Official World War I Recipe: Salvation Army Doughnuts

The "official" recipe for Salvation Army doughnuts is below.

This is the recipe that Salvation Army workers would use during World War I and II when making large amounts of the doughnuts for hungry troops. To call the recipe "official" is something of a misnomer though, as the doughnuts have been made differently by various Army groups throughout the years. Even during the Wars, chefs would make dough with available ingredients to create a delicious doughnut.

Ingredients

7 1/2 cups sugar 3/4 cup lard 9 eggs 3 large cans evaporated milk 3 large cans water 18 cups all-purpose flour 18 teaspoons baking powder 7 1/2 teaspoons salt 9 teaspoons ground nutmeg

Directions

Cream sugar and lard together in a large bowl. Add and beat eggs into mixture. Combine evaporated milk and water. Add water mixture to creamed mixture. Mix flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg in large sieve and sift into wet ingredients. Add enough flour to make a stiff dough. Roll and cut. Five pounds of lard are required to fry the doughnuts.

This modified version of the traditional doughnut recipe is somewhat more appropriate for the modern home chef.

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 level teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon shortening

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 level teaspoon salt

1/4 level teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 level teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

Cooking oil or lard for deep frying

Reserve 1/4 cup of the flour for the board. Combine the remaining flour with the baking powder and set aside. Cream the shortening, 1/2 cup of the sugar, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. Add milk and well-beaten egg and stir. Then add the flour-baking powder mixture. Work into a soft dough and roll onto the floured board into a 1/4-inch thick sheet. Cut into the desired shape and fry in the oil, heated to about 375 degrees F. Turn doughnuts frequently while frying. The fat should be hot enough to give the doughnuts a rich golden-russet color in 3 minutes. While hot, roll doughnuts in remaining sugar. This recipe will make about 15 good sized doughnuts.

Yield: 15 doughnuts

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 3 minutes