Papanasi

Ingredients

• 500 g fresh cow's curd cheese or well-drained ricotta
• 2 large eggs
• 80 g caster sugar
• 60 g fine semolina
• 150 g plain flour, plus extra for shaping
• 1 tsp baking powder
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• 1 litre sunflower oil, for frying
• 300 g soured cream, to serve
• 250 g sour cherry or blueberry jam, to serve
• 2 tbsp icing sugar, to finish

Before you cook

• Drain the cheese in a sieve lined with muslin for 30 minutes if it looks at all wet
• Zest the lemon
• Sift the flour with the baking powder

Steps

1. Beat the cheese, eggs, sugar, lemon zest, vanilla and salt together in a large bowl until creamy.
2. Stir in the semolina and let the mixture stand for 10 minutes so the grains swell.
3. Fold in the flour and baking powder until you have a soft, slightly sticky dough that just holds together.
4. Rest the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes.
5. Pour the oil into a deep heavy pan to a depth of about 6 centimetres.
6. Heat the oil to 165 degrees Celsius, which is when a small scrap of dough rises and sizzles gently rather than browning instantly.
7. Flour your hands well and take a heaped tablespoon of dough for each doughnut.
8. Roll it into a ball, flatten it to about 2 centimetres thick, and push a hole through the centre with your finger.
9. Roll a small walnut-sized ball of dough for each ring and set it aside.
10. Lower two rings into the oil and fry for 3 minutes until the underside is deep gold.
11. Turn them over and fry for a further 3 minutes until they are evenly coloured and cooked through to the centre.
12. Lift them onto kitchen paper to drain.
13. Fry the small balls the same way for about 2 minutes a side.
14. Continue frying the remaining dough in batches, letting the oil come back to temperature between each one.
15. Set each hot ring on a plate and spoon a thick blanket of soured cream over it.
16. Spoon the jam over the cream and perch a small fried ball on top.
17. Dust with icing sugar and serve immediately, while the doughnut is still hot and the cream is cold.