Donuts have a special place in my heart. Donuts were the treat my brother and I would get for special holidays like Valentine’s Day. My dad, an avid hunter, would sometimes take us on hunting trips, and we would stop by the one good donut shop in town. He called them “quick breakfasts,” but to us, it was a mouthwatering adventure. Walking into the donut shop, you were quickly hit with the fresh smell of donuts because that shop made them fresh every day. The shop made so many kinds, but my favorite were the donut holes and chocolate-covered donuts. We’d order two dozen donut holes; my brother and I would fight for the simple, glazed, extra dough that was fried into a delicious snack. As I grew up, I still loved getting donuts, and every time I saw the pink box, I knew exactly where it came from. I still ask my mom, “Ooh, are those Henry’s Donuts?” She often replies with yes and that she had to fight people for the maple bar donuts and donut holes. So when I stumbled upon this recipe from another food blogger whom I really look up to, I just had to try it. With house-sitting, school, and track practice; I couldn’t make them during the week, but that weekend I made them, and it took all day. When I finally finished, the smell of the donuts took me back to Henry’s Donuts. These donuts were so crispy and buttery, it reminded me of a croissant. Tossed these babies in some cinnamon sugar, filled them with white-chocolate cream cheese filling, and they turned out to be something from a Disney movie. I made over two-dozen, so I decided to hand them out to people at school the next day. And everyone loved them…even the picky eaters, who don’t really like filled donuts.

Ingredients:
For the yeast mixture:
2 ½ tsp yeast
¼ cup warm water
1 tsp sugar

Rest of the ingredients:
4 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp salt
¼ cup sugar
3 tbsp powdered milk
6 eggs, whisked and at room temperature
2 sticks unsalted butter, chopped and room temperature

Filling:
8 oz room temperature cream cheese
6 tbsp cold butter (any kind will do)
1 tsp vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
4 oz white chocolate, melted
3 cups sifted powdered sugar

Instructions:
Mix together your yeast mixture and rest for 10 minutes
After 10 minutes, add the rest of your ingredients except the butter
Knead dough for 10 minutes (if you feel like the dough isn’t pulling away from the sides about 5 minutes in, add an extra 1 or 2 tbsp of flour)
After the 10 minutes of kneading, add your room temperature butter and knead for another 10 minutes (trust the process)
Once dough is smooth, place into a well-oiled bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Let your dough rise for 1 hour or until it’s doubled in size.
Take dough out on a well floured surface and roll out to ½ inch thick. Then cut out as many donut shapes as you can, or you can make donut holes
Place to a cookie sheet with parchment paper; let rise for 30 minutes
While they’re resting, whisk together your filling on medium high speed. If you don’t have a mixer, whisk manually and use room temperature butter instead.
Fry your donuts at 350-355 degrees (a thermometer would be handy here). You don’t want your oil to be hot, otherwise the inside of your donuts will be raw. They should be a golden brown color or a dark golden color.
After frying, place on a plate with paper towels. While they drain, fill a piping bag with the filling.
Fill the donuts to your heart’s desire. Then sprinkle some cinnamon-sugar on top.