Pumpkin Apple Donuts with Apple Cider Glaze

Fall is my favorite time of year.  Living in the Midwest, you get to experience the best of it.  The leaves change color, and it's finally getting cooler.  It's this time of year that you start to see all the pumpkin recipes showing up on the blogs and in the cooking magazines.  I love pumpkin desserts, and after I got this pan on sale the other day, I knew I wanted to make pumpkin donuts.  I had some honeycrisp apples (another wonderful fall occurence) on hand, so when I found this recipe from Cherry Tea Cakes for Pumpkin Apple donuts, I knew I had to try them out.  


These donuts are really delicious, they are cake-like considering they are baked and not fried, and the apple cider glaze add a spicy sweet topping to the apple filled donuts.  I altered the original recipe a bit by decreasing the amount of sugar and increasing the spices in the batter.  I also swapped out some of the white sugar for brown sugar to incorporate a deeper more molasses-like flavor to the donuts.  I think the changes turned out well.  You will have some extra glaze left over after you dip the donuts, but I just spooned some over the donuts once the first glaze had dried to add an extra sweet layer.  I will definitely be making these again.  


If you didn't have a donut pan, you could always bake these in muffin tins, but you would have to increase the baking time a bit. 




Pumpkin Apple Donuts with Apple Cider Glaze
    makes 10-12 donuts


For the donuts:

• 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup white sugar
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼  teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• ½  cup canned pumpkin puree
• ¼  cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup peeled, cored and chopped apple

For the glaze:

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• ¼ cup, or less of spiced apple cider or milk if you don't have cider
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease donut or muffins pans.  

In a large bowl sift together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt. 

In a separate bowl, mix together egg, white and brown sugar, pumpkin and oil. Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture; stirring just to moisten. Fold in apples. Spoon batter into doughnut molds filling roughly half full to three quarters full.  

Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let sit in the pan for a few minutes then turn out onto a wire rack to cool.  Allow to fully cool before dipping in the glaze.  

To make the apple cinnamon glaze,  mix powdered sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl. Add cider or milk until you reach the desired consistency. Dip each doughnut in and allow glaze to set.  If you have any extra glaze you can always spoon it over the donuts once the first layer of glaze has fully set.  

CEiMB: Muesli Parfaits

This is my week to pick a recipe for the Craving Ellie in My Belly, and I decided to go with something a bit different than my previous picks.  My other picks included Curried Chicken Salad, Salmon Cakes with Creamy Sesame Sauce, and Sesame Shrimp Fried Rice with Cabbage.  I decided to go the complete opposite way with this pick.  I picked the Muesli Parfaits from So Easy: Luscious, Healthy Recipes for Every Meal of the Week by Ellie Krieger. Muesli, in case you didn't know is defined as a breakfast dish consisting of milk, uncooked oats, fruit, and nuts.  I have often seen it done with yogurt, and that is how Ellie makes it as well.  I often eat a makeshift muesli for breakfast.  I will mix some yogurt and some granola together, pack it in a container, and eat it when I get to work.  By that time, the granola has softened, and sweetened the yogurt.

I really liked this recipe, you can make it the night before, and have a healthy breakfast in the morning. I used a combination of blueberries and cherries.  They go well with the honey and vanilla that is in the yogurt.  It's not overly sweet, which is good because I used some plain granola instead of the just oats, so I didn't need a lot of added sugar.  I would recommend this dish for a quick, healthy breakfast.  Be sure to check out the Craving Ellie in My Belly blogroll to see what the other bloggers did with their recipe!


Muesli Parfaits
    serves 4

• 1/2 cup unsalted raw almonds
• 1 cup nonfat milk
• 1 cup nonfat plain yogurt
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats (I used some plain almond and honey granola)
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups mixed berries, fresh or frozen, if using strawberries, hull and halve them

Toast the almonds in a dry skillet over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until golden and fragrant, about 3 minutes.  Chop them coarsely.

In a medium bowl, stir together the milk, yogurt, oats, honey, and vanilla.  Divide the oat mixture evenly among 4 small dishes or parfait glasses.  Top each with 1/2 cup of berries, then 2 tablespoons of chopped almonds.  Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight.  The parfaits with keep up to 3 days in the refrigerator.

CEiMB: Blueberry Coffee Cake

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly recipe was picked by Bri of Yoshi vs. Motherhood.  She chose for us to make Ellie's Blueberry Coffee Cake.  The recipe can be found on the Food Network's website.  Ellie made this recipe healthier by swapping out some of the butter with canola oil and using non-fat yogurt to make the cake very moist.  I used vanilla non-fat yogurt and sliced almonds in place of the walnuts.  I really liked the mixture of cinnamon, sugar, and almonds that are both layered in the middle of the cake and sprinkled on top.  It made the whole house smell like cinnamon toast when it was baking.

I liked this coffee cake, it wasn't overly sweet and the cinnamon sugar on top gave it a crisp crunch.  It definitely tastes healthier (i.e. not rich and buttery), but it still is very moist and tasty.  I enjoyed it very much and I think it would also go well with other berries as well as apples and pears or stone fruits such as peaches and plums.  Bri also mentioned that it will last quite a bit of time after baking (up to 5 days) and it tastes best when reheated for about 20-30 seconds in the microwave.  Thanks Bri for a good pick, and be sure to check out the blogroll to see what others did with their recipes.

CEiMB: Vanilla Spice Oatmeal

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly recipe was picked by Mary of Popsicles and Sandy Feet.  She chose for us to make the Vanilla Spice Oatmeal from So Easy: Luscious, Healthy Recipes for Every Meal of the Week by Ellie Krieger.  This is a simple recipe, but a hearty and healthy one.  It makes a wonderful breakfast that will keep for days in the fridge, so you can make it on Sunday and enjoy a great breakfast throughout the week.


I made quite a few changes to the original recipe to accommodate what I already had on hand in my kitchen.  First, I used steel-cut oats instead of old-fashioned oats.  I really love the nutty, chewy flavor of them, and if you stir them often while they are cooking, they become really creamy, similar to risotto.  Granted, they take quite a bit longer to cook than the old-fashioned oats (about 25 minutes), but I think it is worth it.

I added dried cranberries instead of raisins.  This recipe has a unique technique in which you add the dried fruit at the same time you add the oats, so the dried fruit plumps up and releases some of its flavor into the oatmeal.  I used some honey cinnamon almonds instead of pecans, and used cinnamon to complement the almonds.  


This isn't a dish that you typically find in a cookbook, and it is one that you might easily pass over because it is so simple, but I am glad I participated this week.  I learned a new trick for oatmeal that I will use again and again.  Thanks to Mary for this week's pick, and be sure to check out the blogroll to see what other bloggers did with their recipe!

Ham, Tomato, and Spinach Frittata

A frittata is basically a crustless quiche.  They are great for brunches or family breakfasts because they require minimal preparation, and you can make endless combinations.  I like to start my frittatas on the stovetop and finish in the oven.  You can add any ingredients that you would normally add to an omelet, and once the initial ingredients are softened on the stovetop, you don't have to sit and monitor the eggs, just pop it in the oven.  I made my frittata with a combination of diced ham, spinach, scallions, tomatoes and cheddar cheese, a great combination.

Ham, Tomato, and Spinach Frittata
      serves 6

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 10 larges eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3/4 cup grated Cheddar cheese
• 3/4 cup (packed) baby spinach, chopped
• 1-2 scallions, whites and greens, thinly sliced
• 8 oz. diced ham
• 2-3 Roma tomatoes, sliced

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Heat an ovenproof, nonstick skillet over medium heat and melt the 2 tablespoons of butter.  
• Add the ham, spinach and scallions and cook until the onions are soft and the spinach is wilted, about 2-3 minutes.  
• Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, beat the eggs with the milk and stir in the Cheddar cheese and season with salt and pepper.  Spread out the ham, spinach, and scallions mixture evenly in the pan, pour the egg mixture into the skillet and using a spatula, lift up the mixture to allow some of the eggs to flow underneath.  Place the tomatoes slices on top of the frittata.
• Place the skillet in the oven, and cook until the frittata is puffy and golden, about 10-15 minutes.  Remove the skillet from the oven (careful, the handle will be hot), and let the frittata cool for at least 5 minutes.  Cut the frittata into six wedges and serve. 

CEiMB: Cranberry French Toast Bake

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly is from Liz of The Not So Skinny Kitchen. She chose for us to make Peach French Toast Bake from The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life by Ellie Krieger. Since I had a lot of cranberries left over from my Cranberry Orange Applesauce, and since cranberries are more in season than peaches, I decided to make my French toast bake with them instead.

I made a few additions and substitutions since I was using cranberries instead of peaches. Since cranberries are much tarter than peaches I added an additional tablespoon of brown sugar to the egg mixture and an additional 1 1/2 tablespoons of brown sugar to the cranberry topping. I substituted orange juice for the lemon juice in the recipe, and added the zest of half an orange to the egg mixture. Based on the reviews on the Food Network, I added some spices to the egg mixture as well. I added 1/2 teaspoon each of cinnamon and ground ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg.

This dish was incredibly easy to throw together, and you can make it the night before, and bake it off in the morning for a quick breakfast. I actually only let mine rest in the refrigerator for about 4 hours, but that seemed to be plenty of time for the bread to soak up the egg mixture. My French toast took about 50 minutes to bake. The orange flavor went well with the tart cranberries, which were still quite tart, but when I drizzled maple syrup over the top, it was a nice combination of sweet and sour. This recipe is very versatile, I would like to try it with blueberries and almonds or plums and crystallized ginger. There are really a lot of combinations that would work well with the French toast, but I think it is really important to add a lot of flavors to the egg mixture or the French toast will probably come off as a little bland.

CEiMB: Breakfast Cookies

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly is from Natalie of What's For Supper? She chose for us to bake a web-based recipe, Breakfast Cookies, by Ellie Krieger. These cookies have a bit of everything in them, oats, cereal, dried fruit, and nuts. I took some liberties with the recipe and made quite a few substitutions. Instead of bran flakes I used Kashi's Oat Flakes with Wild Blueberry Clusters. To go with the cereal, I used dried wild blueberries instead of the raisins called for in the original recipe. I didn't have any walnuts on hand, but I did have almonds, so I used them because I love the combination of blueberries and almonds.

These cookies smelled great while they were baking, and had a great cake-like texture to them. I think it's because the recipe only has a small amount of butter in it, instead, the recipe called for canola oil. They tasted great. The blueberries went really well with the almonds, and the cereal added a nice crunch. I can't wait to eat more tomorrow morning!

CEiMB: Vegetable Cheese Strata

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly is from Jenn of A Mid-Life Culinary Adventure she chose for us to make Vegetable Cheese Strata from The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life by Ellie Krieger. I was excited to try this recipe. The ingredients broccoli, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, two types of cheeses all sounded delicious. Unfortunately, I have been extremely busy, and the recipe calls for the strata to sit overnight in the refrigerator to allow time for the bread to absorb the egg mixture. So tomorrow morning, I will have beautiful picture of my strata to post. I only made a few substitutions, I used scallions instead of onions, and and like Leslie over at Lethally Delicious, I threw in some spinach as well. I can't wait to see how this turns out tomorrow!

The next day...



The strata looked just gorgeous when it came out of the oven. It puffed up nicely, and was golden brown. I baked mine for 70 minutes, and added a little bit of extra mozzarella on top during the last 10 minutes. I forgot to mention yesterday, that I halved the recipe, and used a 9x6 pan. I also wasn't exactly precise when measuring the vegetables, so mine is full of them, which I love. And the taste? I really loved it. The cheese and veggies go great with the eggs, and the sun-dried tomatoes add just a hint of sweetness. I will definitely make this one again. I am so glad I have joined this group. The first two recipes I have made have been excellent, and I can't wait to keep trying more!

Hash Brown Egg Bake

I made this dish for a brunch I hosted a few months ago. I adapted it from a recipe from Taste of Home magazine. I made quite a few changes in adapting this recipe. I decreased the amount of potatoes and bacon (I know, crazy, right?), and increased the amount of eggs that was in the original recipe. I also added some spinach, which really went well with the rest of the ingredients. This recipe is extremely easy, and you can even make the night before and pop in the oven the next morning.

Hash Brown Egg Bake

Serves 8

• 1 package (32 ounces) frozen cubed hash brown potatoes, thawed (I removed 1 cup of hash browns from the package and saved them for another use)
  
• 8 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 cup fresh baby spinach (packed), chopped
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  
• 10 eggs
• 2 cups milk
• Dash paprika

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine hash browns, bacon, 1/2 cup cheese, spinach, salt, and pepper. Spoon into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. In a bowl, beat eggs and milk until smooth; pour over hash brown mixture. Sprinkle with paprika.
Bake, uncovered, at 350° for about 45 minutes until golden. Top with the remaining cheese and bake for 5 minutes more.

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

I hosted Christmas brunch, so I decided to make these Overnight Cinnamon Rolls from Alton Brown. You make the dough the night before, and in the morning, you take them out, let the dough rise a bit, and bake them. The turned out delicious, and they are very simple to make. My house was a bit cold, so they took a bit longer for the initial rise, but other than that, I followed the recipe exactly.


Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

makes 12

Dough:

• 4 large egg yolks, room temperature
• 1 large whole egg, room temperature
• 2 ounces sugar, approximately 1/4 cup
• 3 ounces unsalted butter, melted, approximately 6 tablespoons
• 6 ounces buttermilk, room temperature
• 20 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 cups, plus additional for dusting
• 1 package instant dry yeast, approximately 2 1/4 teaspoons
• 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
• Vegetable oil or cooking spray
  

Filling:

• 8 ounces light brown sugar, approximately 1 cup packed
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch salt
• 3/4-ounce unsalted butter, melted, approximately 1 1/2 tablespoons

Icing:

• 2 1/2 ounces cream cheese softened, approximately 1/4 cup
• 3 tablespoons milk
  
• 5 1/2 ounces powdered sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups

Directions:

For the dough: in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add approximately 2 cups of the flour along with the yeast and salt; whisk until moistened and combined. Remove the whisk attachment and replace with a dough hook. Add all but 3/4 cup of the remaining flour and knead on low speed for 5 minutes. Check the consistency of the dough, add more flour if necessary; the dough should feel soft and moist but not sticky. Knead on low speed 5 minutes more or until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface; knead by hand about 30 seconds. Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl, lightly oil the top of the dough, cover and let double in volume, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until well incorporated. Set aside until ready to use.

Butter a 9 by 13-inch glass baking dish. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently shape the dough into a rectangle with the long side nearest you. Roll into an 18 by 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the 3/4-ounce of melted butter, leaving 1/2-inch border along the top edge. Sprinkle the filling mixture over the dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border along the top edge; gently press the filling into the dough. Beginning with the long edge nearest you, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Firmly pinch the seam to seal and roll the cylinder seam side down. Very gently squeeze the cylinder to create even thickness. Using a serrated knife, slice the cylinder into 1 1/2-inch rolls; yielding 12 rolls. Arrange rolls cut side down in the baking dish; cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight or up to 16 hours.

Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and place in an oven that is turned off. Fill a shallow pan 2/3-full of boiling water and set on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy; approximately 30 minutes. Remove the rolls and the shallow pan of water from the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

When the oven is ready, place the rolls on the middle rack and bake until golden brown, or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, approximately 30 minutes.

While the rolls are cooling slightly, make the icing by whisking the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy. Add the milk and whisk until combined. Sift in the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Spread over the rolls and serve immediately.

Baked Apple Oatmeal

Fall is my favorite time of year, and it is just around the corner. I attended the Country Applefest in Lebanon, Ohio, this weekend, and I purchased some apples and some fresh apple cider. I decided to make some baked apple oatmeal. I am a big fan of steel-cut (or Irish) oatmeal. The problem is that it takes about 30-40 minutes to cook on the stove, and I don't have that kind of time in the morning. The easiest thing to do is to make a big batch of it on Sunday, and then just reheat the oatmeal in the morning. Therefore, you can have steel cut oatmeal all week long. Steel cut oatmeal is great cooked on the stove top or, like I did here, baked in the oven. The nice thing about baking the oats in the oven is that you don't have to be standing over the stove the whole time the oatmeal is cooking. I adapted a recipe I found in one of my cookbooks called Moosewood Restaurant New Classics. It is a wonderful, mostly vegetarian, cookbook from the chefs of the Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca, New York. I can't recommend this cookbook enough.


Baked Apple Oatmeal
-serves 4

• 1 1/2 cups apple cider
• 2 cups 2% or whole milk (or if you don't have apple cider, you can just use 3 1/2 cups milk)
• 1 cup steel cut oats
• 2 cups apples, peeled and diced (I used one Gala and one Honey Crisp apple)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar (only if you are not using the apple cider)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup raisins, dried cherries, or dried cranberries (optional)
• sliced almonds, extra cinnamon, additional milk (optional for serving)

-Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
-In a small saucepan, heat the milk and the cider on medium to medium-low heat until very hot but not quite boiling. Stir occasionally to prevent the milk from scorching. The milk and cider will look like it is separating, just stir the mixture, and it will come back together.
-Stir in the oats, apples, sugar (if using), cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cook for several minutes until the mixture returns to a near boil. Remove from heat and stir in the salt, vanilla, and dried fruit (if you are using it).
-Transfer the oatmeal to a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish, cover, and bake 30-40 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed, and the oatmeal is creamy. Throughout the baking time, stir the oatmeal a few times to distribute the oats and prevent them from sticking to the sides of the casserole dish.
-Stir well before serving, and enjoy immediately. Serve with the additional cinnamon and milk, as well as the toasted almonds, if desired.
-Alternatively, the oatmeal can be cooled completely, and placed in the refrigerator to be enjoyed all week long. If you are eating the oatmeal the next day, you may need to add some milk or water to the oatmeal because it may have thickened overnight.


Notes: This is an excellent way to start the morning. Steel cut oats are nutty and chewy, and the cider and the apples add just the right amount of sweetness to the oatmeal. I didn't add the dried fruit to my oatmeal, but I think they would be a great addition.

Cinnamon Almond French Toast with Blueberry Sauce

Serves 2

French Toast:
4 slices white bread
3 large eggs
2 Tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 cup sliced almonds

Blueberry Sauce:
1 1/4 cups blueberries fresh or frozen (if frozen do not thaw)
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. cornstarch
1-2 Tbsp. sugar (depending on the sweetness of the berries)
1 tsp. lemon juice

Confectioner's sugar (optional)


Directions:

-Prepare the blueberry sauce first. Rinse the blueberries and place them in a small saucepan set over medium high heat.
-Mix the cornstarch into the water until dissolved and add to the blueberries, stir together and add the sugar and the lemon juice.
-Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer until the mixture is thickened, about 10 minutes.
-Meanwhile make the French toast. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, and coat with non-stick cooking spray.
-In a shallow bowl whisk the eggs, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon together.
-Spread the sliced almonds onto a plate.
-Dip the slices of bread into the egg mixture then the sliced almonds.
-Cook the toast for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown (be sure to watch carefully so the almonds do not burn).
-Place 2 slices of French toast on each plate and divide the blueberry sauce between them. Dust with confectioner's sugar if desired.

Notes:

Quick and easy weekend breakfast. Like I mentioned in the directions, the almonds can burn quite easily, so make sure to watch the toast carefully. The almonds provide a pleasant crunch that is a nice change to ordinary French toast.