Chocolate doughnuts

Sprinkle yeast over the milk
and set aside for 5 minutes, until
slightly foamy.

In a bowl, mix flour, sugar
and salt. Add egg, butter, vanilla
essence and the milk mixture
to form a dough. Put the rough
dough on a lightly floured surface
and knead until a soft ball starts
to form.

Put the dough in a lightly oiled
bowl and cover with clingfilm. Set
aside in a warm place for 1 hour
or until doubled in size.

Gently punch dough to remove
air. Divide it into 24 pieces. The
best way to do this is to divide
the dough into two halves, shape
each half into a log and cut each
log into 12 equal pieces. Roll
each piece into a ball and put
on a lightly oiled baking sheet.
Cover loosely with a warm, damp
cloth and set aside for 30 minutes,
or until doubled in size. 

In a large, deep saucepan, heat
oil. Carefully add doughnuts, a few
at a time. Fry until golden brown,
about 2 minutes on each side.
Remove doughnuts with a slotted
spoon and move to a paper
towel-lined plate.

CHOCOLATE GLAZE

Stir
sugar and half the water in a
saucepan over medium-high heat
until sugar dissolves.Then bring
to a boil and cook without stirring,
brushing away sugar crystals that
form on the sides of the pan with
a wet pastry brush, until a dark
caramel forms.

Remove from heat, add
remaining water, return to heat
and stir until smooth. Remove from
heat, add chocolate and salt.
Set aside for 5 minutes then add
cream and stir until smooth. Cool
briefly.

Spoon glaze over the doughnuts
and decorate with vermicelli and