Bulgarian donuts are like regular donuts. The main difference is that yogurt is used instead of milk.

It gives them a sourer note and I decided to add a bit of lemon zest for extra flavour too. Unlike regular donuts though they are eaten with jam on the side or as I had them drizzled with a delicious berry sauce for a plated breakfast treat.

You can use this recipe to make regular donuts too. Simply fry them after the final proof without stretching them out. And then you can fill them or dust them with sugar.

But it is well worth trying the Bulgarian way. I never imagined eating donuts with a knife and fork covered with a berry sauce. Call it fancy pancakes! ?

The best part is that the blackberry sauce got absorbed by the donuts making them super juicy. You can use any berries you like. A generous dusting of icing sugar is a must to finish them off too.

This recipe makes 12 donuts. That should be enough for 3 – 4 people. The sauce I made was just about enough for 2 portions, so you may want to double up on that.

Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.

Ingredients

For the dough –

250g (8.8oz) strong white bread flour

25g (0.9oz) sugar

3g (0.1oz) salt

20g (0.7oz) soft butter

4g (0.14oz) instant dry yeast or 4.8g (0.16oz) active dry yeast or 12g (0.42oz) fresh yeast

1 lemon worth of zest

1 egg, around 50g (1.75oz), cold*

100g (3.5oz) yogurt, cold*

*To learn more about dough temperature control click here.

For the berry sauce –

100g (3.5oz) blackberries

1g (0.03oz) cinnamon

20g (0.7oz) butter

20g (0.7oz) honey

Pinch of salt

Icing sugar & mint leaves to garnish

Vegetable oil for frying

Method

1. In a bowl combine the yogurt, egg, yeast, salt, sugar, butter, and lemon zest. Mix well to dissolve any large sugar and salt crystals and to hydrate the yeast.
2. Add the flour and mix to a dough.
3. Tip the dough out on your table and knead it for 5 minutes. *Desired dough temperature 25 – 26C (77-79F). If your dough is warmer, then it will ferment more rapidly. If it is cooler, then it will take longer. Adjust proofing time accordingly.
4. Ferment for 2 – 2.5 hours or until almost doubled in volume.
5. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Shape into balls.
6. Cover and ferment for 1 – 1.5 hours or until well puffed up. During the final 10 minutes of fermentation preheat your oil to 160C – 170C (320F – 340F).
7. Stretch the dough balls and drop them in the hot oil. Fry for 4 – 5 minutes flipping halfway through. Be careful when working with large quantities of hot oil. Do not get distracted by kids or pets because that is how accidents happen. I would suggest getting everyone out of the kitchen when you are doing this.
8. Drain the donuts on some kitchen paper or on a rack.
9. To make the berry sauce combine the butter, honey, cinnamon, and salt in a small pan. Place it on a medium-high heat and bring up to a boil. Add the berries and keep cooking whist stirring occasionally for another 3 minutes. It is better to keep them intact as you get another texture instead of just a smooth jam.
10. Cover your donuts with a generous helping of berry sauce, dust them with a thick layer of icing sugar, sprinkle some mint leaves and tuck in!

And check out some more Baking World Tour videos.

Keep in mind that the conditions in each kitchen are different, so fermentation times may vary for you. It is up to the baker to control the bread and react accordingly.

I have said it before, and I will say it again – brioche is such as versatile dough.

You can use it for sweet or savoury dishes. Burger buns, croissants, German brioche cakes, hot dog buns, and of course donuts! The best part is that it is super easy to make. This recipe uses half of my brioche base dough recipe 550g (1.2lb). That will make 12 donuts. You could make the whole amount and perhaps use half for donuts and the other half for another brioche project.

Make the brioche dough, then refrigerate it overnight as I demonstrate in my brioche base recipe, and then use it for this or any other brioche recipe.

Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.

Ingredients

550g (1.2lb) brioche dough that has been cold proofed.

Vegetable or sunflower oil for frying

Caster sugar for dusting

For the filling –

500g (1.1lb) frozen or fresh strawberries

200g (7oz) sugar

Method

1. In a pot combine the strawberries and sugar. Cook on medium heat for around 15 minutes or until nice and thick. Break the strawberries up so that it would be easier to squeeze them through the piping bag nozzle later. Once the jam is done pour it into a bowl and leave on the side to cool down completely.
2. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and preshape into balls. Let them rest for 1 hour.
3. After the first hour of resting shape the dough balls again. Place them on a tray and cover with cling film. Ferment for 1.5 – 2 hours or until almost doubled in size.
4. Fry the donuts in hot oil at 160C (320F) for around 2 – 2.5 minutes per side.
5. Toss them in sugar as soon as they come out of the oil. Place on a rack to cool
6. Leave the donuts to cool down completely. After they have cooled down shake off any excess sugar.
7. Using a chopstick or a skewer poke a hole in each donut. Fill them up with jam and enjoy!

I love donuts! And these ones are some of the best homemade donuts ever.

The simplicity of the recipe for the dough as well as the custard really makes this something you should try. The donuts are super soft and fluffy, fragrant, and sweet. The custard is simple, yet delicious and smooth. The two work together perfectly. You can fill them with jam or ganache if you prefer that. The main part is the dough itself.

This recipe makes 12 donuts. Multiply the amount of ingredients to make more.

Oil temperature is extremely important for this to work. I recommend heating it up on a low heat setting as this will prevent it getting too hot. If your oil is hotter than 160C (320F), then I would recommend waiting until it cools down a bit.

Also, keep in mind that placing a lot of donuts in the oil at once will cool it down. The best practice is to fry one donut to see how it goes, and only then start dropping in more at once.

Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.

Ingredients

For the dough –

300g (10.6oz) strong white bread flour

30g (1oz) sugar

2g (0.07oz) salt

4g (0.14oz) dry yeast or 3x the amount of fresh yeast

1 egg yolk

30g (1oz) butter

5g (0.17oz) vanilla paste

160g (5.6oz) cold milk

To learn more about dough temperature control click here.

For the filling –

200g milk (7oz)

100g double cream (3.45oz)

2 egg yolks

40g sugar (1.4oz)

20g corn starch (0.5oz)

5g (0.17oz) vanilla paste

1 lemon worth of zest

50g (1.75oz) extra double cream to finish the filling

150g (5.3oz) sugar mixed with 1 lemon worth of zest for rolling the donuts in

Neutral oil for frying

Method

1. Make the filling by mixing the egg yolk, vanilla paste, sugar, and cornflour in a bowl until smooth. Boil the milk and cream in a pot, turn down the heat and slowly pour in the egg yolk mix whilst whisking vigorously. Keep cooking for around 2 minutes on low heat. Take off the heat and whisk in the lemon zest. Scrape the filling into a bowl, cover with clingfilm and let it cool down completely. Once cooled, whisk the remaining 60g (2oz) of double cream until just thickening and mix with the custard. Scoop it all in a piping bag ready for filling the donuts.
2. In a bowl combine the milk, yeast, salt, sugar, vanilla, butter & egg yolk. Mix well to dissolve the sugar & hydrate the yeast.
3. Add the flour mix to a dough. Tip it out on the table and knead it for 6 minutes. Desired dough temperature 25 – 26C (77-79F). If your dough is cooler it may take longer to ferment. If it is warmer it will take less time. Adjust the proofing time accordingly.
4. Cover and ferment for 1 hour.
5. Fold.
6. Ferment for 1 hour.
7. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces & preshape.
8. Rest for 15 minutes.
9. Final shape. Place the dough balls on a greased tray.
10. Cover and ferment for 1 – 1.5 hours or until doubled.
11. Carefully fry the donuts in 160C (320F) hot oil. They should take around 90 seconds per side.
12. Toss the donuts in the lemon sugar as soon as they come out of the oil. Leave to cool down completely.
13. Pipe in the filling and enjoy!