1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add yeast, warm milk, sugar, flour, salt, eggs and softened butter. Knead on medium-low speed for 8 minutes. The dough will be soft and tacky. This is how it’s supposed to be. It will yield super soft doughnuts.

2. Transfer the dough to a medium to large size greased bowl. Spray the top of the dough with nonstick spray, then cover with plastic wrap.

3. Allow to rise in a warm place for 45 minutes (I like to turn my oven on. Once it reaches 100F, I turn the oven off, then place the covered dough in the warm oven).

4. In the meantime, cut out roughly 10 4×4 inch squares of parchment paper. Very lightly spray the parchment paper squares on one surface. These will be for the doughnuts to sit on, so you don’t want them to stick.

5.  Punch dough down and roll out on a floured surface to ½ inch thickness. Using a 3 ¾ inch round cookie cutter, cut the dough out. Reroll scraps as needed. You should get roughly 12 doughnuts. Place on cut out squares of parchment paper. Cover with plastic wrap.

6. Turn the oven on. Once the oven reaches 100F, turn oven OFF. Place covered doughnuts in warm oven and allow to rise for 15 minutes.

8. When the dough is almost done rising, fill a large pot or deep pan with vegetable oil 3 inches deep. Place over medium heat until it reaches 325-350F. Line a baking tray with paper towels, or place paper towels underneath a wire cooling rack.

9. Fry the doughnuts, 3-4 at a time, making sure to not crowd the pot. Carefully place parchment paper square in oil, then using tongs, pull the parchment paper square out from underneath the doughnut. Fry on each side until golden brown, flipping halfway through. Transfer doughnuts to paper towel lined baking tray or wire cooling rack, lined with paper towels underneath. Repeat with remaining doughnuts.

10. In a shallow bow, mix together cinnamon and sugar. Place doughnuts in the cinnamon sugar mixture, turning to fully coat.

11. Using the handle of a spoon, poke a hole in the side of a doughnut, then move the back of the spoon back and forth to create a cavity for the filling. Place Nutella in a zip-top bag, snip a corner off the bag, then pipe the Nutella into the center of the doughnut. Enjoy!