Blackberries & Cream Slider Doughnuts – Super fluffy yeast doughnuts that are tossed in sugar and then stuffed with a layer of cream cheese filling and topped with juicy blackberries. The perfect treat for any breakfast or brunch!
I have a confession to make…I typically don’t to get super excited for the start of spring. Of course I’m happy to put away my coats and ready for swimsuit season. However, it was never close to the rush of excitement that I get during the start of fall.
But things have changed, people! I’ve gotten a taste for the incredible spring produce so far and man, it’s been unbelievable. Have fruits and veggies always tasted so much better this time of year?! Keep the spring produce coming!
Lately, I’ve been having a love affair with berries. Okay, let’s be real…I’ve had a love affair with berries my entire life. How could I not?! Juicy and sweet and full of nutrients and antioxidants? You can’t beat that.
But recently, the berries have been even better than normal (thanks berry season!) so they’ve been my inspiration for many of the posts this month. Just look at this berry trifle, these blueberry muffin tops, and these berry mimosas. And now I have another berry-rific recipe for you: Blackberries & Cream Slider Doughnuts!
Slider doughnuts are a somewhat new concept, I suppose. Well, they’re new to me anyway. I’ve only seen them at two doughnut shops here in Atlanta but both experiences made quite an impression on me that I HAD to make my own version.
Both slider doughnuts that I tried were yeast doughnuts that were stuffed with a fresh fruit – not a jelly. I love that! Why fill a doughnut with super sugary, boring jelly when you can use fresh, seasonal fruit instead?!
Speaking of the fruit, it’s no surprise that I used blackberries. But guys…these blackberries were the best blackberries that I’ve had in YEARS! Each one was literally bursting with juice in every bite. And on top of it, they were enormous! The blackberries were so big that I had to cut them in half to fit in the sliders. Just look at them!
But before the blackberries get stuffed in the sliders, I spread on a thick layer of cheesecake filling. The tangy, creamy filling is the perfect accompaniment to the juicy, sweet berries. Plus, they help keep the berries in place!
So let’s talk about the process for making the doughnuts. First, let me address the obvious. Yes, they are fried. I really do not like frying anything because it makes my house smell like oil. But I learned a new trick! All I have to do is run my exhaust fan while frying to clear up the smell. You would never know that I fried doughnuts when stepping into my kitchen. Worked like a charm.
And it also helps that the doughnuts only fry for 1 minute on each side so it took only 10 minutes to fry the whole batch. Less frying time = less oil particles in the air. It’s science.
The dough is no more complicated than a cinnamon roll dough. In fact, it’s almost exactly the same. Not as much sugar though. And bonus – this dough is made without a mixer!
Before you make these gorgeous slider doughnuts for your next brunch fest, read these tips to make sure they turn out exactly as planned:
- If you’ve never fried at home before, don’t worry – you don’t need a fancy deep fryer. Just use a large pot! I prefer using my cast iron dutch oven because it helps keep the temperature steady at 375 degrees. If you don’t have one, you can get them really cheap, actually. I got mine at Walmart years ago for less that $50. Here it is on Amazon, in case you rather get it shipped to you.
- Speaking of temperature…you absolutely need to have a candy thermometer when frying because the temperature of the oil is sooooo important. If it’s too cold, your food will take forever to fry and thus become super greasy from staying in the oil for so long. If it’s too hot, your food will burn before it’s fully-cooked. A candy thermometer can go up to 400 degrees, which is important since we are cooking the oil to 375 degrees. Your meat thermometer cannot go that high so don’t use it! Here’s a great one from Amazon that you can use.
- Doughnuts only stay fresh for one day so you’re going to want to make these the morning that you want them. However, you can make the dough the night before to save some time. Let it rise once then punch it down and wrap with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight. Let it get to room temperature before attempting to roll it out. You can make the filling ahead of time, too. Just wrap and place in the fridge until ready to use.
- The doughnuts are tossed in sugar before we make them into sliders. I use superfine sugar for this, which is located right next to your granulated sugar and powdered sugar at the grocery store. But you can use either of those, instead, if you want. I just like the look of the superfine sugar the most and I happened to have it on hand from making creme brulee.
- Like many of my recipes, you can easily adjust this recipe to make it your own. Don’t like blackberries? Simply substitute for strawberries or sliced peaches or any other fruit you like. Same goes for the cheesecake filling. You can use whipped cream or chocolate ganache or custard if you prefer. The options are endless!
I hope you go crazy for these doughnuts just like we did. My husband even placed it in his top 5 favorite things! I know these will be one of your favorites, too 🙂
Here are all the kitchen tools and serveware that I used in today’s recipe. For each item sold below, I make a small commission. I only recommend items that I own and love so you can trust that each recommendation is tried and true. Thank you for supporting CPA!
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Blackberries & Cream Slider Doughnuts
Ingredients
For the doughnut dough:
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
- 2 tablespoons warm water
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup superfine granulated sugar
- vegetable oil for frying (about 8 cups)
For the cream cheese filling:
- 8 ounces cream cheese (block, not whipped), softened
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the blackberries:
- 2 quarts blackberries fresh
- 2 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
For the dough and filling:
- First we will begin making the dough. Heat up milk in a small sauce pan until it begins to simmer. Remove from heat and add sugar and salt and stir. Let it cool down to lukewarm to the touch. While milk is cooling, proof the yeast by adding the warm water and yeast in a small bowl and stirring together. Let it activate by setting it aside for 10 minutes.
- Once milk is cool, add to a large bowl, along with 2 1/2 cups of the flour, 2 tablespoons of oil, eggs, and yeast mixture. Stir together with a wooden spoon until combined. The dough will be very thick but still wet and sticky.
- Place remaining 1 cup of flour on the surface of your counter. Place dough on top of it and begin kneading the dough with the flour until all the flour is mixed into the dough. Keep kneading for about 4-5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. If it starts to stick to the counter, add a little more flour. Once you finish kneading, shape into a ball. Lightly grease another large bowl and place the ball of dough into bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel and let it rise for 1 1/2 hours, where it will be double the size. I like to place mine in the microwave to keep it away from any cool draft from the A/C.
- When the doughnuts are rising, prepare the filling. First, place the softened cream cheese, milk, sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Mix on low to combine. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides to ensure it's all mixed together. Set aside until assembly.
- Grab blackberries and place in a medium bowl. If they are super large like mine were, cut them in half. If not, leave them whole. Add 2 tablespoons of sugar and stir to combine. Place in fridge until assembly.
- Once dough has risen, punch it down with your fist and remove from the bowl. Lightly dust your counter with flour and place the dough on top. Begin rolling out the dough into a large oval or rectangle that is 1/2-inch thick. Make sure to release it from the counter so that it's not sticking or stretching.
- Using a 2 to 3 inch round cutter, cut out perfect rounds and place them on a lightly floured baking sheet(s). Make sure to leave about 1/2 inch between them so they don't stick together after rising. You will get about 15 rounds with the first pass at the dough. Gather the scraps in a ball and roll them out to get about 5-6 more rounds. Cover doughnuts with a kitchen towel and let them rise again for about 30 minutes.
- While the doughnuts rise again, begin heating the frying oil. Place oil in a large pot or dutch oven and heat on medium-high until a candy/frying thermometer reaches 375 degrees. Then reduce heat to about medium. Fry doughnuts 4 at a time, 1 minute on each side. Continue to monitor temperature. Do not let it get below 350 degrees or above 380 degrees. Let doughnuts cool on paper towels to drain excess oil. Repeat until all doughnuts are fried.
- Place 1/2 cup of superfine sugar in a paper bag. Place a doughnut in the bag 1 at a time and shake to cover the doughnut in sugar. Repeat with the rest of the doughnuts. Let them cool for 5 minutes
For assembly of the sliders:
- Once the doughnuts are cool to handle, slice in half leaving a little connected on the side, like a hinge. Scoop about 1 tablespoon of cream cheese filling onto the bottom half of the slider. Top with about 4 to 5 blackberries and close the top to resemble a slider. Repeat with remaining sliders. Serve immediately.
Notes
Pin for later:
More recipes that you’ll love:
Strawberries & Cream Danish
Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls
Blueberry Muffin Tops
Traditional English Trifle
Can those doughnuts be baked? Really want to try them but without the frying
I have never tried baking them so I can’t give great advice on this. I googled some baked yeast doughnut recipes and it is possible to do but you should use a different recipe for the dough that is specially formulated to be baked and not fried, which mine is not. But just google some recipes and you should find one you like. Hope that helps!
Yum! These are gorgeous. Just bought some blackberries and I know what I’m going to do with them now!
Thanks so much! Let me know how you like them!
These look incredible! You are a true talent!!
Thanks Steph!
Oh my this looks so good. I love baking food like this. I just finish eating and here I am hungry again after looking st this delicious food.
Thanks so much!
Ow WOW. I’ve never seen these before but they look amazing!! I feel a craving coming on lol I might just have to whip myself up a batch!
Haha yessss!
I am DROOLING, those look SO GOOD!
Thanks so much!
Omg, these look and sound SO good!! I try to eat seasonally, so by the time winter’s over, I’m SO grateful to see huge, luscious berries waiting for me in the grocery store!
Me too! The berries are so much better when they’re in season. Mmmm
I just recently discovered that I actually like blackberries. The first time I tried them, it wasn’t a good experience so I swore off of them. I’m not sure what made me try them again, but I’m so happy I did. I can’t even imagine how incredible they would be in donut form. These look so good!! I’m going to have to eventually make them 🙂
Yay! So glad you gave them a second chance. Let me know how you like the doughnuts once you make them!
I’m seriously jealous of those blackberries. Holy cow, they look amazing!! So do those cute little sliders. What a neat idea. These would be gone in minutes at my house.
Thanks so much! I had to keep myself from eating them all during assembly haha
I had to pin this because oh emmmn geeee they look delicious. Going to try them this weekend
Yay! Let me know how they turn out!
Omg – these look so yummy. I’ve never seen or even heard of a slider donut, but
what a fun concept! Thanks so much for sharing. Yours turned out well, it looks!
-Lauren
These look gorgeous and I’m sure they taste even better! What a fun take on sliders!
Thanks so much!
I love your stuff!! I am not much of a baker, but with your blog I believe anything is possible!! I will have to give these a try, my daughter will love them. Hey, I am also thinking about doing a breakfast in bed mothers day round up post, because your pastries always look so good I would love to feature you, with your permission. Would that be something you’re okay with?
Of course! I would be honored. Thanks for asking!!
Oh my drool… those look amazing!!! Two of my kids’ favorite things are blackberries and doughnuts. They wouldn’t even be able to handle the excitement and deliciousness of these. I’ll be making these for sure! Thanks for sharing!
Yesssss! So happy for the kids haha. Let me know how they turn out!
Omg I’m going to email this to my husband right now!! He’ll love this!
Lauren
Woohoo! Hope you guys make them this weekend!
Oh my! I want some of these! You should probably set up an online shop where people can order from. Lol! I would be one of your frequent customers.
Belle | One Awesome Momma
Oh my!! These look so yummy! Do you deliver? lol!
Oh my goodness, these look delicious!! I have never made homemade donuts before, but yours look amazing! I might need to try this sometime soon! <3
It’s so much easier than you think!
Oh my goodness. I will be wanting these forever. Blackberry is my favorite.
Mine too!
Obsessed w black berries lately! We have our season in the summer and we do pick your own. Sadly I suck ar baking- can you make these for me????
Aww haha!
omgggggg. i have never heard of slider donuts but this sounds everything i want and more 🙂 im legit afraid of frying things at home but can i come over? i will bring coffee 😛
Haha no need to be afraid! You can do this girl!
Is it too early for my mouth to be watering over this? 🙂
Never! Lol