Dutch Oven Doughnut Bread Pudding
Stale doughnuts, powdered eggs, and a bourbon glaze baked over coals.
- calories
- 720
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 131
- protein
- 11 g
- serves
- 8, scales
- prep
- 20 min
- cook
- 60 min
- total time
- 80 min
- water
- 700 ml cold
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dessert
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Day one only
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| Plain cake doughnuts | 18 | day-old is better than fresh, they hold shape |
|---|---|---|
| Golden raisins | 1 cup | |
| Powdered whole eggs | 1 cup | equals about 8 eggs |
| Whole milk powder | 1 cup | |
| Butter | 1 stick | plus a little for the pot |
| Cinnamon | 1 tbsp | |
| Vanilla extract | 1 tsp | |
| Bourbon | 1/2 cup | half for the pudding, half for the glaze; optional |
| Powdered sugar | 3 cups | |
| Water | about 700 ml | cold, from your jug |
Method
- Build a fire early and let it burn down. You want 8 to 10 coals under a 12-inch Dutch oven and 16 to 18 on the lid.
- Grease the bottom and the lower half of the pot with butter. Tear the doughnuts into rough chunks and pile them in with the raisins.
- In a separate pot or a large bag, whisk the egg powder and milk powder into 600 ml of cold water until no dry lumps remain. Add the cinnamon, vanilla, melted butter, and 1/4 cup of bourbon.
- Pour the custard over the doughnuts. Press down with a spoon so everything is wet, then leave it ten minutes to soak.
- Lid on, coals under and on top. Bake about 60 minutes. Rotate the pot a quarter turn every 15 minutes and the lid the other way, or one side burns.
- It is done when the center is set and a knife comes out clean. Pull the coals off the lid and let it sit ten minutes.
- For the glaze, stir the powdered sugar with 3 tbsp milk powder, the rest of the bourbon, and cold water a splash at a time until it pours. Drizzle over the pot.
The original recipe leans on half-and-half and cream cheese icing, neither of which survives a weekend in a cooler. Whole milk powder and powdered eggs rebuild the custard from a bag, and the glaze becomes powdered sugar, more milk powder, and bourbon. That trade costs a little tang and saves you a fridge.
Stale doughnuts are the point. Fresh ones dissolve into paste when the custard hits them, while a day-old cake doughnut holds enough structure to stay recognizable after an hour over coals. Coal placement does the rest: too many underneath and the bottom sets into a crust before the middle cooks.
Packing
Egg powder, milk powder, cinnamon, and vanilla go in one bag; powdered sugar and the glaze milk powder in another. Doughnuts ride in a rigid box or they arrive as crumbs.
Variations
- Skip the bourbon entirely and add an extra 1/4 cup water. The cinnamon carries it.
- Dried apples or chopped dates in place of the raisins.
- No lid coals? Bake it longer with the lid on and accept a pale top.
https://realtree.com/timber-2-table-wild-game-recipes/dutch-oven-doughnut-bourbon-bread-pudding-05b870