Ingredients

Instructions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment on low speed, mix the flour, salt, granulated sugar, whole milk, active sourdough starter, and eggs. Once the dough comes together, cover the bowl with a towel and allow the flour to fully hydrate for at least 10 minutes.

∗ Tip If mixing by hand, mix the dough ingredients in a large mixing bowl and knead the butter pieces in one piece at a time until the dough passes the windowpane test. This may take 10-15 minutes of mixing.

2. Continue mixing on medium-low speed for a few minutes. Then, drop in 1 TBS of softened butter at a time while mixing, waiting to add the next piece until it’s fully incorporated into the dough. This may take 30 seconds to a minute in between each piece.
3. Once all of the butter is added, continue mixing for 7-10 minutes until the dough begins slapping the sides of the bowl without sticking and it passes the windowpane test. To test, stretch a thin piece of dough between your fingers. If it easily tears, continue mixing. If you can stretch it into a thin membrane without tearing, then it’s strong enough.
4. Transfer the brioche dough to a large bowl, cover, and proof in a warm location like the Folding Proofer (78º) until it doubles in size, domes, and feels full of air, about 5 hours.
5. Move the dough to the refrigerator to cold proof overnight or up to two days. This will improve its flavor, make shaping easier, and allow you to adjust for your schedule.
6. The next day, weigh the dough and divide the total weight by 16. Then, use a bench scraper to divide the dough into 16 equal-sized pieces (about 65-70g each). Lightly dust your counter with flour and use the palm of your hand and the friction of the counter to shape the dough into spheres.
7. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly dust with flour. Place the dough onto the baking sheets with at least a couple of inches between each one, and lightly cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel for final proofing.
8. Transfer the covered baking sheets to proof in a warm location like the Folding Proofer (78ºF) until the dough balls at least double in size, feel poofy and full of air, about 5 hours. If you lightly shake the pan, they should wobble. If not, continue proofing and check again in 30 minutes.
9. Fill your frying vessel about ⅔ full with frying oil and heat over a stovetop until the oil temperature reaches 360-375ºF. It’s important to keep the oil in this temperature range throughout frying. Set two wire racks lined with paper towels and a slotted spoon nearby. Use a spatula to slowly and carefully drop a few donuts into the hot oil. Fry on one side for a couple of minutes, then flip them and continue frying for another couple of minutes until both sides are uniformly golden brown. Use the slotted spoon to transfer the fried donuts to the paper towel-lined wire racks to cool. Check the frying oil temperature and repeat with the remaining donuts.
10. Once the donuts have cooled, mix the sugar and optional cinnamon or cardamom in a bowl. Dip both sides of the donuts in the sugar to coat them.
11. At this point, you can use a pastry bag with a small round tip to fill the donuts with your favorite fruit jam, pastry cream, chocolate or hazelnut chocolate filling.

∗ Tip Donuts are best the day they’re fried but will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for a couple of days.