Custard Cream and Jam Doughnuts

Fluffy, sugar rolled, doughnuts filled with a custard pastry cream and blackberry red currant jam – these Custard Cream and Jam Doughnuts are everything you want and need.

Instant Yeast vs. Active Dry Yeast?

I prefer using instant yeast because it tends to work more quickly. That being said, fresh or active dry yeast will work too! The amount of active dry yeast is the same as the instant but the weight of fresh will need to be converted. I haven’t tried these with sourdough starter but I would recommend letting the dough rest in the fridge overnight if you use starter.

How do I know when the dough has been kneaded long enough?

The way to know if your doughnut dough has kneaded long enough is first to watch it, knead it until a smooth ball forms. Then pull off a small piece of dough and stretch it – it should stretch a bit, not snap and look shaggy. If it snaps or tears immediately, keep kneading.

Can these be made in advance?

I recommend frying them on the same day you plan to eat them. However, the dough can be made the night before, covered and stored in the fridge. Then proceed with shaping, proofing, and frying the doughnuts per the instructions.

Can I use store bought jam?

Yes of course you can use store bought jam instead of a homemade jam but I prefer to make it from scratch because you can use less sugar and keep a more tart fresh flavor to balance out the sweet cream. If using store bought jam I would use a raspberry or black currant jam for the best flavor!

Additional Recipes to try:

• Old Fashioned Cake Doughnuts
• Pink Sprinkle Donuts
• Quarkbällchen

Tips for making Fried Doughnuts

• Make sure all dough ingredients are at room temperature. Make sure to knead the dough until a smooth ball forms. Then pull off a small piece of dough and stretch it – it should stretch a bit, not snap and look shaggy. If it snaps or tears immediately, keep kneading.
• The dough should get nice and puffy during the first proof but note that it will depend a lot on how warm your room is! In the summer it takes my dough 20-30 minutes to rise whereas in the winter it’s closer to an hour.
• I use a heavy cast iron dutch oven for frying because the dense material helps the oil heat evenly and the tall sides keep oil from splattering. A thermometer is also key when frying to make sure the oil is at the right temperature.
• Once shaped, place the doughnuts on lightly floured squares of parchment paper. This makes it easy to handle them once they are soft and fluffy and allows them to be easily transferred into the fry oil.
• It is important to fry the donuts between 350 F and 360 F. I find that 350 F is the best temperature that allows the center to be fully cooked without the outside burning. To keep the oil at the temperature be sure to keep a thermometer in the oil and I recommend heating it to 360 F. Then add in the donuts and the temperature will drop to around 350F.
• Roll the doughnuts in sugar immediately after frying to ensure that is sticks to the doughnuts.
• Make sure you let the custard cool all the way before folding in the whipped cream and filling the doughnuts.
• Do your best not to overfill the doughnuts, but I’m not a great example because I always do. Basically start with way less cream than you think and then you can always add more after you add the jam.

Ingredients

• Lemon Zest: Any type of orange or lemon will work, all you need is the zest to add flavor into the dough. Be sure to wash it first!
• All Purpose Flour: Any all purpose flour will work for these! I have not yet tried any other flours with this recipe.
• Eggs: I use standard large eggs from the store. This recipe uses one full egg and one egg yolk. The egg yolk adds extra richness to the rolls.
• Sugar: This recipe uses sugar in the dough as well as on the outside for texture and flavor. Plus sugar in the jam and custard cream filling.
• Milk: The doughnuts use milk as the liquid in the dough; however, they will also work with non-dairy milks such as almond or light coconut milk. There is also milk in the custard cream!
• Butter: The butter adds moisture to the dough as well as makes it softer and adds richness to the custard cream. It’s important that the butter is at room temperature, otherwise it will cool down the dough and be difficult to incorporate.
• Yeast: In this recipe, either active dry or instant yeast will work.
• Vanilla extract: Vanilla extract is used in the dough and vanilla bean paste is used in the cream filling but you can use vanilla extract for both.
• Sea Salt: Fine sea salt enhances the flavors in the dough and the cream filling.
• Vegetable Oil: Vegetable oil or Canola oil are used to fry the doughnuts, I believe avocado oil may work as well but I haven’t tested it.
• Corn Starch: Starch helps thicken the custard to make it stiff enough to fill the doughnuts.
• Heavy Cream: Cold heavy whipping cream becomes whipped cream to add a bit of fluff to the cream filling.
• Blackberries & Red Currants: Blackberries and red currants make the perfect jam in my opinion but you can also do blackberries and raspberries!

How to make Custard Cream & Jam Doughnuts

Blackberry Red Currant Jam filling

• In a medium sauce pot add in the blackberries and red currants along with the sugar. Cover the pot and put it over medium low heat. If you are using raspberries, cut the sugar down to 40 grams.
• Cook for 5-10 minutes until the juices begin to release. Remove the lid and stir occasionally to keep the jam from burning.
• Continue to cook until the liquid reduces and the bubbles go from being thin and watery to thick. About 10 minutes.
• Once cooked, remove the pot from the heat and pour the jam into a large shallow dish. Leave the jam to cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally. The jam can also be made in advance and stored in the fridge.

Custard Cream filling

• In a medium pot, whisk together the corn starch and 100 grams of sugar. Then pour in the milk and whisk to combine. Add in the egg yolks, salt, vanilla, and whisk once more.
• Place the pot over medium low heat and whisk constantly scraping the bottom and edges of the pot. It will feel like it’s taking a while but all of a sudden it’ll get really thick so don’t stop whisking. *It will get really thick, don’t stress.
• Once thick, remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the butter until smooth.
• Pour the pudding through a fine mesh sieve into a large shallow bowl or on a quarter sized baking sheet. Cover the surface with a layer of plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming.

Make the dough

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, add in the sugar and lemon zest. Rub the zest into the sugar with your fingers to release the oils.
• Pour in the flour and yeast and whisk it all together.
• Warm the milk until it is just warm to the touch – it should not exceed 100 degrees F.
• Add in the warmed milk, egg and egg yolk, salt, and vanilla extract. Knead the mixture with the dough hook on the stand mixer for 10-15 minutes on low speed until it is smooth and the bowl is clean. Add in the soft butter and knead again until smooth, the dough should stretch and not just snap.
• Remove the dough and shape it into a ball. Lightly grease the mixing bowl that you were just using and place the ball of dough back in. Then cover the bowl with a towel or plastic and place somewhere warm for 30-45 min. The dough should double in size.
• At this point, you could also cover the dough with plastic and place it in the fridge overnight.

Shape the Doughnuts

• Line a baking sheet or tray with a sheet of parchment paper and a generous sprinkling of flour.
• After the dough has doubled in size, dump it out onto a lightly floured counter or work surface. Sprinkle the top with flour and use flat hands or a rolling pin to gently press the air out.
• Divide the dough into 12 equal portions. You can weigh the dough first and then divide the total amount by 12 and that is how much each portion should weigh.
• Working one portion at a time, pat the dough into a flat disk – about 3″ in diameter. Going in a clockwise direction, bring the edges of the disk into the center of the disk and press down gently until all edges have been brought into the center.
• Flip the disk over so that the tuck seam side is face down on the counter – make sure the area is free of flour.
• Shape your hand into sort of a claw shape over the dough. Use the heel of your hand to roll the dough around in clockwise circle until the bottom is smooth and no longer looks like it has a seam.
• Place the dough balls onto the floured baking sheet, spacing them out evenly so they have space to grow.
• Repeat the shaping process with the remaining 11 portions of dough.
• While the dough rises, heat the oil.
• Start heating up 4-5 inches of oil in a large deep pot to 360 F about 10-15 minutes before the doughnuts are finished proofing. This way it will be at the correct temperature when they are ready. Heat the oil low and slow – this way it will keep it’s heat and not get too hot while you’re frying.

Fry and sugar roll

• Place 1 layer of paper towels on to a baking sheet with a wire rack on top. Fill a wide bowl with granulated sugar to roll the doughnuts in once fried.
• Once the rolls are proofed, use a slotted spoon or a spider to lower the proofed doughnuts into the hot oil. Don’t fry more than 3 at a time to avoid lowering the temperature more than 10 degrees.
• Fry them on each side for about 1-1:30 minutes – keep an eye on them as 60 seconds may be enough. Use the spoon to carefully flip them over by pressing down on one side. Then fry for another 60-90 seconds.
• Once they are golden brown, use the slotted spoon to remove them from the oil.
• Place the fried doughnuts onto the paper towel lined rack to drain off any excess oil. Allow the oil to reheat to 360 F before adding in another batch of doughnuts.
• Once the next batch is in the oil, roll the first batch in the granulated sugar and place on a separate wire rack to cool.

Assemble

• Pour the cold heavy cream for the cream filling into a large bowl and whip on high until medium stiff peaks form.
• Transfer the cooled pudding into a medium mixing bowl and give it a quick beat with a whisk or mixer until smooth.
• Add about half of the whipped cream into the whipped pudding and beat or whisk it in. It’s ok if you knock a bit of the air out with the first addition. Once completely incorporated, add in the remaining cream and use a flat rubber spatula to gently fold the whipped cream into the pudding.
• Use a small knife to poke a hole in the side of each doughnut.
• Fill one piping bag or plastic sip top bag with the cream filling and one with the jam.
• Push the tip of the cream bag into the hole and squeeze the bag gently until the doughnut begins to puff up. Don’t fully fill it with cream because we still need space for the jam!
• Then press the tip of the jam bag into the same opening and pipe it in until each doughnut is full. Sometimes I use the first one as a test and cut it open immediately after to see if I’ve added enough filling. To keep the jam from spilling out, rest the doughnuts on each other with the filling whole pointing up. After 5-10 minutes, the filling will stay in!
• Enjoy immediately!

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