American pastry chef Stephen Collucci, the head pastry chef at Colicchio & Sons in New York, has sold plenty of doughnuts in different shapes. [REUTERS/NEWS1]

NEW YORK - After tasting his aunt’s doughnuts when he was young at family Sunday dinners, Stephen Collucci was hooked.

Not only are they tasty, but doughnuts are fun, versatile and easy to make, Collucci says in his first book, “Glazed, Filled, Sugared & Dipped,” released on Tuesday.

Collucci, head pastry chef at Colicchio & Sons in New York, has sold plenty of these treats in different shapes, filling them with creams and jams and accompanying them with hot fudge or sour apple granita.

The 29-year-old New Jersey native spoke to Reuters about his passion for doughnuts and why it takes more skill and courage to make them than cupcakes.

Q. Why did you decide to write a book about doughnuts?

A. For me personally, it is a medium that best exhibits what I do. My whole philosophy about desserts and being in the kitchen is about having fun, indulge a bit and kind of escape. There’s just such a fun, playful nature with doughnuts.

What are your childhood memories about doughnuts?

I’m Italian and stereotypically, Sunday dinners are really big for my family. My best memories have always been around food and eating with my family. I have always been in the kitchen with my grandparents. I wanted to bring something different to the table.

I would make cookies and cupcakes. My aunt has this awesome apple cider doughnut recipe she makes every Sunday. I love them, so I learned how to make them. Those are the things I brought to the restaurant. I do a rendition of it in the restaurant. The recipe is based off the family favorite.

Compare making doughnuts versus, say, cupcakes.

There are more potential errors in making doughnuts, depending on which doughnut you are working with. You are using hot oil. There’s a little more danger and science involved. You don’t have to worry about having anything active or alive while making cupcakes. You need to pay attention to temperature.

What is your feeling about cronuts (a trendy hybrid of a croissant and a doughnut launched earlier this year)?

I haven’t actually tasted them for myself yet. I think it’s exciting. Dominique Ansel (the cronut’s creator) is a big inspiration for me and someone whom I really admire in the industry. Anything that draws attention to what pastry chefs and bakers are doing is great.

What kind of flavors and ingredients are you experimenting with right now at Colicchio & Sons?

Right now, we are getting a lot of stone fruits and a lot of berries. I have also been preparing a lot of stuff with herbs lately, like basil and lemon thyme and lavender here and there. I try to play with things that remind me of summer, like roasting marshmallows outside over a grill, so I’ve been thinking about a toasted marshmallow ice cream right now.

What is the favorite doughnut you like to make at home for yourself and your wife?

Zeppole is a big one. We make them here at the restaurant. It’s been a staple since we opened. I’ve made zeppoles since I was a little boy. My mother would throw pieces of pizza dough into the fryer and throw some powdered sugar on them. We would have our pizza or calzone dinner, then we would have our zeppoles. It’s no muss, no fuss. Really it takes 10 minutes to throw together, and you can’t really go wrong with them.

Reuters