Pumpkin Pie Brioche Doughnuts! Roll them in cinnamon and sugar, powdered sugar, or glaze.
It might be a little ironic to make the least healthy bread in Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day but it’s true….that’s what I did. 
Well, maybe not the most unhealthy…..I mean come on this bread has whole wheat flour AND pumpkin in it so it’s totally healthy.
Disregard the fact that I fried them and then covered them in powdered sugar, cream cheese glaze, and cinnamon and sugar. Totally not important right now. The important thing is to get a bunch of friends and eat these as soon as possible.
This Saturday I hosted the first ever Pinterest White Elephant party possibly in the history of the world (considering Pinterest is so young, I’m banking on this fact). It was a glorious event. My girlfriend Olivia rocked Leah’s new Aerocinno 3 frother most of the night churning out specialty coffee’s for all of us. Turns out this thing is pretty much amazing. It got left at our house overnight and after making our coffee in the morning with it, we were more than a little reluctant to add it to the bag of goodies to return to everyone at church.
We also made buckets of homemade doughnuts….and yes in case you were wondering….they were amazing.
I used the Whole Wheat Pumpkin Brioche recipe in this fabulous book to create these little beauties. The pumpkin and spices shone through and really melded all of the flavors perfectly. They are surprisingly light and yet have the perfect density to them which is incredible considering how much whole wheat flour is in them. I actually ran out of regular flour and subbed in some extra whole wheat, even so, this was a great success in my book.
I also learned from the book that when fried at the proper temperature they absorb very little actual oil so they really aren’t that bad for you. Score.
Take away point? You can have your doughnuts and eat them too.
Unless you eat the 3 dozen or so doughnut holes that I did. At that point, no one can help you.
Then you must go for a run.
It really is fitting because it’s the end of summer and I keep trying to convince myself that it is fall. In Oregon I held a mutual appreciation and disdain for fall, it always came too soon and left too quickly. Leaving short days and cold, icy mornings and frozen fingers.
In the south, fall is where it is at. After the summer heat and humidity, any degree of coolness is greeted with open arms. Hoodie weather doesn’t really start until December here most of the time, so fall is a bit of a strange layering experience here as it heats back up quickly in midday and you are threatened with suffocation. But slowly jeans are starting to appear, and I am even wearing my thinnest long sleeve shirt today with my jogging shorts.
It has me craving pumpkin spice lattes and boots. Don’t get me started on boots. And scarves. Mmm.
Let’s get down to business and make some doughnuts shall we?
To make the traditional shape doughnuts you will want to roll out the dough quite thin and then cut out the doughnuts. Think biscuits and you are good to go. I used an oversized glass and then just poked a hole through the middle and stretched the dough out. It turns out a bit more rustic look but I couldn’t find anything the right size for the center hole so this totally did the trick.
The excess dough is rolled up and turned into oversized doughnut holes, which we ended up loving even more than the doughnuts! No rolling pin needed, just pinch off the dough, roll it in your flour-coated hands and drop them in the oil. Little balls of heaven right there.
Heat your oil up to 360 degrees or so and toss carefully lower in up to 3 full-size doughnuts or a bunch of doughnut holes. The big thing is to put them in one at a time and let them start to get a bit of a crust before adding the next one so they don’t stick to each other. Shaking the basket as soon as you drop them will prevent them from adhering the wires. Cook til medium brown on one side and then flip to the other side. It may take a few to figure out what works best in your fryer on the current day.
Eat all the test doughnuts under the guise of “making the perfect doughnut”.
Strain on paper towels if using glaze. If you are going to toss in sugar I found that letting them drain for a second in the basket and then immediately rolling in the sugar seemed to create the best adhesion.
Roll them in cinnamon and sugar, powdered sugar, or glaze. The cream cheese glaze I made was supposed to be a frosting that we were going to fill the doughnut holes with but….turns out when you are blabbering on and on with your girlfriends and dump in too much milk you end up with glaze. Weird chunky smack-you-in-the-face delicious glaze. It wasn’t the prettiest thing in the world but I didn’t feel like hauling out a blender in the middle of the party to make it anything other than tasty.
Then eat them. Please eat them hot. It’s such a crime to eat them cold. Just pile all your friends in the kitchen and let them attack the plate as they come out of the fryer. It’s a bonding experience really.
Review:
This book, like it’s predecessor, is chock full of amazing recipes, but I am loving the twist of this version with the hearty bread and healthier versions of their sweeter counterparts. In light of our newfound surge in healthy eating and exercising (without neglecting the tasty splurges of life as is so apparent in this post) this book gives a great balanced view of how to improve the nutrition of your bread without sacrificing the flavor.
I am all for cooking healthy, but if it tastes bad it just doesn’t last around our house. Not to mention the fact that if I have to make bread from scratch every day it never happens. The ability to store all of their doughs and cook them as need is hands down to the best idea to hit the bread making the world in a very long time. Everything I have cooked from their books and recipes has come out delicious and beautiful and it is SO easy! I have taught dozens of people who thought they could never make homemade bread how to do it with their method and I will forever be a huge fan.
Great job Zoe and Jeff! You hit it out of the park again!
We are thrilled to be partnering with Zoe and Jeff along with St. Martin’s Press to bring you the chance to win a copy of this great book!
Good luck!
Keeping it real:
We were provided a review copy of this book and the copy to give away to you awesome folks. We were not paid for our opinions or required to post a review in order to receive either copy.
Kelsey Vengley-Rodriguez says
Oh how I seriously have a love for good homemade bread!
Barb NMiles says
I LOVE BREAD. Did I say I looooooove bread. I love Zoe and Jeff bread, so much so I've taught a katrillion people to make it. I even have a local seniors home save "pails" with lids for me so I can teach my guests to make bread… then give them the bucket of dough to keep. I have had the original white bread cookbook, but leant it to a dear friend who never gave it back and then I did not have the heart to ask for it back, so… winning THIS book would be ossom possum!
James Coyne says
I love Raisin Bread
Sand says
I love bread!
Saver Sara says
I love bread and need all the help I can in making in!
AmberK says
I love bread. I’d love to make sourdough bread. But it seems scary!
Lisa says
I want to make french bread
shirley zolenski says
I Love Bread but I don’t make it very well
Shannon says
I DO love bread and I love lovely homemade bread in 5 minutes a day the best. I have the original book and would love to add this to my collection. Yay, bread! (and pumpkin donuts? BRILLIANT!)
Cheryl Reinhardt says
I love sour dough bread! Have never tried making bread, but I do love to eat bread!!! All kinds of bread acutually!!!
Sherry Conrad says
I love bread – in any way, shape or form.
Brenda Elsner says
I love bread. Would love to make a banana bread without it burning or not being done in the middle. Never seems to turn out when I make it.
Kathy Pease says
I love bread!all kinds of bread id especially love to try to make a rye bread
Jennifer Peaslee says
I love bread! I’ve only made a basic white before that I use for pizza dough or rolls usually. I’d LOVE this book so I could make more!!!!
Joan Troche says
I love bread! The look of it, the smell of it, the taste of it, the texture…seriously could live on bread and water.
Barbara Corella says
I love Bread. It is the hardest thing to give up in my diet. So, I want to consider making it at home to make it more healthy.
Gaye M says
I love bread in all its glorious varieties, but I never seem to have enough time to make it at home. I’d love to know how to make croissants.
Cathy Davis says
I love bread! Truly! Just about any kind! ♥
Noreen says
Always wanted to try making a braided loaf of bread but never works
Also never brave enough to try making doughnut
Jennifer says
I love Sourdough bread, but have never attempted to make it.
Jennifer Paige says
I love bread! I’ve always wanted to make artisan bread and screw it up every time.
Sarah Tracey says
I would love to make french bread.
jean olaughlin says
I love bread! I would love to make french bread. haven’t had much luck up to now.
Lucy Schwartz says
I suck making bread. I tried at least 2 times and no success. The first was a no fail rye bread. It was a doorstop although it loked and smelled heavenly. I need some positive reinforcement so I need this book.
Christine says
I love bread
Daniel M says
I love bread! i forget the name of the sweetbread, haven’t had it in ages
katfam says
I love bread! I used to have this recipe for Portuguese Sweet Bread that was heavenly. I wish I knew how to make it quicker and easier.
Jennifer M says
I love bread! I’d love to make my own pumpernickel for grilled cheese or white chocolate apricot bread.
Ed Nemmers says
I love bread and would like to make a cheesy Italian bread!
angie says
I love bread. All kinds of it.
randi says
I love bread! I’d love to learn how to make pumpernicle.
Jamie says
I love bread! I’d love to make a crusty French bread, but those doughnuts look amazing too!
Shannon Baas says
I love bread especially whole wheat.
Cindi-Lee Milton says
I LOVE BREAD! This is an all time favorite book in this house 😉 BUT I have NOT tried making donuts this way…hmmmm Dad will keep me forever in the kitchen if I let him taste these amazing treats! The air is getting cooler, great time to crank up the oven for more BREAD!
deana c says
I love bread! I would love to learn how to make croissants!
Rhonda Desgranges says
I love bread! My family loves bread!! I have trouble making baugettes.
Thanks for the chance to win!
Michaela says
I love bread! My favorite bread is a Norwegian-style whole grain loaf that my mother-in-law makes. It has a crunchy exterior and lots of texture from seeds all throughout the center. It calls for special type of flours that are very coarse. I think I need to grind my own flour to be able to perfect this texture. The day will come…
manda says
I love bread!
Cal says
I do love bread! All kinds, from sourdough, to baguette to hearty multigrain, to indulgence type breads such as pumpkin bread and zucchini bread.
Kelly says
I love bread. Oh my, I’m loving the pumpkin doughnut bites. I’ve got a Pastry/Baking Arts certification and anything to make healthy bread faster I’m all for it. I hope I win.
anna says
I would love to make baguettes or soft textured sandwich bread…mine always has a hard crust…love the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes original cookbook! Thanks for the chance to win.
Elizabeth says
I would like to make French Bread. I just have never had the time to try to make it.
casey stonecypher says
I want to make the French baguettes in the first artisan bread book. Mine always come out hard and dry!