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.
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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