Pumpkin Pleas (The Donut Mysteries Book 26)

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Pumpkin Pleas (The Donut Mysteries Book 26) Page 17

by Beck,Jessica


  Beyond that, what more did we really need, in the scheme of things?

  Recipes

  In the spirit of full disclosure, if these recipes seem familiar to you, it’s most likely because they were either taken directly from past books or modified slightly before they were added here. I’ve decided that in order to offer more mysteries to you, my dear and valued readers, I’m going to take a break from creating new recipes in my kitchen for a bit. For every recipe I’ve shared over the past twenty-five Donut books (not to mention the Cast Iron and the Classic Diner mysteries), there were usually at least five that didn’t make the cut, so when writing a novel that offers three recipes, it normally means that fifteen to twenty are required. The first ten books featured at least ten recipes each, so that means that I, and my tasters, decided that at least fifty weren’t good enough to share, though they achieved various degrees of tastiness among us. Over the course of these books, I’ve pretty much depleted my recipe idea notebook, and I haven’t been able to keep up with the demand for new ones, so at least for now, I’m going to offer some of my old favorites, including these. If you didn’t have a chance to try one of these in the past, now’s as good a time as any, no matter what season it might be when you’re reading this. As I write this note of explanation to you, it’s September in the South, and we’re finally beginning to believe that autumn is in the air after a long, hot, dry summer. This time of year inspires some of our favorite recipes, and I hope you enjoy them as much as my family and I do!

  Kool-Aid Cake Bites

  When I heard about these donuts being served at our county fair, I had to try to come up with my own recipe, adapting them to donuts. The taste, as well as the color, is BOLD! We love these, so if you’re feeling adventurous one day, try them!

  Ingredients

  Mixed

  1 egg, lightly beaten

  3⁄4 cup sugar, white granulated

  2 tablespoons butter, melted

  1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  Sifted

  2 cups flour, unbleached all-purpose

  1 full packet of powdered unsweetened Kool-Aid mix, .13 oz. (we like Tropical Punch!)

  1 tablespoon baking powder

  Dash of salt

  Canola oil for frying (the amount depends on your pot or fryer)

  Directions

  In one bowl, beat the egg lightly, and then add the sugar, butter, and vanilla. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, Kool-Aid packet, baking powder, and salt.

  Add the dry ingredients to the wet, mixing well until you have a smooth consistency. It’s fun to do this one with your kids, because when you mix the dry and wet together, the colors go from bland to BRIGHT!

  Drop bits of dough using a small-sized cookie scoop (the size of your thumb, approximately). Fry in hot canola oil (360 to 370 degrees F) 1 1⁄2 to 2 minutes, turning halfway through.

  Yield: 10–12 donut holes

  Orange Zest Donuts

  I got this idea from some treats my mother-in-law used to make at Christmas. They featured the candied oranges cut into cubes and added to an applesauce cake recipe. She baked hers in loaves, and we started making them in cupcake tins when I realized they would make a great baked donut! Making these adds a rich cinnamon taste to the air, and they are worth trying for that alone!

  Ingredients

  Wet

  1 1/2 cups milk (2% or whole)

  1 cup granulated sugar

  1/2 stick butter (1/4 cup), melted

  3 egg yolks, beaten

  2 tablespoons canola oil

  1 tablespoon orange extract

  zest of one orange, finely grated

  Dry

  1/4 cup orange slice candies, cubed

  1 teaspoon cinnamon

  1 tablespoon baking powder

  3-4 cups flour

  Directions

  In a large mixing bowl, stir in the milk, sugar, melted butter, beaten egg yolks, canola oil, orange extract, and orange zest thoroughly until everything is well combined. In another bowl, stir together the cubed candy pieces, cinnamon, baking powder, and 3 cups of flour. After slowly adding the liquid, stir the mixture well. This will make a nice batter, but feel free to add more flour or milk to the mix in order to get a batter that easily scoops out on the edge of a tablespoon.

  Place in donut molds, or scoop out tablespoon-sized balls on a cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees F for six to eight minutes, or until they are golden brown and spring back to the touch.

  Yield: 8–10 Dunkers

  Pumpkin Donuts

  We love these donuts around Thanksgiving and make them quite often when there’s frost or snow on the ground. The flavors are subtle, but the pumpkin taste is there, and it makes a nice change of pace from the usual donut.

  Ingredients

  2 eggs, beaten

  1 cup sugar

  2 tablespoons canola oil

  1 can pumpkin puree (16 oz.)

  2⁄3 cup buttermilk

  4–5 cups bread flour

  1 teaspoon salt

  4 teaspoons baking powder

  1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda

  1 teaspoon nutmeg

  1 teaspoon cinnamon

  1⁄2 teaspoon ground ginger

  Directions

  Beat the eggs well, then add the sugar, mixing until it’s all incorporated. Add the oil, pumpkin, and buttermilk, then mix that all in. In a separate bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients, holding back 1 cup of the flour, using 4 cups of flour, the baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, and ground ginger. Sift the dry ingredients together and add them slowly to the egg mixture. Once you’ve got them well mixed, chill the dough for about an hour.

  Once the dough is thoroughly chilled, roll the dough out on a floured surface until it’s about 1⁄4 inch thick, then cut out donuts and holes with your donut cutter. While the donuts are resting, heat the oil in your fryer to 375 degrees. Add the donuts to the oil a few at a time, turning them once after a couple of minutes. Take them out, drain them on a rack, then they’re ready to eat. These are good with powdered sugar on top, or just plain.

  Makes approximately 1 dozen donuts.

  If you enjoy Jessica Beck Mysteries and you would like to be notified when the next book is being released, please send your email address to [email protected]. Your email address will not be shared, sold, bartered, traded, broadcast, or disclosed in any way. There will be no spam from us, just a friendly reminder when the latest book is being released.

  Also, be sure to visit our website at jessicabeckmysteries.net for valuable information about Jessica’s books.

  Other Books by Jessica Beck

  The Donut Mysteries

  Glazed Murder

  Fatally Frosted

  Sinister Sprinkles

  Evil Éclairs

  Tragic Toppings

  Killer Crullers

  Drop Dead Chocolate

  Powdered Peril

  Illegally Iced

  Deadly Donuts

  Assault and Batter

  Sweet Suspects

  Deep Fried Homicide

  Custard Crime

  Lemon Larceny

  Bad Bites

  Old Fashioned Crooks

  Dangerous Dough

  Troubled Treats

  Sugar Coated Sins

  Criminal Crumbs

  Vanilla Vices

  Raspberry Revenge

  Fugitive Filling

  Devil’s Food Defense

  Pumpkin Pleas

  The Classic Diner Mysteries

  A Chili Death

  A De
adly Beef

  A Killer Cake

  A Baked Ham

  A Bad Egg

  A Real Pickle

  A Burned Biscuit

  The Ghost Cat Cozy Mysteries

  Ghost Cat: Midnight Paws

  Ghost Cat 2: Bid for Midnight

  The Cast Iron Cooking Mysteries

  Cast Iron Will

  Cast Iron Conviction

  Cast Iron Alibi

  Cast Iron Motive

 

 

 


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