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4.23 from 157 votes

Crème Brûlée Donuts

It may be the greatest creation in sweet tooth history: Crème Brûlée Donuts. Soft, pillowy, fried dough, a creamy custard center, all with crunchy caramel topping the entire affair.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Rising time2 hours
Total Time2 hours 40 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American, French
Keyword: creme brulee, custard, dessert, donuts
Servings: 15
Calories: 365kcal
Author: Nicole Beaulieu

Ingredients

Donuts

  • 1 cup milk lukewarm
  • 1 tbsp active dry yeast
  • 1/3 cup sugar granulated
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 4 tbsp butter softened
  • 4 1/4 cups flour all-purpose
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
  • vegetable oil for frying

Custard filling

  • 1/2 cup sugar granulated
  • 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
  • 3 tbsp cornstarch
  • 2 cups milk
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp butter unsalted

Brûlée

  • 1 cup sugar granulated
  • 1/4 cup water

Instructions

Dough

  • Whisk the milk, yeast, and 1 tsp of the sugar together. Let the mixture sit for 10-15 minutes until foamy. Add the egg yolks and vanilla to the yeast mixture. Stir well to combine.
  • Add the yeast mixture, flour, butter, salt, and remaining sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer. Attach the dough hook to the mixer and start on low speed, working up to medium speed to combine the dough. Knead for 5-10 minutes until the dough is soft and elastic.
  • Place the dough in a large, lightly greased mixing bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft-free environment for 1-2 hours, or until doubled in size.

Custard

  • Whisk the sugar, salt, and cornstarch together. Beat the egg yolks in a medium-sized mixing bowl just until smooth. Add the dry mixture to the egg yolks and continue to beat until combined and pale yellow, about 1 minute.
  • Heat the milk in a saucepan over medium-high heat until it comes to a bare simmer. Remove the pan from the heat and carefully ladle the milk into the egg yolk mixture while whisking to avoid lumps. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan, and return it to the stovetop over medium heat.
  • While continuously whisking, heat the mixture until bubbling and completely thickened. Remove the pot from the heat. Whisk the vanilla and butter into the custard until smooth, then transfer the custard to a bowl.
  • Cover the custard with plastic wrap, carefully pressing the plastic directly against the surface of the custard to avoid a skin forming. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until completely cooled.

Donuts

  • Punch the risen dough down and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough out until about 1/2" thick.
  • Use a 3" biscuit or cookie cutter to cut rounds from the dough. Knead the remaining dough back into a ball and continue to roll it out and cut rounds until you've used as much dough as you can.
  • Place the rounds on a lightly greased baking sheet, leaving about 1" of room between each round. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and allow them to rise for 20-30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
  • Heat the oil in a large pot to 360F. Carefully place the rounds into the hot oil, working in batches. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until golden brown, flip and cook for another minute or until golden. Remove the rounds with a slotted spoon and allow the donuts to drain on a paper towel-lined plate while you fry the rest.

Fill & Brûlée

  • Add the custard to a piping bag fitted with a piping tip. Insert a skewer or chopstick into each donut to create a pocket inside for the custard. Insert the tip of your piping bag into a donut and fill with custard. Repeat with the remaining donuts and custard.
  • Add the sugar and water for the caramel (brûlée) to a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Once the mixture starts bubbling, reduce the heat to medium. Heat the sugar, giving the pan a gentle swirl occasionally, until it turns golden. Take the pan off the heat and swirl the pan until the color deepens slightly.
  • Working very carefully, dip the top of each donut into the caramel. Wear a glove for extra protection on your hands. Lift the donut from the caramel and tilt it, away from your fingers, to let the excess drip for a few seconds, then place the donut aside to let it cool.
  • Repeat with the remaining donuts. If you find the caramel in the pot is getting too stiff, return it to the heat, swirling the pan, until it warms up and becomes less viscous.

Notes

Be careful! The caramel is VERY HOT. Wear a glove to protect your hand while dipping the donuts in the caramel.
The nutritional information includes an estimate of 1 tsp oil that each donut will absorb while frying.
Nutritional information is an estimate and may vary depending on the ingredients you use.
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Nutrition

Calories: 365kcal | Carbohydrates: 56g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 108mg | Sodium: 377mg | Potassium: 114mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 342IU | Calcium: 72mg | Iron: 2mg