Although missing some green, these pastry cream filled donuts are more than qualified for St. Patrick's Day! They are soft and chewy, spiked with just the right amount of Baileys Irish Cream and dusted with cinnamon and sugar.
Heat milk, butter, and 9 Tablespoon of sugar in a saucepan until just under a simmer. While waiting for the milk to heat, whisk together cornstarch and remaining sugar in a bowl. Add the egg yolks when the milk is almost heated through. Whisk together until combined.
When the milk is heated, stream it into the egg mixture a little at a time while whisking. Pour the entire mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it becomes thick, like pudding consistency. Make sure to not scramble the pastry cream.Remove from heat. *If needed, pour the pastry cream through a sieve to remove clumps.*
Transfer the pastry cream into a pan. Smooth the top and cover with plastic wrap. Make sure the wrap touches the the cream to prevent a layer of film from developing. Chill in the fridge until cooled or overnight.
For the dough:
Sprinkle active dry yeast over the warmed milk. Stir and let the yeast dissolve, about 5 minutes.
Combine flour, sugar, and salt into the stand mixer bowl with the paddle attachment. Add eggs and dissolved yeast. Paddle on low speed until the dough just comes together.
Switch to the hook attachment and add half of the vegetable shortening. Knead the dough on medium speed until shortening is incorporated. Add the remaining shortening and continue to knead on medium speed until incorporated. *You may need to scrape down the sides of the bowl every so often.*
Once the shortening is no longer visible, increase the speed to medium high and knead until the dough is smooth and passes the window pane test, about 8-10 minutes.
Shape dough into a ball and transfer into a clean bowl. Cover the bowl and let it proof in a warm area until doubled, about 1 hour.Once the dough has doubled, punch it down and pull the edge of the dough into the center.
Transfer the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll the dough to ¼ inch thick. Use a 4 inch circle cutter, punch out the dough discs. Try to cut each circle as close together as possible.Knead together and re-roll leftover dough until used up.Let the dough rest for 10 minutes before frying.
While waiting, heat the oil or your fryer to 350°F.Gently place a few pieces of donut circles into the oil at a time. Fry each side for about 4 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oil and let cool on wire racks. Repeat with remaining dough.Once the donuts are cooled, poke a hole through one side of the donut for the filling.
Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a wide bowl. Roll the cooled donuts in the cinnamon sugar mixture until the entire donut has been coated.
Mix the chilled Baileys pastry cream to loosen the mixture. Transfer the pastry cream into a pastry bag with a round tip. Fill the donut with pastry cream via the hole created earlier.