Schweet 'N Savory

I'm not sure why they are called "doughnuts". Everyone seems to have their own explanation. We came up with a couple the other night when we had these for dessert. But I'm pretty sure none of them could have been the real reason. They weren't as scrumptious as the Copycat Krsispy Creme ones I did a while back, but they were good. After they were all gone, I got the idea to do Doughnut Ice Cream Sundae's like the Fractured Prune does. I guess that will have to wait till next time though.

For these, you need to make sure you get the right temperature. The first couple I did, the heat was way to high and I burnt them, and then I put the temp. down to low. Medium or 375 is your best bet. Once they had fried, I almost did the glaze, but then decided just to roll them in sugar. I think that went better with these ones, but for the Copycat Krispy Kreme, I would definitely stick with the glaze. =)

Ingredients:
1 cup of warm milk
2 tsps. instant yeast
4 cups of flour
3/4 cup + 1tsp. sugar (also, keep a little extra out for rolling the donuts in)
5 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
3 egg yolks

To start, you'll want to proof your yeast. Take the warm milk, which should be between 110 and 115 F, and mix in the yeast and a teaspoon of sugar. Let it sit for about ten minutes, so that a foamy mixture starts to rise. Meanwhile mix the flour, sugar, butter, and eggs in a large bowl.

Add in the milk mixture and carefully mix with a wooden spoon. It's going to be a little sticky but that's fine because, once it rises, you can add in a little more flour to make it knead-able. Let it rise in a warm place, covered with a damp cloth, until it has doubled in size.

Once the dough has doubled, punch it down to get out some of the excess air. Then take it out on a floured surface and carefully kneed it, adding in more flour if needed. Roll the dough out to half an inch thickness, and cut out the doughnuts using a doughnut cutter or a glass cup. Place the doughnuts on a floured cookie sheet, and let them rise for an hour.

About fifteen minutes before the doughnuts are done rising, heat 2 inches of oil to 275 F. in whatever type of pan you would like to use. Once the oil is heated, your doughnuts can be fried for about a minute and a half on each side. Drain them on paper towels. Once they have cooled enough to be handled, roll them in sugar. Enjoy!!

Sometimes messy is a good thing, especially if it's a deliciously messy thing...like a buffalo wing. I've been on a buffalo wing kick latley and have really missed blogging, so I decided to share my recent infatuation. I made up a little trio today with some regular, Asian, and Italian wings. I'm pretty sure the Italian ones were my favorite and that might be because they reminded me of the "Caribbean" ones you get at "The Buffalo Wing Factory". And speaking of "The Buffalo Wing Factory", I was there a couple of weeks ago and a group of high school boys next to our table decided to go for the "Flat-liners", the wings so hot you have to sign a waver. It was really funny watching them try to eat them...they were all crying. =)

All of these were pretty easy to make. Instead of frying them, I baked them and then, towards the end, spooned the sauce over them and broiled them for a crunchy finish.

The Italian Wings
18 Chicken Wings
3 Tablespoon of Olive Oil
3 Tablespoons Italian Herb Mix (rosemary, oregano, thyme, sage)
1 tsp. of Paprika
1 tsp. each of Salt and Pepper
1/4 cup Butter (melted)
2 Tablespoons Maple Syrup
1/4 cup Lemon Juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh Basil

Preheat the oven to 400. Drizzle a baking sheet with the olive oil and place the wings on it. Bake them for twenty minutes, or until the juices run clear. In a small bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients. Spoon the mixture over the cooked wings, and then place them back in the oven on broil for about ten minutes, or until they turn golden and crispy.


The Asian Wings
18 Chicken Wings
1 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. dry mustard
2 Tablespoons Cranberry Sauce/Jam
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
1/4 cup butter (melted)
2 Tablespoon Toasted Sesame Oil
1/4 cup water

The directions for these are exactly the same as those for the Italian wings. Just watch these ones a little closer though. The sauce on these ones burns easier under the broiler.

The Regular Wings
These ones you cook like the other ones, except don't add the sauce before you broil them. Go ahead and broil them and then toss them in whatever hot sauce you usually use. We use Frank's Hot Wing Sauce mixed with a little butter.

Don't forget the celery and blue cheese!

Yesterday, for the first time ever, I made homemade brownies! Usually I make brownies as a last resort, and end up whipping them up from a box mix. Yesterday however, was different and not only did I make the brownies from scratch, but I also made them in mini cupcake pans and topped them with some bite size snickers. They were so cute, not to mention scrumptious!! I'll definitely be making them again, but next time, I'll probably cover them completely with snickers so they resemble mini cupcakes with a chewy snickers frosting. (These ones just had a square snicker in the center.) Also, I'll make sure to completely grease the pan so all of them come out whole, instead of just the snickery top. =) If you are wandering, the brownie mix made a great brownie and I would use it anytime over a box mix. You can always tell the finished product will be yummy if the batter is delish!!


Snicker Topped Brownies
(Makes about 36 mini muffin sized brownies.)
2 cups white sugar
1 cup butter
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
18 Snickers Minis, halved

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine all the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Next, mix in the butter, vanilla, and eggs. Grease a mini sized muffin pan and fill each muffin cup with the brownie batter.

Then top each of the batter filled muffin cups with a snicker half.


Bake them at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes. Let them cool completely before trying to remove them from the pan and enjoy!!

Without a doubt, Fall is definitely my favorite season, so I am super excited that it is just around the corner. I love the chilliness in the air, the colors, and the smells! There is something so comforting about the smell of a baking loaf of pumpkin bread, or a simmering stew on a chilly day. So what better way to welcome the arrival of Fall, than with some scrumptiously delicious, pumpkin muffins? This recipe is one of my families' favorites, and is actually intended for pumpkin cupcakes. We however, just skip the frosting and call them muffins. =)



Pumpkin Muffins
Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart
Yields: 24 muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.

Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway.