Brioche Donuts
Fluffy, flavoured with dreamy vanilla, these brioche donuts are to die for. They can be served plain or filled, however the mood takes you. They pair especially well with my dark chocolate ganache or with a creamy vanilla filling; jam is a classic, or why not go bold and try pistachio cream or gianduja? I’d love to see what you come up with!
There's something undeniably magical about the perfect donut. Soft, airy, and just the right amount of sweet, they have a way of brightening up any day.
Enter the brioche donut—a luxurious twist on the classic, combining the lightness of traditional donuts with the rich, buttery goodness of brioche bread. Imagine biting into a donut that’s not only fluffy but also has a depth of flavor and a tenderness that melts in your mouth.
While a little time consuming, this recipe come together rather easily and the rewards are absolutely to die for. The soft pillowy dough scented with vanilla always transports me to my childhood, my grandmother used to make them for me occasionally. She’d make a big batch for all the grandchildren and we’d all be covered in powdered sugar by the time we reached the bottom of the bowl (more like a hamper if you ask me).
The dough of these brioche donuts is based on my brioche dough recipe, just as rich with eggs and butter, but with tweaked quantities of salt and sugar and flavoured with warm vanilla. I was out of powdered sugar so sprinkled them with a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon instead, which proved to be just as delicious.
BRIOCHE DONUTS
Ingredients
(makes 10-12 donuts)
21g fresh yeast (or 7g active dry yeast)
2 large eggs
100g butter, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla paste
1/2 tsp salt
200ml lukewarm milk
500g flour
70g sugar
oil, for deep frying (high smoking point, I prefer peanut or canola)
Start by mixing together milk, yeast, sugar. Let proof for about 15 minutes.
Separately in a large bowl add flour and salt. Beat the eggs in a small bowl with the vanilla paste.
Add the milk mixture and eggs to the dry ingredients. Mix well until it forms a dough. You can use a stand mixer to knead (that’s what I do) or do it by hand.
Knead the dough for 8 minutes with the hook attachment in the stand mixer or 15 minutes by hand. Start incorporating the butter in small amounts (about 2 tbsp at a time) and continue kneading another 6 minutes (10 minutes by hand or so).
Place in an oiled bowl, cover with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place (I like to use the turned off oven) for about an hour or until doubled in size.
At this stage you can also put the dough in the fridge and let it rise for about 10-16 hours.
After the dough has risen, punch it to remove the air. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle, about 1 cm thick. With a glass or a cookie cutter, cut the dough into rounds.
Shape the remaining dough into a ball, roll it again and cut it. Repeat until no dough remains.
Cover the doughnuts with a clean tea towel and let rise another 45 minutes.
When ready to fry, heat the oil into a large dutch oven - you will need about a litre of oil for this. Bring it to about 180 degrees C (a small piece of dough dropped into the oil should rise to the surface and sizzle immediately) and fry the doughnuts in batches until golden brown on one side (2-3 minutes). Flip them and fry another 2 minutes on the other side. If they start browning too quickly, lower the heat and let the oil cool for a little while before dropping the next donuts in.
When cooked through remove to a plate lined with paper towels. I sprinkled these ones with sugar then couldn’t resist and cut a few in half and spread them with fresh chocolate ganache. You could also use a piping bag to fill them but I loved them also plain. The vanilla gives them an amazing flavour and the richness of the dough makes them delicious on their own.
I’d love to know if you make these and what you thought of them!