baked double chocolate donuts.

Every Saturday morning for the last few months I make my husband some donuts. It started as the biscuits in a can donuts that you fry up and cover in sugar. Then I turned into baked donuts after I found a recipe for apple cider donuts and had to buy a donut pan. We haven’t looked back since.

For a long time with donuts I would find a recipe somewhere and make that, decided whether or not Zack liked it and then do a different recipe the next Saturday until I found one he liked. That got a little tedious so I eventually settled one what texture was good and what icing was good. My dear husband doesn’t love frositing because they are usually way too sweet. This glaze is perfect. (To be honest, I didn’t really even measure.) And I just got conformation that these are the best donuts I have ever made. He’s so nice to me.

Someday I’m going to have to get another donut pan. Six spots just isn’t enough sometimes. Especially when you’ve got a donut loving husband.

This batter is pretty much a cake batter that you make into donuts. Which makes the donuts really moist and dense. I like a dense donut. It comes together like a muffin batter; you mix the dry together, you mix the wet together, you mix the wet into the dry. Easy as donuts.

Happy cooking, friends!

Baked Double Chocolate Donuts
recipe from use real butter
makes about 14 donuts

for the donuts:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk*
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

for the glaze:
1 and 1/4 cup powdered sugar
3 heaping tablespoons cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
4-5 Tablespoons milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

To make the donuts:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray donut pans with non-stick spray and set aside. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. In a medium bowl whisk together the buttermilk, brown sugar, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla. Dump the wet ingredients onto the dry ingredients and stir with a spatula until well combined and most of the clumps are gone. Try not to stir too long or the donuts will be too gummy and tough. Pour the batter into a large gallon sized plastic bag and cut the tip off. Pipe the batter into the prepared donut pan about 2/3 full. Bake for 10-11 minutes or until the tops of the donuts spring back when poked. Cool in the pan for a few minutes and then move to a cooling rack with wax paper underneath.

To make the glaze:
In a small bowl whisk together the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, salt and vanilla extract. Add the milk and whisk until the glaze is loose. Dip the donuts into the glaze and place back on the the cooling rack. Add sprinkles immediately after glazing or they’ll just bounce off the hardened glaze. (Don’t be like me. I did that.)

You can either leave the glaze to set or eat right away.
Store leftover donuts in an airtight container and they’ll keep for about two days.

*If you don’t have any buttermilk, fear not! Add one tablespoon of either vinegar or lemon juice to a 1 cup measuring cup. Add enough milk to equal one cup and stir gently. Let sit for 5 minutes to let the milk curdle slightly.

vanilla buttermilk cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.

Some people are stress eaters. I am a stress baker. When I get stressed out I bake. Like right now. I started freaking about the fact that it’s pretty much August and I only have about 11 days before my life gets taken over by marching band and school. This terrified me. So I went to Hobby Lobby and walked around to calm down and then went to Kroger to buy sugar. It’s all okay now. My roommate, her sister, and myself jammed out to fun. (they’re an awesome band) and baked. I’m less stressed and now have delicious cupcakes. Win-win.

I still have buttermilk in my fridge and I need to use it. So far we’ve had cinnamon rolls and pancakes. Cupcakes seem to be a nice fit. And because Annie, the sister of my roommate, just got back from a year in Israel and they don’t have cupcakes there. Appalling. Also because she made us delicious curry chicken and this was a perfect dessert.

The cupcakes are light and sweet while the frosting is creamy and a little bit tangy. This is the perfect combination. You do need to know a secret about cream cheese frosting though. The cream cheese and the butter need to be at room temperature when you beat them. This is a necessity. Otherwise your frosting will be grainy and not smooth. Not a good combination.

These are good ‘I need to stop freaking out’ cupcakes. Sometimes you just need that. Sometimes you need it multiple times a week. I’ll keep you updated. Speaking of updates; the cookie count in my freezer is up to 15 and 1/5 dozen, and miraculously they’re all still there! I guess my will-power is greater than I thought. At least there’s cupcakes to keep my sweet teeth occupied. Make these cupcakes, stop freaking out, and dance around the kitchen like a crazy person. Or maybe just make cupcakes.

Vanilla Buttermilk Cupcakes

recipe from Fabtastic Eats

makes 12 cupcakes

for the cupcakes:

1 1/3 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with paper or foil liners. In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer until creamy. Add the egg, vanilla, and almond. Mix until creamy. Add half of the flour mixture and beat on low until combined. Beat in all of the buttermilk and finally the rest of the flour mixture. Mix until everything is combined. Fill the cupcake liners 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the tops of the cupcakes are golden brown and a knife inserted into the top comes out clean. Cool for a few minutes in the pan and then remove to cool on a cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting or the frosting could melt on the cupcakes.

Store cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

for the cream cheese frosting:

I used 10 Tablespoons of butter, 6 ounces of cream cheese, a capful of vanilla extract, and about 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar. This is a recipe that you can change up to make however much you want. You can also make it suit your tastes. Just make sure the butter and cream cheese are at room temperature. Beat them together, add the vanilla, and then add enough powdered sugar to get the consistency and sweetness you desire.

buttermilk pancakes with white chocolate chips.

I can’t even believe it. Two blog posts in two days. This is getting crazy. I’m really trying to give myself goals for the rest of the summer before my life gets really crazy.
Here’s a short list:
Blog more.
Practice my oboe a lot more.
Get more organized.
Read more books.
Run some more and get in shape.

That last one is difficult because right now our campus is overrun with Chicago Bears and everything that goes along with that (aka…sports media and a bunch of security people) so it’s a little bit more difficult to get anywhere. I don’t even know who any of them are so it doesn’t make much difference to me. Now…if Orlando Bloom or Robert Downey Jr. were here it would be a totally different story indeed. Okay, I’m done complaining about that situation now. Just had to get it out of my system.

Pancakes are that one thing you can’t go wrong with. Especially if you add chocolate chips. Especially if those chocolate chips are white chocolate chips. Although any kind of chocolate is totally fine by me. I also like to top my pancakes with Nutella. Wait…you don’t know what Nutella is? I’m so sorry. It’s the most delicious chocolate hazelnut spread. Seriously one of the best things ever created.

You can add these extra things to any pancake recipe you have. I found this one on my Foodily app for my phone (such a good app!) and I really need to use up the buttermilk in my fridge so it all worked out. These are really fluffy and light (as long as you don’t put too much butter in the pan like I did…). Perfect for breakfast or an evening snack. We used to have pancakes for dinner every so often when I was little. My mom always said that there wasn’t enough time in the mornings with 3 little kids getting ready for school and my dad getting ready for school so we had breakfast for dinner. It was the best thing for us kids. Especially when there was bacon involved. Which was often.

You can make these pancakes any way you want. Add different kinds of chocolate chips. Leave them plain. Slather peanut butter over the tops. Drown them in Michigan maple syrup. There are so many possibilities. This is just one way for you to enjoy them. And it’s a pretty delicious one. So make some pancakes, drink some tea, and check out my “Now Playing” page (above) to read all about the music in my life right now.

Buttermilk Pancakes with White Chocolate Chips

from bon appetite hon

makes about a dozen pancakes

1 cup flour

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

2 eggs

1 Tablespoon butter, melted

White chocolate chips and extra toppings (like syrup)

Sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a medium sized bowl. Whisk together buttermilk, eggs, and melted butter in a smaller bowl. Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir until just incorporated. Heat a frying pan or griddle over medium heat. Lightly coat with butter or nonstick spray. Ladle by 1/4 cup into the pan. Drop chocolate chips in the top of the batter. Cook until there are bubbles on the top and the bottom of the pancake is golden brown. Flip and brown the other side. When done remove from pan, top with Nutella or other topping of choice. Serve immediately.

These will keep in the fridge. Just microwave them for about 30 seconds to reheat them for a quick pancake breakfast.

buttermilk cinnamon rolls.

Do you have a way of dealing with awkward situations? Do you comment on the awkwardness or just let it happen? I never know which one is better. I haven’t quite found a good way to deal with those awkward times yet…maybe soon. Usually I end up at home watching YouTube videos like Christina Perri, Colbie Caillat, John Mayer, etc. Is that what they call a coping mechanism? Who really knows. Let’s all just eat cinnamon rolls and be happy. Okay? Awesome. This is why I like you. (P.S. YouTube adds are the worst..)

I have a couple reasons for making these cinnamon rolls:
1. I bought way too much buttermilk and need a reason to use it up.
2. I currently have use of a Kitchenaid mixer, so I am taking advantage of it.
3. Cinnamon rolls are delicious.
4. I got off work early yesterday, so I had time.
5. It was Tuesday.
6. Cinnamon rolls are delicious.

These are all really great reasons to make cinnamon rolls. You know how much I love single bowl recipes that are really simple and fast. This is pretty much the opposite of that. But when you pull these out of the oven and immediately eat 2 of them you realize it was way worth it. (Also, I’m totally listening to the song “Realize” by Colbie Caillat right now….didn’t even plan that.) Plus, when the delicious yeasty dough is rising, there’s plenty of time to do other things like practice the oboe, start knitting mittens, or take a nap. The possibilities are endless!

I’m going to tell you right now that this filling is delicious. I found 2 different recipes for these and mixed them together. I love the idea of pecans in my cinnamon rolls. Love it. You can just see the deliciousness that is happening in that bowl right? It’s so good.

You should make these. It doesn’t have to be a special occasion. It can be Tuesday. You can share them with people you care about. That’s what makes them special. Friends are blessings. And so are cinnamon rolls.

Buttermilk Cinnamon Rolls

adapted from Mel’s Kitchen

makes 12 rolls

Rolls:

3/4 cup buttermilk, warm

6 Tablespoons butter, melted and cooled slightly

3 large eggs

4 and 1/4 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 and 1/4 teaspoons (1 pkg) instant yeast

1 and 1/4 teaspoons salt

Filling:

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup chopped pecans

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 Tablespoon butter, melted

3 Tablespoons butter, softned

Glaze:

1 and 1/2 cups powdered sugar

2 ounces cream cheese, softened

3 Tablespoons milk, 2% or whole

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Starting with the dough: whisk together warm buttermilk and melted butter. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the bread hook attachment combine 4 cups of flour, sugar, yeast, and salt. With the mixer on low add the buttermilk and butter mixture and then eggs, 1 at a time. Mix until the dough starts to come together. Increase the speed of the mixer to medium and knead until the dough becomes sticky and elastic (about 6-10 minutes). If the dough still looks really sticky after a couple minutes of kneading add more flour a Tablespoon at a time until the dough starts to come away from the side of the bowl. When dough is ready, place it in a large lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
While the dough is rising make the filling. Combine sugars, pecans, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Drizzle the melted butter in and mix until everything is combined. Set aside. Grease a 9×13 pan lightly and set that aside as well.
When the dough is ready turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Press it into a 16×12 inch rectangle. Spread the softened butter on the rectangle with a spatula. Sprinkle the filling evenly over the butter leaving an inch border along the long end farthest from you and gently press into the dough.
Starting with the closest long end, tightly roll the dough up. Pinch the seam closed and roll seam-side down. Make sure the diameter of the log is mostly even throughout. Pat the ends to even them up. Cut into 12 pieces and arrange, cut side down, in the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about an hour.
When ready, bake the rolls at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until the tops are lightly golden.
While the rolls are baking make the frosting. Mix the cream cheese and milk together in a bowl until somewhat smooth. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and whisk until smooth and your desired consistency is reached. When the rolls are finished baking drizzle the frosting over the top. Serve immediately, or at least while they’re still warm.

These rolls will stay fresh in an airtight container or covered in plastic wrap for 4-5 days at room temperature.