Doughnut Bread Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray, line with parchment and spray again. Place the doughnut pieces in an even layer in the prepared baking dish.
• Whisk together the milk, granulated sugar, vanilla and a pinch of salt in a large bowl until the sugar is mostly dissolved. Add the eggs and whisk to combine so that it's all the same light yellow color. Let sit for 3 minutes and whisk again.
• Pour the custard mixture over the doughnut pieces. Gently, press down a few times to make sure all the doughnut pieces are wet with custard. Cover with a kitchen towel and let sit for 10 minutes at room temperature.
• In another bowl using a wooden spoon, mix together the brown sugar, butter and a pinch of salt. If it's loose, add more brown sugar until it gets crumbly. Sprinkle the top of the bread pudding with chunks of the sugar mixture.
• Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or just until the bread pudding is only slightly jiggly in the center. To test, using an oven mitt, carefully grab the oven rack and give it a little shake. If the middle sloshes around, it's not done. If it gives a firm jiggle, it's done.
• Serve warm, cold or at room temperature, topped with ice cream.

Steps:

• Heat the milk until it is warm but not hot, about 90 degrees. In a large bowl, combine it with the yeast. Stir lightly, and let sit until the mixture is foamy, about 5 minutes.
• Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, beat the eggs, butter, sugar and salt into the yeast mixture. Add half of the flour (2 cups plus 2 tablespoons), and mix until combined, then mix in the rest of the flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Add more flour, about 2 tablespoons at a time, if the dough is too wet. If you're using an electric mixer, the dough will probably become too thick to beat; when it does, transfer it to a floured surface, and gently knead it until smooth. Grease a large bowl with a little oil. Transfer the dough to the bowl, and cover. Let rise at room temperature until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.
• Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface, and roll it to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut out the doughnuts with a doughnut cutter, concentric cookie cutters or a drinking glass and a shot glass (the larger one should be about 3 inches in diameter), flouring the cutters as you go. Reserve the doughnut holes. If you're making filled doughnuts, don't cut out the middle. Knead any scraps together, being careful not to overwork, and let rest for a few minutes before repeating the process.
• Put the doughnuts on two floured baking sheets so that there is plenty of room between each one. Cover with a kitchen towel, and let rise in a warm place until they are slightly puffed up and delicate, about 45 minutes. If your kitchen isn't warm, heat the oven to 200 at the beginning of this step, then turn off the heat, put the baking sheets in the oven and leave the door ajar.
• About 15 minutes before the doughnuts are done rising, put the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, and heat it to 375. Meanwhile, line cooling racks, baking sheets or plates with paper towels.
• Carefully add the doughnuts to the oil, a few at a time. If they're too delicate to pick up with your fingers (they may be this way only if you rose them in the oven), use a metal spatula to pick them up and slide them into the oil. It's O.K. if they deflate a bit; they'll puff back up as they fry. When the bottoms are deep golden, after 45 seconds to a minute, use a slotted spoon to flip; cook until they're deep golden all over. Doughnut holes cook faster. Transfer the doughnuts to the prepared plates or racks, and repeat with the rest of the dough, adjusting the heat as needed to keep the oil at 375. Glaze or fill as follows, and serve as soon as possible.

Steps:

• Place the milk and egg into the pan of your automatic bread machine, and add the butter, flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in that order, with the yeast on top. Select the dough setting, and start the machine.
• When the dough cycle is finished, remove the dough to a floured work surface, and knead a few times to collapse all the bubbles. Cut the dough into 16 pieces, cover them with a damp cloth, and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
• Stretch each ball out into a disk about 1/4 inch thick, and use a small cutter to cut a hole in the center (I used the top of a salt shaker; a bottle top works good too). Let the doughnuts rise on the floured surface until doubled, 30 to 40 minutes.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Gently place a few doughnuts at a time into the hot oil, and fry until they float to the top and turn golden brown, about 3 minutes. Flip the doughnuts over, and fry on the other side. Remove from the oil, and drain on paper towels.