Doesn’t the title of this post make your blood sugar skyrocket just reading it? It does mine! As it should because these doughnuts are loaded with LOTS of sugary goodness. After I made Key Lime Pie, I still had some key lime juice I wanted to use up so it wouldn’t go bad. I really wanted something easy and I remembered the buttercream recipe that was part of my key lime roundup so I thought that would be delicious to try out! Although…I wasn’t feeling cake or cupcakes. Hmm, sandwiched between cookies? Nah, not it. Then it hit me…DOUGHNUTS. I literally felt like I was a mad scientist and brilliance had just struck me! A loooong time ago I had made these super easy doughnuts (notice this was when I was a beginner blogger and wanted to achieve that Bakerella look…and uhh, DIDN’T haha) and they were so dangerously good that we ended up eating an obscene amount within minutes and I had not even dared to make them since.
But the time had come.
So I fried. And powdered. And filled. And powdered again. And behold, deliciousness was born. The key lime buttercream was outstanding. It would definitely be wonderful on cupcakes or cookies. And the doughnuts, well, they were fried to perfection and so wonderfully doughy and warm…ahhhh. My poor husband split a half of one with me and was then tortured the rest of the night with the knowledge that they were just sitting in the kitchen, mocking him. But he resisted and I was very proud of him for that! We strongly believe that desserts should be treats and not something to eat in massive quantities (unless doing bakery research..ahem) but these doughnuts made doing so extremely difficult. Extremely.
Enjoy!
- 8-16 Jumbo Refrigerated Buttermilk Biscuits*
- 1, 1.5 Qt. Bottle Vegetable Oil
- Powdered Sugar (for dusting)
- ½ c. Unsalted Butter, softened
- 1½ t. Key Lime Zest
- 1 t. Pure Vanilla Extract
- ⅛ t. Salt
- 3 c. Powdered Sugar
- ⅓ c. Key Lime Juice
- 2 Drops Green Food Coloring (optional)
- In a large skillet, heat the oil to at least 290 degrees. Carefully drop four of the biscuits into the oil and cook on each side for about 1.5-2 minutes until lightly browned on each side. Place on a cookie sheet lined with paper towels and let cool off. Put a couple of cups of powdered sugar into a large plastic Ziploc bag. Place the doughnuts, one at a time in the bag and shake until they are covered with powdered sugar. Set aside on a large cooling rack.
- Beat the first four ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar alternately with key lime juice, beating at low speed until blended and smooth after each addition. Beat in green food coloring (if using).
- With a pastry tip inserted into a pastry bag or large Ziploc bag, fill with buttercream and insert into the side of the doughnut. Squeeze and fill with buttercream. The doughnut will get noticeably "puffier" and expand a bit from the buttercream. (One of mine even burst a little on one side because I got slightly carried away, but that was ok..it still tasted good.) After they have all been filled, dredge one last time in powdered sugar. Eat immediately or store in an air-tight container.
