Brioche Doughnuts with Strawberry Jam & Vanilla Bean Custard
These Brioche Doughnuts are pillowy soft and filled with a homemade rhubarb strawberry jam and creamy vanilla bean custard for a summer dessert that is perfect for hosting!
Ingredients you’ll need:
- active dry yeast
- bread flour (or all purpose flour)
- granulated cane sugar
- salt
- vanilla extract
- eggs
- lemon zest
- unsalted butter
- strawberry rhubarb jam
- vanilla bean custard
TIPS for Making Brioche Doughnuts:
- There’s nothing more frustrating than dough that doesn’t rise! Make sure you allow yourself plenty of time to let the dough rise the next day before you fry the dough.
- The parchment paper trick is game changing! Allow your shaped doughnuts to rise on individual squares of parchment paper to help you transfer them into the frying oil.
- Use a candy thermometer to check your frying oil temperature! Doughnuts can be finicky when it comes to baking them. If your oil is too hot, they will still turn out pretty but their insides will still be a bit doughy. If you underbake them, they’ll absorb too much oil and not be as crisp on the outside. That’s why having a thermometer to keep the oil at 350F – 360F is so important.
Can you Store Homemade Brioche Doughnuts?
Yes, you can store leftover homemade brioche doughnuts, but they are best enjoyed fresh on the same day they are fried. You can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1-2 days.
How to make regular glazed donuts:
Krispy Kreme who?! You can use this recipe to make classic-styled donuts with one simple change at the shaping step. Instead of dividing the donuts outs into individual balls, you’ll roll out the entire dough to 1/2″ thick rectangle, then use a 3-4″ cookie cutter to cut out each doughnut. Then, use a 1″ cookie cutter for the centers and keep them to make donut holes!
After frying (as normal), you’ll transfer to a wire rack (without paper towels) to cool to touch. Then, dip in a glaze and place back on the wire rack to set (about 10-15 minutes).
For the vanilla glazer, combine 1.5 cups powdered sugar, 2-3 tablespoons hot milk (to set crisper), and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste. Mix until a thick, runny glaze.
Bake with me!
Brioche Doughnuts with Strawberry Jam & Vanilla Bean Custard
Ingredients
For the Brioche Doughnuts:
- 2 1/2 tsp. Active Dry Yeast
- 1/4 cup + 1 cup Warm Water, or warm whole milk
- 1 tsp. + 1/4 cup Granulated Cane Sugar
- 5 – 5 1/2 cups Bread Flour, or all purpose flour
- 4 large Eggs
- Zest of 1 Lemon
- 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
- 1/2 cup Softened Unsalted Butter cubed
- Strawberry Rhubarb Jam, for filling*
For the Vanilla Bean Custard:
- 3 Egg Yolks
- 1/4 cup Granulated Cane Sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp. Cornstarch
- ¼ tsp. Fine Sea Salt
- 1 cup Whole Milk
- 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
- 3 tbsp. Cold Butter
Instructions
For the Brioche Doughnuts:
- To Make the Dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment, or you can use a mixing bowl to knead by hand, combine the active dry yeast with 1/4 cup warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar. Mix and let bloom for 5-10 minutes, until foamy on top.
- Add the remaining water, sugar, flour, salt, vanilla, eggs, and lemon zest. Knead on LOW speed for 2 minutes.
- Increase speed to Medium to gradually add in the cubed softened butter. Knead for 5-6 minutes, until the dough pulls away from the bowl. The dough will be on the sticky side.
- First Rise: Transfer the dough to a very large bowl greased with olive oil. Cover and let rise in a warm environment for 1-2 hours, until doubled in size.
- Second Rise: Punch down the dough, cover again with Saran Wrap, and place in the fridge overnight.
- Shaping the Doughnuts: The next day, divide the dough out into 15-16 evenly sized pieces.
- Cut a bunch of parchment paper square pieces to place the doughnuts on as they rise. The squares should be about 5×5″ big.
- Roll each dough piece into a tight ball and place on its own parchment square.
- Final Rise: Let the doughnuts rise 3-4 hours, until double in size.
- Frying the Doughnuts: Heat up 5-6" of frying oil in a saucepan over medium heat to 350F.
- Set a bowl of fine granulated cane sugar to the side of your frying pan.
- Working in small batches, transfer the doughnuts into the frying oil on their parchment square. Jiggle the parchment out from underneath to remove. Fry the doughnuts about 2-3 minutes, until you see the bottoms are golden. Flip using two forks to fry another minute or so, until golden on the other side.
- Immediately roll the doughnuts in the sugar before placing on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once they’ve cooled at least 20 minutes, you can pipe your favorite fillings inside like the vanilla bean custard and rhubarb strawberry jam.
For the Vanilla Bean Custard:
- TIP: Prep this either the night before or a few hours prior to serving the croissants.
- In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar for 1 minute. Add the cornstarch and salt. Whisk until smooth.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add the milk to heat just until steaming. Remove from heat.
- Ladle a few tablespoons of the hot milk into the egg yolks, whisking immediately to help temper the eggs. Continue to gradually whisk in the milk until you’ve used half of the hot milk.
- Transfer the tempered egg yolks into the saucepan with the remaining hot milk. Stir over medium heat until thickened, about 3-4 minutes.
- Remove from heat to pour into a mixing bowl. Stir in the butter and vanilla until very smooth. Cover with saran wrap and let cool in the fridge at least 2 hours to overnight.
Notes
I truly hope you all enjoy this treasured recipe that has nestled its way into our hearts here in the ABM kitchen! ’till next time… xxL
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” ~ Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
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Hi Lauren, I made these donuts and they turned out so good! I just had to make them twice because I realized the step to include the butter was not included in the instructions… I cried a lot after realizing it was missing the first time I tried to make them, but was happy when I finally got to enjoy the donuts. Thanks!
Hi Sam! I’m so happy you loved the donuts, but I’m also SO sorry for the confusion with the butter!! I know that feeling and truly feel terrible. But I’m glad you gave them a second chance 🙂
When should we add the butter?
Hi Maggie! You add the softened butter to the dough as the very last ingredient. 🙂
These were absolutely amazing and turned out beautifully! They were pillowy, light, and incredibly soft — honestly some of the best doughnuts I’ve ever eaten. My family couldn’t believe I had made them. My only suggestion would be to include the measurements in grams as well, since it makes it much easier to get accurate results. I’ll definitely be making these again. The vanilla bean custard was incredible, and I paired it with some raspberry jam I had on hand, which complemented it perfectly.
WOW! I’ve just finished making them, and I have no words…these are ADDICTING! The dough is sooo soft and fluffy, even though I was a bit afraid about it, since I haven’t finished reading the recipe, and halfway through I realized you need to leave the dough in the fridge overnight…But nevertheless they came out perfect! The combination of rhubarb strawberry jam and custard is simply mouth-watering. What I also really like is that the dough is fluffy, but the sugar on top makes it crunchy. This combo is divine! I think I fell in love with this recipe ( ≧∀≦)ノ
10/10: thanks from the UK! God bless