Baked Vanilla Bean Beignets with Blackberry Bourbon Vanilla Jam

For the jam:
In a medium-size saucepan combine all of the jam ingredients over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Turn the heat down to medium-low and mash the berries with a potato masher. Simmer the jam for about 30 minutes until it has thickened and reduced slightly. Remove from heat.

Cool to room temperature before putting it in a jar. Store the jam in the refrigerator. It will continue to thicken as it cools.

For the beignets:
In a small bowl combine the warm water and yeast with the pinch of sugar and let the mixture sit for 5 minutes until it becomes thick and bubbles form.

In a separate bowl combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar. Add the cubed cold butter to the flour mixture and work it into the flour mixture with your fingers until the flour resembles coarse sand.

In another small bowl whisk together the buttermilk, Greek yogurt, egg, and vanilla bean paste. Add the yeast mixture into the buttermilk mixture and stir to combine.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix together until combined. If the dough is very wet add a little more flour.

Dump the dough out onto a floured surface and knead it for about 8 minutes until the dough feels smooth. Place the dough back into a bowl sprayed with cooking spray and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for 15-20 minutes.

Remove the dough from the bowl and roll it out into a rectangle or square shape that’s roughly 1/2 inch thick. Use a pizza cutter or knife to cut the dough into 8-10 squares or rectangles.

Place the cut out dough onto a baking sheet that you’ve lined with parchment paper or a Silpat and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise again for about 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Uncover the dough and place the pan on the middle rack of the oven to bake for 7-9 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove from the oven and place the beignets on a wire cooling rack. Dust the tops of the beignets with powdered sugar.

Serve immediately with the blackberry bourbon vanilla jam for dipping.

Notes:
– Whole wheat flour is optional, so if you don’t have it use all regular flour.
– You can also use a stand mixer to help knead the dough, but you will probably still need to knead it for a couple minutes by hand.
– If you don’t have bourbon for the jam or don’t want to use it, you can omit it and the jam will still taste wonderful.
– Inspired by Jenna’s Oven Baked Beignets at eatliverun.com.