I feel myself to be somewhat of a donut snob. I’m not a fan of cake donuts and grocery store donuts are usually too dry and boring. My all-time favorite donut shop is in Estes Park, but since that it is a bit of a trek from my house, I finally bit the bullet and tried my hand at making them homemade. The recipe is a combination of Pioneer Woman’s and a glaze I found online. The key to success with these donuts is to dip them basically as soon as you have pulled them out of the fryer. This will give you the Krispy Kreme-esque glaze on the top and if you eat it warm it will just melt in your mouth.  I know since this is a yeasted dough it takes some pre-planning on your part, but the results were worth it.

For the Dough:

• 1 1/8 cup whole milk, warm
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 1/4 teaspoons (one package) Instant Or Active Dry Yeast
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 1/4 stick unsalted butter (10 tablespoons), melted
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Shortening/oil for frying

For the Glaze:

• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• Enough cream or milk to thin, about 3 tablespoons (you want a consistency of school glue)
• Dash of salt

Warm the milk until it is getting nice and warm when you dip your finger in it, about 105 degrees. I did this by microwaving my milk in 30 sec increments, testing it after each time. It took about 1:15 sec. Add the milk to a mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Add the yeast and stir to combine. Let the yeast rest for 5 minutes. Add the beaten eggs and melted butter to the bowl and stir to combine. While the mixer is running slowly, add the flour and salt and mix until the dough comes together. Mix for a whole five minutes to work the dough well. Turn off the bowl and let the dough sit in the bowl of the mixer for 10 minutes. After the rest period turn the dough out into a lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the dough for at least 8 hours up to overnight.

To make the donuts, take the dough out of the fridge and roll out to 1/4″-1/3″ thickness on a lightly floured surface. Use a donut cutter or the largest round cutter you have, and use the smallest round cutter you can to cut the whole in the middle. I also just used a star shape because one of my sons really wanted to. Place them on baking sheets lined parchment or wax paper, cover with a clean tea towel and put in a warm spot to rise for about 1.5 hours.

When the donuts look like they have about doubled in size, heat up vegetable or canola oil in a sauce pan to 375 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer you can test the temperature with one of your donut holes. It should immediately rise to the surface when introduced to the oil. While the oil is heating up, combine your glaze ingredients in a medium size bowl so it’s ready for your donuts when they come out of the oil.

Fry the donuts in small batches, keeping a close eye on them. When you see they have browned on the bottom, flip them with a fork or spatula and cook on the other side. My donuts cooked extremely quickly here at altitude, so it can take anywhere from 30 seconds to 1.5 minutes, just watch them closely. After they are browned on both sides, take them out of the fryer and put them on paper towels to absorb the excess oil. Then, immediately dip them on both sides in the glaze. This will give them that nice shine. Let them drain on a rack so the excess glaze can drip down. Enjoy immediately and try not to eat them all at once.

I recently bought myself a just because present of one of my favorite food bloggers cookbook. Shelly Jaronsky, aka cookiesandcups.com, is one of my go-to bloggers for a recipe that is sure to be a hit. In her cookbook she has a recipe for toffee-speckled banana bread, but since I had fresh blueberries I needed to use up I subbed them in instead. I also added a crumb topping because it makes everything better.

Bread:

• 1/2 cup salted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups mashed bananas, about 3 large extra-ripe
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup blueberries, slightly tossed in flour

Crumb Topping:

• 1/3 stick butter, melted
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 350. Coat a 9×5 loaf pan with cooking spray. If you want you can also the the pan with parchment paper to make it easier to take out, which might be a good idea because of the crumb topping. In your mixer, mix the butter and sugar on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the milk, eggs, and vanilla and continue mixing until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.  Add the mashed banana, baking powder and salt and mix until well combined. Turn the speed to low and mix in the flour until just combined. Finally, stir in the blueberries.  Spread the batter in the pan and then mix together your topping ingredients and pour them on top. Bake for 60-65 minutes, or until the center is set and a toothpick comes out clean. For me it was a little closer to 70 minutes. Let it cool in the pan for about 30 minutes, then store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

I found this recipe in a Taste of Home magazine and decided to challenge myself. I’ve had scones at Starbucks before but never attempted to make them myself. It turns out that my husband loves scones, which neither of us would’ve guessed before now. This is one of the few things I’ve made that he ate til they were gone, so they are definitely a keeper.

• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, cold and cut into small cubes
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 cup white chocolate chips/chunks
• 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries; frozen won’t leak as much into the batter
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup heavy cream (you may need 1-2 tablespoons more depending on how the dough comes together)
• additional white sugar for sprinkling on top of the scones
• 2-3 oz additional white chocolate melted, optional

Preheat your oven to 400° and line a baking tray with a baking mat or parchment paper. Place flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and cubes of butter into a large bowl and rub the butter into the flour with your fingers until you have a coarse breadcrumb texture. Some pea sized lumps of butter is fine. (I was using frozen butter so I grated mine with a cheese grater.) Add the white chocolate chips and cranberries and stir very briefly to evenly distribute. Place the eggs and 1/2 cup heavy cream into a bowl and beat lightly with a fork. Add the egg mixture into your flour mix and stir gently, until a soft, crumbly dough forms. You want it to hold if you press the dough together, but not be sticky and wet. If the mixture is still too crumble, add in the extra cream, 1 tablespoon at a time. (I live at altitude and added 2 tablespoons and probably could’ve added one more.)  Tip the dough onto your prepared baking tray and press into a large disc, around half an inch thick. Use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to cut the disc of dough into 6-8 wedges. At this stage you can leave the scones cut but together, or use a spatula to spread the scones around the baking tray with a 2 inch gap in between each one. Sprinkle some white sugar onto the top of each scones and then place in the oven for 13-17 minutes. (I left mine in a round for about 14 minutes because my mixture was pretty crumbly, then I separated them and baked for about 5 more minutes. You’ll know they are done when they are risen, golden around the edges and sound light when you tap on the top.

Shelly, from the website cookiesandcups.com, has become by go-to for easy, delicious recipes. This cinnamon roll recipe is so so good, and because it uses rapid rise yeast, it takes the intimidation factor out of making yeasted breads/rolls. Just mix all the ingredients in the bowl and let rise for an hour (it really is that easy even though the instructions look long)! I will definitely be making this recipe Christmas morning. Recipe and photo courtesy of cookiesandcups.com.

For the Dough:

• 5-6 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 2 (1/4 oz) packets Rapid Rise yeast
• 1 teaspoon kosher sale
• 1 cups water
• 1/2 cup milk
• 6 tablespoons, cubed
• 1 large egg

For the Filling:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 6 tablespoons butter, very soft

For the Frosting:

• 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

In the bowl, of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment mix together 2 cups of flour, sugar, yeast, and salt on low speed until combined. Place the water, milk, and butter in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 25 second increments until the temperature reaches between 120°-130°F. Butter might not be melted, completely, which is fine. Add this to the flour mixture along with the egg and mix on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add 2 more cups of flour to the mixture, and mix on high speed for 2 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary. Turn mixer to low and add in just enough remaining flour until the dough will form a ball. Lightly flour a clean surface knead the dough for 6-8 minutes, adding a little more flour as necessary while you are kneading until the dough is smooth, elastic and springs back when lightly pressed with 2 fingers. Alternately, you can do this step in your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Cover the dough with a towel and let it rest for 10 minutes. In a medium bowl mix together the sugar and cinnamon for the filling. Set aside. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a 15×10- inch rectangle using a rolling pin. This doesn’t have to be exact. Spread the soft butter onto the rolled out dough evenly. Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Starting the with long sides, tightly roll up the dough, pinching the seams to seal. Using a knife, slice into 12 equal pieces. Line a 9×13 baking dish with parchment paper and coat with nonstick spray. Place the cinnamon rolls evenly into the pan, cover with a towel and allow to rise for 1 hour in a warm place, until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake cinnamon rolls for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes. Prepare frosting in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix the butter and powdered sugar together for 1 minute on medium speed. Add in the milk and vanilla and mix for another minute until creamy and smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Spread frosting onto rolls.