Monday, February 20, 2012

Buttery Sugar Glazed Doughnuts

Okay I must admit memories of homemade doughnuts are only those from a young women activity in high school the result was a sugary grease bomb. This recipe turned out perfectly and if you make sure your  oil is hot (350*-360*) before frying the doughnuts will not be greasy. The kids are ecstatic and kinda think I'm cool for venturing out in this arena. Next time we will experiment with a few different toppings. I chose to keep it simple today. :) I saw this recipe at Real Mom Kitchen she did hers heart shaped for Valentines day .


Buttery Sugar Glazed Doughnuts
makes 26 doughnuts and holes (Print This)

Yeast Doughnuts
1 cup warm milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 package instant yeast
2 large eggs, beaten
1 1/3 stick melted butter (not hot, just melted)
1 tablespoon Vanilla
4 cup All Purpose Flour
pinch of salt
Oil, for frying

Add sugar to the warm milk (around 110 degrees), and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add the yeast, and allow to rest around 10 minutes.

Combine the eggs with the butter and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on medium low speed with the dough hook until well combined. After the 10 minutes have passed on the yeast, add the mixture to the butter/egg combination, and mix for a few minutes. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and salt

Begin adding the flour, one half cup at a time, until it is all incorporated. Use a medium speed for this. Do not over knead, dough will be a bit sticky.

Remove dough from the mixer, and place in a greased bowl. Cover tightly and refrigerate for 4-5 hours, or overnight is you wish.

Roll out the dough to 1/3 to 1/5 inch thickness. Cut with a doughnut cutter (or biscuit cutter)

Place cut doughnuts on parchment, and allow to rise in a warm place until very airy and light.

Heat oil to 350/360, and drop doughnuts in one at a time. Cooking time will vary based on the heat of your oil, but 15 seconds per side worked for me. Remove from oil and pat with paper towels. Continue until all doughnuts are fried.

Dip in glaze. Allow to dry. Dip again, if desired. Serve and enjoy!

Doughnut Glaze
4 cups powdered sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2/3 cup milk

Stir all ingredients together until well combine







Saturday, February 18, 2012

Vanilla Cupcakes with Raspberry Filling


I made thes great cupcakes for Valentines Day. They were a big hit. I found the recipe at Jamie cooks it up. This recipe is a definite keeper.
Vanilla Cupcakes wih Raspberry Filling
RASPBERRY FILLING:
2 heaping C (one 12 ounce package) frozen raspberries
1 1/2 T cornstarch
2 T lemon juice
1/2 C sugar
1 T butter
1 t almond extract
dash salt

CUPCAKE:
1 box Duncan Hines White Cake Mix
1/3 C flour
1 (3.4 ounce) box instant vanilla pudding
4 eggs
1/3 C sour cream
1 1/2 C water
1/3 C oil
1 t almond extract

FROSTING:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 C butter, softened
3 T shortening (I use butter flavored Crisco)
5 1/2 C powdered sugar
4 T whipping cream
1 t vanilla
dash salt

RASPBERRY FILLING
1. Place 2 heaping cups frozen raspberries, 1 1/2 T cornstarch, 2 T lemon juice and 1/2 C sugar into a medium sized sauce pan. Stir it around with a whisk to combine.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium high heat, stirring constantly. The raspberries will break down very quickly. Continue to stir while the mixture boils for about 2 minutes.
or until the filling becomes glossy and thick...like this.
3. Remove the pan from the heat, add 1 tablespoon butter, 1 teaspoon almond extract and a dash of salt. The filling is a bit sour if eaten plain. However, remember that we are going to pipe it into a sweet cupcake and top it with an even sweeter frosting. The sweet and tart will work nicely together.
4. Set the filling aside to cool.

CUPCAKES
1. Into your stand mixer add 1 box white cake mix, 1/3 C flour and 1 small box of vanilla pudding. Toss it around with a fork to combine.
2. Add 4 eggs, 1/3 C sour cream, 1 1/2 C water, 1/3 C oil and 1 t almond extract to the dry ingredients. Mix on low for about 1 minute. Then scrape the sides of you mixer with a rubber spatula and beat on medium speed until the batter is smooth and a bit thick. 2-3 minutes should do the trick.
3. Line your muffin tins with cupcake liners and spoon the batter into them.  Fill the liners just a bit over half way full. This will give you a nice round domed cupcake. If you fill them too full  you will have cupcakes with more of a mushroom shape.
4. Bake the cupcakes at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
5. Remove the pans from you oven and allow the cupcakes to rest in the pans for about 5 minutes. Then transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool completely.
6. When your cupcakes (and filling) have cooled completely, place a large cake decorating tip into a pastry bag. Carefully fill the bag with the raspberry filling. This can get a little bit messy. Be sure that when you are filling the bag you turn the tip end up a bit so the filling doesn't run out.
7. Pipe the filling into each cupcake.

FROSTING
1. Place 1 package softened cream cheese, 1/2 C softened butter and 3 tablespoons shortning into your stand mixer. Beat on medium speed until well combined and smooth.
2. Add 5 1/2 C powdered sugar, 4 tablespoons whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla and a dash of salt. Mix until well combined. If the mixture is too thick, add a bit more whipping cream. If it gets too runny, add a bit more powdered sugar.
3. Fill another pastry bag with the frosting and pipe it onto each cupcake.


Friday, February 10, 2012

Sweetheart Peanut butter blossoms


I saw this version of peanut butter blossoms on my sisters cafe.......amazing perfect for Valentines day !!!

Sweet “Heart” Peanut Blossoms
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 ¾ cup flour
1 tsp soda
½ tsp salt
1 package heart shaped chocolates

Cream butter and sugars. Add egg and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Roll into balls. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8 minutes at 375°. Then press heart shaped chocolate gently into each cookie. Bake 1-3 minutes longer.

(Print This)

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Olive Garden Style Salad


Last night we had planned on feeding the sister missionaries for our church . It turns out that one of them had the flu so I delivered dinner to them. We made  Pasta e Fagioli Soup, breadsticks, and this wonderful Copy cat salad recipe. The dressing is creamier than the original Olive Garden dressing but it doesn't dissapoint. Turn your kitchen into the "Olive Garden " tonight :) The whole family loved this.

Olive Garden Salad with Homemade Dressing

Time: 15 minutes  ... 
Yield: 6-8 servings
Recipe from Copy Cat Recipes
(Printable Version)
2 romaine lettuce hearts (you just want the hearts, they will give you a crisp crunchy texture.) 3 Roma tomatoes
1/2 red onion
1/2 C medium sized olives
1 C croutons
1/4 C Parmesan cheese

Dressing:
1/2 C mayonnaise
1/3 C white vinegar
1 t Canola oil
2 T corn syrup
4 T Parmesan cheese
1 t minced garlic
1/2 t Italian Seasoning
1/2 t parsley, dried
1 T lemon juice

1. Combine all dressing ingredients in a blender or small food processor and mix until well combined. 2. Chop your lettuce, tomatoes and red onion. Add your olives, croutons and Parmesan cheese. Toss to combine.
3. Pour dressing over the top. Toss to coat and serve immediately.