Maple Doughnuts

• 8g or 1/4 oz of dry yeast
• 1/2 cup of warm water
• 1 cup of milk
• 3 tablespoons of melted butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 3/4 cup of maple sugar
• 4 cups of flour
• 2 cups of maple syrup (preferably very dark syrup for its strong flavour)

1. Dissolve the yeast in warm water in a bowl. Cover and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Heat the milk until it boils and pour into a large bowl. Add butter, salt and maple sugar and mix until dissolved. Add the yeast mixture.
3. Add half of the flour and mix using a beater. Stir in the eggs. Gradually add the rest of the flour until the dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl.
4. Place the dough on a floured surface and knead adding more flour if it is sticky.
5. Place in a buttered bowl and let rise until it doubles in size, for approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes.
6. Knead for another minute and let rise for 30 minutes.
7. On a floured surface, roll out the dough using a rolling-pin to a thickness of 1 cm (3/8 in). Let rise for 10 minutes.
8. Preheat oil in a deep fryer to 190 °C (375 °F).
9. Form the doughnuts into desired shapes and drop into the oil.
10. Meanwhile, bring the maple syrup to a boil in a pan. Once the doughnuts are golden in colour, remove from oil and place in the maple syrup. For a strong maple flavour, let the doughnuts sit in the hot mixture for 2 minutes. Place the doughnuts on a cooling rack and let cool. Decorate.