Cheeseburger filled paczki (doughnuts)

Paczki dough: in a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, weigh out and add all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, yeast, egg yolks, brandy (or rum), milk, melted butter and vanilla extract.

If you are kneading by hand, stir the mixture with a spoon until it all comes together and then knead for 15 minutes until you have a smooth dough. If you are using a stand mixer, knead for 8 minutes on medium speed using the dough hook.

Move the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and leave in a warm spot in your kitchen for 1.5 to 2 hours to rise. 

Cheeseburger filling: near the end of the dough rising time, you need to brown your ground beef. In a large pan over medium high heat, add the ground beef. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook the beef for 8 to 10 minutes, breaking the beef into small pebble sizes. Once the beef is brown and cooked through, remove it to a small bowl. At this point you can break up your cheese slices into smaller pieces and stir into the beef. Cover and set aside until you are ready to shape the dough. 

After the dough has doubled in size, gently deflate it and move to a lightly greased or floured surface. Using a rolling pin or your hands, form the dough into a rough rectangle and roll out or flatten to about 1/4 to 1/2 of an inch in height. 

Using a round cookie or biscuit cutter (or even a sharp-edged glass or cup) cut out 2.5-to-3-inch circles. 

Press each dough circle out with your hands or roll with a rolling pin until you have about a 6-inch circle. Add 2 or 3 tablespoons of cheeseburger filling to the middle and pull the edges of the dough up around the top, over the cheeseburger filling.

Pinch the dough tightly and flip the dough ball over so that the pinched seem is on the bottom side. Press down the dough to make it more of a disk shape than a ball shape. 

Place each cheeseburger filled dough disk onto a sheet pan lined with parchment and cover with plastic wrap or a second inverted sheet pan and allow the dough to rise again for 30 minutes. 

In a wide pan or dutch oven, bring 1.5 to 2 inches of peanut or vegetable oil up to 350 degrees F (175 C). 

Fry 2 or 3 paczek at a time, for about a minute per side until golden brown. Flip and fry on the second side for another minute. 

Remove each paczek to a cooling rack set inside a sheet pan to cool. If you want the top covered in powdered sugar, you should sprinkle that on when the paczek is hot. 

Serve and enjoy.