Venetian bakers skipped eggs entirely in bomboloni dough, relying on enriched milk fat to create that pillowy texture before deep-frying.
Eggless Chocolate Bombolonis
Indulge in these delightful eggless chocolate bombolonis, where each pillowy bite reveals a luscious chocolate filling that’ll make your taste buds dance! Crafted with simple ingredients like fluffy dough and rich cocoa, these sweet treats are sure to become your new favorite. Get ready to elevate your dessert game with these irresistible delights!
Prep
15
min
Cook
30
min
Serves
6
people
Level
intermediate
📝 Ingredients
Serves 6🥛Dairy & Eggs(4)
- Soft butter – 35 g (2½ tbsp) (35 g)
- Lukewarm milk – 180–195 g (¾ cup + 2–3 tbsp) (180 ml)
- Milk powder – 20 g (2½ tbsp) (37.5 ml)
- Chocolate pastry cream, for filling
🫙Pantry Staples(5)
- Bread flour – 300 g (2½ cups) (312 g)
- Oil, for frying
- Caster sugar – 40 g (3 tbsp + 1 tsp) (45 ml)
- Caster sugar, for coating
- Instant yeast – 6 g (2 tsp) (10 ml)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(1)
- Salt – 5 g (¾ tsp) (3.75 ml)
📦Other(1)
- Cornflour – 10 g (1 tbsp + 1 tsp) (15 ml)
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
462
Protein
10g
Carbs
64g
Fat
18g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
In a large bowl, combine bread flour, sugar, milk powder, cornflour, yeast, and salt.
- 2
Add 180 g of lukewarm milk and mix until a rough dough forms. Add the remaining milk gradually if needed.
- 3
Knead until the dough starts becoming smooth. Add softened butter and knead for another 10–15 minutes, until the dough is smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky.
- 4
Cover and let the dough proof in a warm place for 1–1½ hours, or until puffy and nearly doubled in size.
- 5
Divide the dough into 6 equal portions of approximately 90–100 g each. Shape into smooth balls and place on individual squares of parchment paper.
- 6
Cover and let the dough balls proof again for 45–75 minutes, until visibly puffy and light.
- 7
Heat oil to 165–170°C (330–340°F). Fry the bombolonis in batches for 2–3 minutes per side, until golden and cooked through.
- 8
Drain briefly and coat in caster sugar while still warm.
- 9
Once slightly cooled, make a small hole in the side and pipe in the chocolate pastry cream until generously filled.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Add butter only after initial kneading (once dough reaches ~80% development) rather than at the start, because lipids coat gluten strands and slow hydration; adding butter too early reduces dough extensibility by up to 30% and increases kneading time.technique80% gluten development threshold
- ✓Use milk powder (20 g) instead of all liquid milk because it increases browning rate via Maillard reaction without over-hydrating the dough; this compensates for the lack of egg proteins that normally accelerate surface coloration during frying.ingredient20 g milk powder addition
- ✓Fry at precisely 165–170°C (330–340°F) for 2–3 minutes per side because this temperature allows the exterior to set and brown (Maillard reaction begins at 154°C) while the interior continues rising from steam pressure for ~90 seconds before the crust hardens.timing165–170°C, 2–3 minutes per side
- ✓Proof the shaped dough balls for 45–75 minutes (not until doubled) because over-proofing eggless dough causes it to collapse during frying due to insufficient gluten-network resilience; stop proofing when the poke test leaves a slowly-rebounding indent (¼ inch deep).timing45–75 minutes, poke test depth ¼ inch
- ✓Coat bombolonis in sugar immediately after frying (within 30 seconds) while surface moisture is still present; sugar crystals dissolve slightly and adhere via capillary action, creating a crisp shell rather than a sandy coating.timingWithin 30 seconds of frying
Share this recipe
Prep
15
min
Cook
30
min
Serves
6
people
Level
intermediate
Share this recipe
Venetian bakers skipped eggs entirely in bomboloni dough, relying on enriched milk fat to create that pillowy texture before deep-frying.
Eggless Chocolate Bombolonis
Indulge in these delightful eggless chocolate bombolonis, where each pillowy bite reveals a luscious chocolate filling that’ll make your taste buds dance! Crafted with simple ingredients like fluffy dough and rich cocoa, these sweet treats are sure to become your new favorite. Get ready to elevate your dessert game with these irresistible delights!
📝 Ingredients
Serves 6🥛Dairy & Eggs(4)
- Soft butter – 35 g (2½ tbsp) (35 g)
- Lukewarm milk – 180–195 g (¾ cup + 2–3 tbsp) (180 ml)
- Milk powder – 20 g (2½ tbsp) (37.5 ml)
- Chocolate pastry cream, for filling
🫙Pantry Staples(5)
- Bread flour – 300 g (2½ cups) (312 g)
- Oil, for frying
- Caster sugar – 40 g (3 tbsp + 1 tsp) (45 ml)
- Caster sugar, for coating
- Instant yeast – 6 g (2 tsp) (10 ml)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(1)
- Salt – 5 g (¾ tsp) (3.75 ml)
📦Other(1)
- Cornflour – 10 g (1 tbsp + 1 tsp) (15 ml)
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
462
Protein
10g
Carbs
64g
Fat
18g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
In a large bowl, combine bread flour, sugar, milk powder, cornflour, yeast, and salt.
- 2
Add 180 g of lukewarm milk and mix until a rough dough forms. Add the remaining milk gradually if needed.
- 3
Knead until the dough starts becoming smooth. Add softened butter and knead for another 10–15 minutes, until the dough is smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky.
- 4
Cover and let the dough proof in a warm place for 1–1½ hours, or until puffy and nearly doubled in size.
- 5
Divide the dough into 6 equal portions of approximately 90–100 g each. Shape into smooth balls and place on individual squares of parchment paper.
- 6
Cover and let the dough balls proof again for 45–75 minutes, until visibly puffy and light.
- 7
Heat oil to 165–170°C (330–340°F). Fry the bombolonis in batches for 2–3 minutes per side, until golden and cooked through.
- 8
Drain briefly and coat in caster sugar while still warm.
- 9
Once slightly cooled, make a small hole in the side and pipe in the chocolate pastry cream until generously filled.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Add butter only after initial kneading (once dough reaches ~80% development) rather than at the start, because lipids coat gluten strands and slow hydration; adding butter too early reduces dough extensibility by up to 30% and increases kneading time.technique80% gluten development threshold
- ✓Use milk powder (20 g) instead of all liquid milk because it increases browning rate via Maillard reaction without over-hydrating the dough; this compensates for the lack of egg proteins that normally accelerate surface coloration during frying.ingredient20 g milk powder addition
- ✓Fry at precisely 165–170°C (330–340°F) for 2–3 minutes per side because this temperature allows the exterior to set and brown (Maillard reaction begins at 154°C) while the interior continues rising from steam pressure for ~90 seconds before the crust hardens.timing165–170°C, 2–3 minutes per side
- ✓Proof the shaped dough balls for 45–75 minutes (not until doubled) because over-proofing eggless dough causes it to collapse during frying due to insufficient gluten-network resilience; stop proofing when the poke test leaves a slowly-rebounding indent (¼ inch deep).timing45–75 minutes, poke test depth ¼ inch
- ✓Coat bombolonis in sugar immediately after frying (within 30 seconds) while surface moisture is still present; sugar crystals dissolve slightly and adhere via capillary action, creating a crisp shell rather than a sandy coating.timingWithin 30 seconds of frying