Once cut, the dough can be stored in the freezer for up to 1 week. If you choose to freeze them, defrost in the refrigerator and then let them sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before frying.
  
• Heat the oil in a heavy skillet, wide, heavy saucepan, or deep fryer over medium heat. Fry the doughnuts till they're a nice dark golden brown all over. Remove the doughnuts from the oil and drain them on paper towels for 30 seconds before coating them with the powdered sugar. Repeat with the remaining doughnuts. Serve them as soon as possible. The fried doughnuts stay fresh for only about 2-3 hours.

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