Totally Sweet Chocolate-Filled Sufganiyot

This recipe was developed by New York City pastry chef Keyin Fulford, inspired by a recipe from Peace, Love and Chocolate. The recipe is reprinted here with permission from Divine Chocolate’s website. Photo credit: Rebecca Siegel via Creative Commons License.
Ingredients
- ¾ cup warm water
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for your work surface
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs, separated
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ cup raspberry jam
- ¼ cup Divine 70% Bittersweet or Milk Chocolate, broken into pieces
- Peanut oil, for frying
Preparation
- In a large metal bowl, stir together warm water and yeast. Let stand until foamy, around 5 to 7 minutes. Add ¾ cup flour, ¼ cup sugar and salt; mix until well combined. Add egg yolks and remaining 1¾ cups flour and vanilla extract. Mix until combined, then knead dough in bowl. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface; knead a few minutes until smooth. Knead in butter.
- Transfer dough to a well-oiled bowl; turn dough several times to coat entirely with oil. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.
- About 30 minutes before you’re ready to form doughnuts, remove dough from refrigerator to come to room temperature. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough into an 11-inch square about 1/8-inch thick. Using a 2-inch cookie cutter (or a glass), cut out about 24 rounds, dipping cutter in flour as needed to prevent sticking. Re-roll scraps and cut out about 16 more rounds.
- Line a baking sheet with a clean kitchen towel. In a small bowl, lightly beat egg whites. Brush edge of a dough round with egg white, then mount ½ teaspoon jam or chocolate bar pieces in center, or both. Top with another round and press edges to seal. Repeat process with remaining rounds. Transfer to prepared baking sheet; let doughnuts rise until puffy, 20 to 30 minutes.
- Heat a few inches of oil in a large (4- to 5-quart) heavy pot until it registers 360 degrees on a deep-fry thermometer or a scrap of dough sizzles upon contact. Working in batches of 4 to 5, carefully slip doughnuts into hot oil. Fry, turning once until golden brown, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer doughnuts to paper towels to drain.
- Place remaining ½ cup sugar in a medium bowl. While doughnuts are still hot, toss them in sugar, turning to coat. Serve immediately.