1
To begin, make the sea salt caramel for filling the doughnuts. Scrape the seeds from the split vanilla pod into the cream and add the empty pod. Bring to the boil, then take off heat and leave to infuse for 30 minutes
- vanilla pod, split and scraped
- 120ml of whipping cream
2
Heat a heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat. Once hot, add one third of the sugar with the liquid glucose and heat slowly until it forms a light caramel and the sugar crystals have dissolved
- 83g of caster sugar
- 40g of liquid glucose
3
Slowly add the remaining sugar and continue to cook until you get an amber caramel. This will take around 10 minutes, but can burn quickly so keep an eye on it. Once caramelised, gradually stir in the infused cream (discarding the vanilla pod)
- 167g of caster sugar
4
Whisk in the butter, cube by cube, and pour into a shallow tray. Leave to cool
- 200g of salted butter, cubed
5
Next, make the crème pâtissière. Add the milk to a pan with the vanilla pod and bring to the boil
- 500ml of whole milk
- vanilla pod, split lengthways
6
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar. Continue whisking for about 2–3 minutes until the mixture slightly thickens and turns light in colour. Add the sifted flour and whisk again until smooth
- 6 egg yolks
- 100g of caster sugar
- 50g of plain flour, sifted
7
Pour half of the infused milk into the mixing bowl and whisk again until there are no lumps. Pass this mixture through a fine sieve, then return the mixture back to the remaining milk in the saucepan
8
Continuously whisk the mixture until it comes to the boil, then reduce the temperature to a simmer and continue to stir and cook for 5–6 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and pour the crème pâtissière into a shallow dish or tray. Cover with cling film and cool rapidly
9
Next, prepare the dough. Place the flour, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the yeast and milk
- 500g of strong white bread flour, sifted
- 55g of caster sugar
- 10g of salt
- 125ml of milk
- 40g of fresh yeast
10
Add the egg and egg yolks to another mixing bowl and add the milk and yeast mixture. Mix together, then add the rum
- 1 egg
- 5 egg yolks
- 5g of dark rum
11
Add all of the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and begin to knead by hand, or alternatively use an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Continue mixing until the dough is smooth and elastic and comes away from the side of the bowl. Add the butter and continue to mix until the mixture comes away from the side again. Add the dough to a bowl, cover with cling film and place in the fridge for 1 hour
- 100g of unsalted butter, cubed and softened
12
Remove the prepared dough from the fridge and divide into 30g pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, place on a tray lined with baking paper and leave to prove for 45–60 minutes, or until doubled in size
13
Line a baking tray with kitchen roll and preheat a deep-fryer to 170°C
14
Once the dough balls are fully proved, carefully place them in the oil and cook for about 3–4 minutes on each side, until golden. Remove from the fryer, drain on the prepared tray to remove excess oil and leave to cool
15
Spoon the crème pâtissière into a piping bag fitted with nozzle. Spoon the caramel into a piping bag and snip a small hole in the end. Fill each doughnut with a small amount of sea salted caramel and a large bulb of créme pâtissière
16
To make the caramel fondant to decorate the doughnuts, make a paste with the cream of tartare and 15ml water, mixing until smooth
- 0.5g of cream of tartar
17
Place the sugar and 105ml water in a saucepan, mix together and bring to the boil. Use a pastry brush dipped in water to remove any sugar crystals from the sides of the saucepan as the syrup boils. Continue to heat the syrup until it reaches 106°C, then add the cream of tartar paste, followed by the liquid glucose
- 490g of caster sugar
- 60g of liquid glucose
18
Continue to cook until the syrup reaches 117°C, then remove from the heat and pour onto a marble slab. Use a scraper to work the fondant by moving it from the outside into the centre and spreading back out again. Continue this process until it cools, then becomes white and thickens. Place in a plastic airtight container and cover with cling film to prevent a skin forming
19
Make a dark amber caramel by heating sugar with 75ml water in a heavy-bottomed pan until it has all dissolved and is a deep amber colour. Allow to cool, then mix 75g of the caramel with 600g of fondant
- 200g of caster sugar
20
Make a simple syrup by heating 30g sugar with 30ml water until the sugar has dissolved. Warm the fondant to 32–35°C with 40ml of the syrup, or add more syrup if you want it a little looser
- 30g of caster sugar
21
Dip the tops of the doughnuts in the fondant then leave to set for 5 minutes. Spoon the tempered chocolate into a paper piping cornet and pipe lines on the tops of each doughnut to finish
- 250g of dark chocolate, 70%, tempered
