Spudnuts (Donuts-revisited)

I posted a cake donuts recipe some time ago. This, on request of a friend, is a Doughnuts (includes yeast, makes a dough instead of a batter) recipe that makes REALLY GOOD doughnuts. They don't end up heavy, or too sweet, or greasy. They actually are quite a lot like fresh doughnuts from a doughnut shop. And they have less sugar than bread. Nutritionally, these doughnuts are the equivalent of cinnamon toast--almost all the sugar comes from what you put on top.

The original recipe, as I received it, made 9 DOZEN doughnuts. Since nobody I know needs that many or wants to stand and make that many, I have scaled the recipe down to make just a couple dozen. Just quadruple this recipe for the original.

Spudnuts

1/8 c + 2 tsp sugar
1/8 c shortening, melted
1 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 c mashed potatoes (made fresh or from flakes)
2 pkts yeast (if you quadruple the recipe, use just 7)
1/2 c hot water (for yeast, so not too hot)
1/8 tsp nutmeg or cinnamon
1 c milk, warmed to just hotter than room temp (for the yeast) or baby bathwater temp
3-4 c flour

Mix hot water with sugar. Add yeast and let it get active. Add salt, cinnamon or nutmeg, shortening, egg, potatoes, and milk. Mix well. Add flour until you get a heavy, slightly sticky dough. It should be very soft. Put dough in a large greased bowl. Microwave for 10 seconds. Turn dough over. Microwave 10 seconds more. Then cover lightly and let rise in warm place "until double"--30 minutes. Punch dough down and then roll out on a well-floured board to 1/4 - 1/2 inch. Cut into doughnut shapes using a biscuit cutter, cookie cutter, or canning jar ring and a water bottle top (these work well because you can blow through the top to get stuck doughnut holes out). Place doughnuts and holes on well-greased wax paper and let raise 30 minutes. When they are double in size, slip a greased spatula under them and carefully slip (or tip) into hot oil Fry until lightly browned. Flip once and fry until golden. Cool on paper towels. Shake in sugar or cinnamon sugar while hot, glaze while warm, or frost or shake in powdered sugar when cool. If you shake them in powdered sugar when they're warm, they'll look and act sort of glazed the next day. Sort of. Best if eaten right away, like all doughnuts.

Note on oil temps: I test the oil with bits of leftover dough. When it pops up bubbling almost immediately and turns golden fairly quickly, it's ready for doughnuts. They should cook fairly quickly. It's tricky to get it just right without an electric frying pan (which I don't have) or fryer (which I just got but haven't used for doughnuts yet). If they cook too quickly, they'll brown before the dough is cooked through. If they cook too slowly, they'll absorb grease.