Raspberry Croissant Sourdough Donuts
by sourdoughjesha on January 14, 2025
These raspberry croissant sourdough donuts, also known as croissant beignets, are made with donut dough and shaped into croissants, for a delicious, light, airy, and pillowy soft treat filled with sweet raspberry jam and vanilla bean custard.
These raspberry croissant sourdough donuts, also known as croissant beignets, are light, airy, and pillowy soft. They’re made from my classic sourdough donut dough, shaped into elegant croissant-inspired rolls, and then fried to crispy golden brown perfection. Infused with real fresh raspberries in the dough and filled with a luscious vanilla bean custard and sweet raspberry jam, these donuts are a fun and irresistible twist on a traditional filled donut.
Looking for more sourdough baking recipes? Check out my classic sourdough croissants, Sourdough Brioche, or these incredible Nutella Sourdough Donuts.
Raspberry Croissant Donut Recipe
You’ve likely heard of the Cronut, a hyper-viral creation from renowned Pastry Chef, Dominque Ansel – maybe you’ve even had one before – but have you ever seen croissant donuts? Unlike a Cronut, which is made with traditional laminated pastry dough, croissant donuts are made with regular donut dough and shaped into croissant shapes. Popularized by the famous Pastry Chef, Cedric Grolet, croissant-shaped donuts, also known as croissant beignets, are a tasty and innovative twist on a classic donut. Plus they’re easy to make at home!
I love raspberry donuts – anything raspberry, really – so I decided to infuse this dough with fresh raspberries for a delicious fruity flavor that perfectly compliments the vanilla bean custard and raspberry jam filling. Naturally sweet and bursting with raspberry flavor, these raspberry croissant sourdough donuts are irresistible and will instantly become a favorite in your home.
If you’ve never made donuts from scratch before, this recipe is super easy to follow using my simple process outlined below, and you’ll just need some basic kitchen equipment like a stand mixer, rolling pin, and a thermometer (for temping your frying oil). As always, these donuts are sourdough and naturally leavened with sourdough starter, so they’re incredibly flavorful and pack all of the gut-friendly benefits from a long natural fermentation process.
What is a croissant donut?
A croissant donut, also referred to as a croissant beignet, is a pastry made with donut dough (not croissant dough) and rolled into the shape of a croissant. This creative pastry combines the unique crescent shape and visual appeal of a croissant with the soft, pillowy texture of a classic donut. Unlike a true croissant, which relies on laminated layers of butter for its flakiness, this version uses enriched donut dough, which is softer and perfect for frying. It’s also way easier to make!
To achieve the croissant-inspired look, the donut dough is chilled in the freezer just prior to shaping and then rolled into a crescent, mimicking the shape of a croissant. The dough is then fried until golden brown, resulting in a tender, airy interior and a slightly crisp exterior. Just like traditional filled donuts like a jelly donut or a Boston cream, these pastries can be filled with custards, jams, and other fillings.
Ingredients for Homemade Croissant Donuts
- Raspberries: I used fresh raspberries but frozen will work just as well. Make sure to thaw before adding to the dough!
- Freeze-dried raspberries: Freeze-dried raspberries add additional flavor, texture, and color to your dough. I love to use Natierra’s freeze-dried raspberries.
- Flour: I recommend all-purpose flour but you can also use a fifty-fifty blend of bread flour and all-purpose flour. My go-to flour choice is King Arthur’s Organic All-Purpose Flour.
- Eggs: Eggs act as a binder for the ingredients and they help soften the dough to create the perfect pillowy texture.
- Milk: Use whole milk for the best flavor and texture.
- Salt: Adds flavor to the dough and helps to control the fermentation process.
- Sourdough starter: This recipe calls for active sourdough starter, so make sure to feed your starter roughly eight to twelve hours before it’s time to mix the dough.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar adds a little sweetness to the dough and helps contribute to the soft texture.
- Frying oil: I like to use coconut oil, beef tallow, or avocado oil, but any frying oil of your choice will work!
How to Make Raspberry Croissant Donuts:
- Prepare the raspberries: Start by pureeing your raspberries in a blender or food processor. If using frozen, make sure to warm them up first and reserve any juices from the thawing process.
- Mix the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine all of the dough ingredients except for the butter. Mix for a few minutes and then add the butter and continue mixing until a smooth dough forms.
- First rise: Transfer the dough to a greased bowl and let rise for four to six hours at room temperature, until it roughly doubles in size.
- Cold proof: Transfer the covered dough to the refrigerator and let proof overnight (8-12 hours).
- Shape the donuts: The next day, roll the dough out into a thin ¼-inch to ⅓-inch thick rectangle that is 24 inches wide by 14 inches high. Wrap and freeze the rectangular dough for 1 hour. Chilling the dough makes it easier to then shape into croissants. Remove the dough from the freezer and slice into six 4-inch by 14-inch rectangles, then slice those rectangles diagonally to create 12 triangles. Roll each triangle into a croissant shape.
- Final rise: Proof the donuts for two to five hours at room temperature. Alternatively, you can proof for one to two hours at 90F using a oven with a proof setting function or a proof box. I like to proof in my countertop Breville.
- Fry the donuts: Heat your frying oil to 375F and fry the croissant donuts in batches, for one minute on each side until golden brown. Transfer cooked donuts to a wire rack to cool.
- Toss in sugar: Toss each croissant donut in sugar until evenly coated.
- Add filling: Pipe your croissants with a vanilla bean custard (recipe is below!) and raspberry jam.
- Serve and enjoy! These croissant donuts are perfect with a morning cup of coffee, a frothy cappuccino, or as a delicious dessert any time of day.
How to Store Croissant Donuts
Croissant donuts are best enjoyed the same day! To store, place them in a brown paper bag and leave them at room temperature for a day, or transfer them to an airtight container and refrigerate for one to two days.
If you love these raspberry croissant donuts, check out these sourdough recipes:
- Beginner Sourdough Bread
- Cinnamon Raisin Sourdough Bagels
- Strawberry Sourdough Croissants
- Cinnamon Raisin Artisan Sourdough Bread
- Blueberry Sourdough Bagels
Raspberry Croissant Sourdough Donuts
Ingredients
Raspberry Sourdough Donut Dough
- 500 g (4 cups) all-purpose flour
- 100 g (½ cup) active sourdough starter
- 110 g (½ cup) whole milk
- 120 g (1 ⅓ cups) fresh or frozen (thawed) raspberries, pureed
- 2 large eggs
- 85 g (6 Tablespoons) softened butter
- 9 g (1 ½) tsp salt
- 55 g (¼ cup) sugar
- Optional: 2 Tablespoons freeze-dried raspberry powder or crushed freeze-dried raspberries
- Optional: All-natural plant-based food coloring to make the dough a pretty pink!
Sugar Coating
- 200 g (1 cup) granulated sugar
Vanilla Bean Custard (for the donut filling)
- 500 g (2 cups) whole milk
- 67 g (⅓ cups) granulated sugar
- 40 g (4 Tablespoons) cornstarch
- 2 large egg yolks
- Seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoons salt
Raspberry Jam
- 200 g (⅔ cup) raspberry jam
Additional Ingredients
- 1-2 quarts coconut oil beef tallow or preferred frying oil (I like coconut oil!)
Instructions
Instructions
- Puree the raspberries: Using a blender or food processor, puree the raspberries. If using frozen raspberries, thaw the raspberries in a pot on the stove or by using a microwave or oven. Make sure to reserve all of the juices from the thawing process!120 g (1 ⅓ cups) fresh or frozen (thawed) raspberries, pureed
- Mix the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the flour, milk, sourdough starter, pureed raspberries (including all of the liquid if using thawed), eggs, sugar, salt, optional freeze-dried raspberries, and optional pink food coloring. Mix on low speed for 3 – 4 minutes until everything is incorporated.500 g (4 cups) all-purpose flour, 100 g (½ cup) active sourdough starter, 110 g (½ cup) whole milk, 2 large eggs, 9 g (1 ½) tsp salt, 55 g (¼ cup) sugar, Optional: All-natural plant-based food coloring to make the dough a pretty pink!, Optional: 2 Tablespoons freeze-dried raspberry powder or crushed freeze-dried raspberries
- Add butter and knead: Add the softened butter to the bowl and mix on medium speed for 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. If the dough is still not coming together after 6 minutes of mixing, add an additional 20g – 40g (2 ½ – 5 Tablespoons) of flour in 20g (2 ½ Tablespoon) increments.85 g (6 Tablespoons) softened butter, Optional: 2 Tablespoons freeze-dried raspberry powder or crushed freeze-dried raspberries
- Let the dough rise: Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl. Optional: Add additional freeze-dried raspberries to the exterior of the dough to add flavor and create a pretty marbled/textured look to the dough. Cover and let rise for four to six hours. During that time, perform two to three sets of stretch and folds, starting at the thirty-minute mark and repeating every thirty minutes until all three sets are complete. The dough is done rising when it’s roughly doubled in size.
- Cold proof: Transfer the dough to the refrigerator to cold-proof overnight (8-12 hours).
- Roll out the dough: The next morning, remove your dough from the fridge and place it on a lightly floured surface. Roll your dough into a 24-inch by 14-inch rectangle that is approximately ¼’’ – ⅓ inch (5mm – 8mm) thick. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place it on a cutting board or baking sheet. Transfer the dough to the freezer for 1 hour. This will help chill the dough so that it’s easy to roll into croissant shapes in the next steps.
- Slice the dough: Remove your dough from the freezer, remove the plastic wrap, and transfer to a lightly floured surface. If necessary, re-roll the dough to ensure it is roughly ¼ inch to ⅓ inch (5mm – 8mm) in thickness. With a knife or pizza wheel cutter, trim the edges of your dough so that you have a clean 24-inch by 16-inch rectangle. Using a ruler and a knife, gently mark the dough every four inches along both 24-inch sides. Then, using your knife, slice the dough into six equal-sized 4-inch by 14-inch rectangles. Working one rectangle at a time, use a knife/wheel cutter and a ruler to slice a straight line from one corner of the rectangle to its opposite corner, creating two long equal triangles. Repeat the process with the remaining rectangles to create 12 triangles.
- Roll the croissant donuts: Working one triangle at a time, gently tug on the two corners of the base of the triangle to lengthen it slightly. Then, with the triangle flat against the table, begin at the base and roll it into a tight croissant shape. Repeat this process for all three triangles.
- Final rise: Transfer your croissant donuts to a lined baking sheet. I like to cut individual squares of parchment paper so it’s easier to drop them in the frying oil later. Loosely cover the croissant donuts and let rise until they double in size and are puffy (2 – 5 hours) at room temperature. If you have an oven or countertop oven with a proof setting, or a proofing box, you can proof at 90 degrees for one to two hours.
- Fry the croissant donuts: Pour the frying oil into a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven and heat to 375F (about fifteen to 20 minutes). Once the oil reaches temp, carefully add the croissant donuts to the oil, two to three at a time depending on the size of your pot. Cook for 1 minute on each side until deep golden brown on both sides. Transfer the cooked donuts to a rack and leave to cool.
- Toss in sugar: Pour the granulated sugar into a large bowl. Toss the donuts in the sugar on all sides until evenly coated.
- Pipe the croissant donuts: Once fully cooled, use a chopstick or skewer to poke a hole in the bottom of the croissant donut, approximately ¾ of the way inside. Gently round the chopstick to form a hole. Use a piping bag to pipe the pastry cream until it’s two-thirds of the way full. Next, use a separate piping bag to pipe the raspberry jam until it reaches the brim. Top off the hole with more pastry cream if desired.
- Serve and Enjoy!
Vanilla Custard Filling
- Heat the milk: Pour 1.5 cups (375g) of the milk into a saucepan, and heat over medium heat to bring it to a simmer. Don’t bring it to a full boil.375g (1.5 cups) milk
- Whisk the remaining ingredients: In a separate bowl, add the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, remaining milk, and salt and whisk together.125g (½ cup) milk, 67g (⅓ cups) granulated sugar, 40g (4 Tbsp) cornstarch, 2 large eggs, seeds of 1 vanilla bean or 2 tsp vanilla extract, ¼ tsp salt
- Pour in the milk: Once the milk reaches a simmer, remove it from the heat. Slowly pour the steaming hot milk onto the mixture in the bowl, whisking constantly to temper the eggs. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
- Heat the mixture: Return the saucepan to the stove and heat over medium-high heat, whisking constantly until the mixture begins to thicken and bubbles form. Lower the heat and cook for another 1-2 minutes then remove from the heat.
- Cover the pastry cream: Allow the custard to cool for a few minutes, then place plastic wrap directly on top to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before using.
- Add to a piping bag: Pour the finished custard into a piping bag and use it for your croissants!
I would definitely recommend this recipe!
I would definitely recommend this recipe!
These are FANTASTIC. If you are debating whether to make them, do it. My father who hates raspberries absolutely loved these 😅 They are so fun to make and so flavorful. I also added 2 tsp of beet powder to give them some extra color!