Combine ⅓ of the warm milk with the yeast in the bowl of an electric mixer. Allow to sit for about 5 minutes. Stir the butter and sugar into the remaining cup of milk and add to the yeast mixture. Using a fork, stir in the eggs, zest, flour and salt until just combined.

Using the dough hook, knead the dough on medium speed for about 5 minutes. The dough should clear the sides of the mixing bowl. If the dough is too sticky, add flour a tablespoon at a time and continue kneading until the dough is smooth and supple. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, knead a few times and then shape into a ball.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover. Place in a warm spot and allow to rise for about an hour or until the dough has roughly doubled in size.

Line two baking sheets with parchment or nonstick baking mats. Punch down the dough and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Roll into a rectangle about ½-inch thick. Using a large round cutter (mine was 3½ inches), cut rounds from the dough. Transfer to the baking sheets, then use a smaller cutter (mine was 1½ inches) to cut out the inner hole. This prevents the doughnuts from losing their shape when being transferred. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rise for another 45 minutes.

Heat oven to 375º. Bake doughnuts for 8-10 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly golden. The tops will still be very light.

While the doughnuts are baking, make the glaze. Whisk together the zest, confectioners’ sugar and 5 tablespoons of the blood orange juice in a medium bowl. Adjust the consistency as needed.

Remove the doughnuts from the oven and let cool for just a minute or two. Place a wire rack over parchment or a baking sheet. Dip each doughnut in the glaze and transfer to the wire rack to allow the glaze to set. Enjoy as soon as possible.