These Creme Brûlée Brioche Doughnuts are the perfect combination of flavors and textures. Soft and fluffy brioche doughnuts filled with silky smooth pastry cream and topped with a hard sugar shell. It’s a match made in dessert heaven.
Doughnuts are one of my favorite desserts. They are really the perfect package – soft and fluffy, and super versatile. If you have tried my Brioche Doughnuts, you know that they are better than any regular old doughnuts. They are made with an enriched dough (heavy in fat) that results in a softer and more flavorful doughnut compared to a regular doughnut dough.
These Creme Brûlée Doughnuts, though, take it to a whole new level. The fluffy doughnuts are filled with a silky smooth vanilla pastry cream that replicates the custard part of a regular creme brûlée and topped with a crisp sugar shell that replicates the crispy sugar top.
The three components paired together create a truly magical dessert. It’s a party in your mouth with different textures and flavors. It’s definitely up there in my list of favorite desserts.
The best part about these doughnuts is that although they look very gourmet and sophisticated, they really aren’t that hard to make, especially if you know how to work with dough. Each component is simple to make, and the pastry cream and doughnut day can be made a day ahead to make your life a lot easier.
Let’s get into the details of each component.
Brioche Doughnuts
As I mentioned earlier, these doughnuts are made with an enriched dough, which means a dough that has a high fat percentage. This leads to a softer and fluffier doughnut.
The dough is made with simple ingredients – butter, caster sugar, egg, milk, yeast, flour, and salt, and comes together easily, especially if you have a stand mixer.
Pastry Cream
Pastry cream or Creme Patisserie or Custard represents the custard part of a classic creme brûlée. It’s a rich, luscious custard cream with mild sweetness and silky soft texture that pairs perfectly with the sweet and crisp sugar shell on top.
The pastry cream is made with only four ingredients – milk, vanilla, egg yolks, caster sugar, corn flour, and butter. The corn flour helps thicken the custard and gives it the perfect texture.
Here’s are the steps for making the vanilla pastry cream.
- In a saucepan, add the milk and vanilla and heat on medium flame until it starts boiling, mixing often so that the milk does not burn or stick to the pan.
- In another bowl, add the egg yolks, caster sugar, and corn flour and whisk until the mixture is pale and creamy.
- Once the milk starts boiling, pour half of it into the egg mixture while whisking. This process is called tempering the eggs, and it helps the egg get used to the hot temperature and stop it from scrambling when it’s added to the remaining milk in the saucepan.
- Return the egg mixture to the remaining milk in the saucepan and cook it on medium-low heat while whisking continuously. Whisk until the mixture thickens, about 3-5 minutes. The custard should coat the back of the spoon.
- Remove from heat then add the butter and whisk until melted and combined. Transfer to a bowl and cover it with cling film, making sure the plastic is touching the surface of the cream to stop a milk skin from forming on top. Let it chill for at least one hour before using.
- The pastry cream can be made a day ahead and refrigerated overnight. make sure to whisk it before using to smoothen it out.
- Once the doughnuts have been fried and cooled, transfer the pastry cream into a piping or ziplock bag. make a hole in the center of the doughnut and pipe the cream until the doughnut feels full and heavy.
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Caramel
The caramel which makes the crisp sugar shell on top is the most important part of these doughnuts, it’s what makes them “creme brûlée”. Without it, they are just custard-filled doughnuts.
The caramel is made with only two ingredients – sugar and water. Although it’s simple to make, there are a few things to keep in mind. So let’s go through the steps for making the caramel
- Place the sugar and water in a saucepan but do not mix it using a spoon as this may cause crystallization of the sugar. Gently swirl the pan to make sure that all the sugar is covered with water.
- Cook the caramel on medium high heat, swirling the pan around every few minutes. In 10-15 minutes, the caramel will start turning amber, keep a very close eye on it from this step as it can burn very quickly.
- Once the liquid turns amber, immediately coat the top of the filled doughnuts in it. Place it in the center then swirl it around, then pick it up and flick the doughnut gently to get rid of any excess. Try not to create multiple layers of the caramel as this will make the sugar shell thick and difficult to break through, Be very careful during this process as the caramel will be very hot. I highly recommend wearing gloves.
- If the caramel stars setting in the pan or becomes too thick, place it on the heat until it softens and continue using. You can melt it a few times without any problem.
- Let the caramel set completely before cracking it.
Note: The sugar shell will soften over time, so I recommend doing this step just before serving the doughnuts.
So, ready to make the best doughnuts of your life? Let’s get started!
PS: I always measure ingredients in grams, never in cups. Using a measuring scale is the only way to bake accurately. Cups are unreliable and can give different measurements, so I suggest you buy a measuring scale before you start baking! If you can’t get your hands on one, you can use the online tools for converting grams into cups; however, I do not guarantee their accuracy.
Creme Brûlée Brioche Doughnuts
Equipment
- Stand mixer with whisk and dough attachment optional, but recommended
- Hand whisk
- Rolling Pin
- 7cm round cookie cutter or any cookie cutter of your choice
- Baking paper
- Saucepan for deep frying
- piping bags
Ingredients
Brioche Doughnuts
- 2 eggs
- 50 grams caster sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 10 grams instant yeast
- 240 ml warm milk
- 170 grams butter melted
- 560 grams all-purpose flour
- 300 ml vegetable oil for frying
Vanilla Pastry Cream
- 60 grams egg yolks around 4
- 72 grams caster sugar
- 30 grams cornflour
- 300 ml full-fat milk
- 2 tsp vanilla essence or 1 vanilla bean
- 30 grams unsalted butter
Caramel
- 200 grams white granulated sugar
- 65 ml water
Instructions
Brioche Doughnuts
- Add the eggs, sugar, and salt in a bowl. If using stand mixer, use the whisk attachment and whisk until combined, or use a hand whisk.2 eggs, 50 grams caster sugar, 1 tablespoon salt
- In a separate bowl, mix the warm milk with instant yeast. Make sure the milk isn’t too hot as that will kill the yeast. Add the milk mixture into the eggs and whisk until combined.10 grams instant yeast, 240 ml warm milk
- Add the melted butter and whisk again, then add half the flour and mix until you have a thick batter-like consistency.170 grams butter melted, 560 grams all-purpose flour
- Add the remaining flour and switch to the dough attachment (if using a stand mixer) and knead on medium speed for 5-10 mins until the dough forms a soft ball and starts climbing the dough hook. If not using a stand mixer, start kneading by hand and knead for 10-15 minutes until the dough forms a smooth ball.
- Transfer the dough ball to an oiled bowl, cover with cling wrap and let it rest and rise in the fridge for three hours. The dough should double in size during this time. You can also let it rest overnight, for 12-16 hours.
- Transfer the dough ball to a floured surface, knead it for 2-3 minutes until smooth, then roll it to 1.5 cm thickness. Make sure that the thickness in even throughout the dough.
- Flour the cookie cutter and cut circles out of the dough and place them on baking paper. Tip: cut the baking paper into small square pieces and place each doughnut on a piece. This will make it easier to pick up and transfer the doughnut into the frying pan.
- Cover the doughnuts loosely with a towel or cling film and let them rise in a warm place for 30-45 minutes until they double in size. Meanwhile, heat the oil to 170 degrees celsius.
- Once the doughnuts have risen and the oil is hot, cook them for 3 minutes on each side until golden brown. To make sure they are cooked through, poke one doughnut with a toothpick or small knife – it should come out clean.300 ml vegetable oil for frying
- Transfer the doughnuts on a paper towel to absorb the excess oil and let them cool down before filling.
Vanilla Pastry Cream
- Bring the milk and vanilla to a boil in a saucepan on medium heat. While it boils, whisk the egg yolks, caster sugar, and corn flour in a separate bowl until they’re pale and creamy.60 grams egg yolks, 72 grams caster sugar, 300 ml full-fat milk, 2 tsp vanilla essence, 30 grams cornflour
- Once the milk starts boiling, temper the egg mixture by adding half of it to the egg yolk mix and whisking it continuously. This introduces eggs to some heat before they are transferred to the saucepan, reducing the chances of them scrambling over the heat.
- Transfer the egg yolk and milk mixture back to the saucepan with the remaining milk mixture on medium heat. Keep whisking continuously until the custard starts to thicken, about 2 minutes. Once the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon, remove it from the heat, add the butter, and whisk until properly combined. Transfer the custard into a bowl and cover it with cling film, making sure that it directly touches the surface to avoid a milk film forming on top. Let it chill for at least 1 hour before using.30 grams unsalted butter
- Transfer the set cream to a piping bag and use a small knife to create a hole in the middle of the doughnut, Place the piping bag inside the doughnut hole and pipe the cream until the doughnut feels full and heavy.
Caramel
- In a saucepan, add the sugar and water and gently swirl it around to cover all the sugar with water. Do not use a spoon to mix at any step or the sugar may crystalize.200 grams white granulated sugar, 65 ml water
- Cook the mixture on medium heat until it starts turning golden, swirling every few minutes. Cook until the caramel is amber, keeping a close eye not to burn it.
- Keep the doughnuts filled and ready to be topped before the caramel is ready. Once it’s ready, immediately place the doughnuts int he pan and swirl them around, covering the entire topside of the doughnut. Pick it up and gently flick it to get rid of any excess.
- Try not to create multiple layers of the caramel or it will result in a thick sugar shell that will be hard to break.
- If the sugar starts setting, place it back on medium low heat until It softens again. You can melt it a few times throughout the process so that the caramel layer does not become too thick.
- Let the doughnuts rest at room temperature until the caramel is completely set, then crack through and enjoy.
Notes
- The doughnuts can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to two days.
- The pastry cream can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to four days.
- I recommend not filling the doughnuts until just before serving.
- The doughnut dough can be made a day before and fermented overnight before forming the doughnuts, as mentioned in step 5.
- The vanilla pastry cream can be made a night before and stored in the fridge in an airtight container.
- Make sure the milk is not hot when mixing it with yeast as that will kill the yeast and your dough will not rise. The milk should be lukewarm, around 30-35 degrees celsius.
- Knead the dough until it forms a completely smooth ball with just a little stickiness.
- When rolling the dough, make sure to properly flour the surface and the rolling pin to avoid it from sticking.
- Do not roll out the dough thicken than 1.5-2cm or the doughnuts will become too big and misshapen after rising.
- The dough should have even thickness all across or your doughnuts will have uneven thickness.
- Cut baking paper into small squares and place each individual doughnut on it. This makes it easy to pick the doughnut and transfer it to the frying pan without disturbing the rise of the dough.
- Make sure the oil is at the right temperature before adding the doughnuts into it. If you don’t have a thermometer, heat it until it’s very hot the way you would for deep frying potato fries.
- You will have to reduce and increase the heat throughout the cooking process, make sure to keep it balanced so that the doughnuts get cooked from inside and not just browned from outside.
- Keep an eye on the doughnuts and don’t let them get too dark.
- If your dough does not rise, it means that your yeast is dead. In this case, buy new yeast and make sure the milk isn’t too hot.
- If the doughnuts come out dry, it means you have overcooked them.
- Make sure the doughnuts have completely cooled down before filling or the heat will melt the custard.
- Make the caramel when the doughnuts are filled and ready as the sugar sets very quickly.
- If the caramel begins to thicken, place it on the heat for a minute until it softens again. You can melt the caramel a few times through the process to avoid the caramel from thickening as that would lead to a thicker sugar shell on the doughnuts.
- For best experience, serve the doughnuts immediately after the sugar shell is set as the caramel will soften over time.
I am very excited for you to try this recipe because it’s one of the best things you will make! Trust me on this.
If you give this recipe a try, let me know how you liked it in the comments. And of course, share it with me on Instagram.
Until next time!
