Where Have I Been?

I had not realized it had been 8 days since my last post! It has been such a busy 8 days that it flew by in a flash! I will get back to posting recipes, although I am afraid postings will be a bit light in the next week because I am getting ready for vacation! And boy do I need one! After the year we've had, a week of relaxing will do us all some good.

This past week was a very special one because my very dear friend, Carmen, got married! I was as excited for her wedding as I was for my own, maybe even a little more so. We've been friends with Carmen for 5.5 years. In that short time we've been through a lot together- the birth and illness of my daughter, a bad breakup, friends coming and going, crazy roadtrips and celebrity sightings, all night Gilmore Girls Marathons, and so much more. While I may not get to spend nearly as much time with her as I would like due to incredibly demanding schedules, she has been there for me through a lot, and is always supportive. She is such a wonderful person, the kind that lights up the room when she walks in. I am so touched that she asked me to stand up with her as one of her bridesmaids. I know the 3 others she asked were women that were extraordinarily important to her, and I was touched to be in the same group with them in her eyes.

In an earlier post I showed you the cake I made for her Bridal Shower back in April.
The Wedding festivities started for me on Thursday with a couple shopping trips with my Mom and my girls to get a few last minute items- like a dress to wear to the rehearsal, shoes, a purse, and earrings. I haven't really dressed up in a such a long time I didn't have any of the required items for a fancy night out. Oops! Friday we got pampered at my favorite Spa- Jon Bre- with manicures and pedicures. Much thanks to the Bride's mother for that wonderful afternoon! Then it was rehearsal time- which I think went off quite well. The Rehearsal Dinner was at small local wine bar/bistro called The Vintner's Cellar. I had spoken with the chef the day before and let her know of my dairy issue. She was very accomodating and made sure I had a completely Dairy Free meal that was just about the same as everyone- Prime Rib, sauteed veggies, and a bake potato (instead of mashed). I even got to have dessert at a restaurant for the first time in almost 5 years! While everyone else had peach cobbler, I had a baked peach. I will definitely be making that for my blog! It was all so very delicious! And I will most definitely be eating there again, and recommending them to others.

The Bride to Be and Me at the Rehearsal Dinner


Saturday was the big day of course, and it was a fabulous one. The Bride was so very beautiful in her dress, and it all seemed to go off without a hitch.


My weekend off from being a "mommy" ended with a summer cold invading our house- first the Baby, then the middle one, and now me. Not sure where it came from but I do know it needs to go away now. Especially since we are headed off on vacation in a couple days. And it's one we've been looking forward to for quite some time. I am loading us all up on Emergen-C, veggies, juice, water, homemade chicken noodle soup, and rest. Here's to hoping it works!

I do have some new recipes to share, and I will get them out to you as soon as I can.
Until then...
Happy Cooking:-)

(Almost) Homemade Baked Beans

Today is officially the First Day of Summer. Summer is all about backyard BBQs, burgers, and gatherings with friends. A must have side dish to one of our BBQs is baked beans. Now I know not everyone likes baked beans, but in my family we love them. My husband especially! For years I had been searching for a real bean pot- the kind you put in the oven. My mom uses one for her beans, and somehow it makes them so much better. She gave me my own pot for Christmas this past year, and I have already gotten a lot of use out of it. However, she won't give me her recipe. So I had to make up my own. That's more fun anyway;-)

My husband has been asking me to share this one with you all so here you go. Oh, and you don't have to use a bean pot, you could use an oven safe covered casserole dish, or a cast iron pot.

Did I mention my beans are vegetarian? No fatback, no bacon. We like to have these with my pulled pork BBQ, or with burgers, so I don't see the need for extra added fat in the meal. So if you're watching your meat intake, or are a vegetarian you can still make these!


Ingredients:
1 large can Bush's vegetarian baked beans.(Yes I use canned beans- it's quick and easy. That's why they are almost homemade)
1 medium white onion ( or Vidalia) chopped
1 large green pepper chopped
1/2 cup Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce
1 teaspoon Garlic powder
pinch cayenne pepper
1-2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1-2 teaspoons chipotle chili pepper
2 teaspoons ground cumin seed
*All spices are to taste so please adjust them as you like.



Directions:
Preheat oven to 325F.
1.Saute the green pepper and onion until they are softened and the onion is translucent.


2.Pour the beans into the pot. Add the cooked veggies to the beans, along with your bbq sauce and spices.

As you can see I didn't measure. I normally just eyeball my spices when I am cooking like this.
3. Stir well and place in the oven.


4. Let cook for a couple of hours, stirring occasionally.

As you can tell by this picture I seriously need to clean my oven! But it's been far too hot to turn on the self clean setting. I think I will wait until a cooler day in the Fall.

If you want to let these cook a long time- cook at 250F.
If you want them done quickly- after 45 minutes or so- cook at 350F.
I let mine go for about an hour and a half this time.
These are a tad spicy but not too bad since my 7 year old loves them. You can omit the cayenne pepper if you don't like spicy.

Happy Cooking!

8 Ball Squash Stuffed with Basmatti Rice and Veggies

Don't look now- it's another squash recipe! It's definitely squash season in our area, and we've been getting a lot from our CSA the past few weeks. Not that I am complaining at all- I happen to love squash. And so does our youngest daughter!

Last week we got some beautiful 8 ball (Or round zucchini) squash. They were absolutely perfect. I didn't want to just chop them up and throw them in something. I wanted to try something different with them. So I got online and started searching for recipes. I came across several stuffed 8 ball squash recipes. Some were very involved- using several ingredients I didn't have on hand. So I searched through my cabinets and came up with my own recipe.

I only used 2 of the squash because I was sure the kids wouldn't each eat a whole one. They ate the mixture we stuffed them with instead.

Ingredients:
2 good size 8 ball squash
1 small onion- diced
2 cloves garlic - pressed
about a cup of peas
1 cup Trader Joes Basmatti Rice Medley
Vegetable stock
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
salt and pepper to taste
teaspoon dried Rosemary
teaspoon dried Thyme


You'll notice a yellow squash in the picture- I ended up not using it.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F.
1. Start cooking the rice first, since it takes the longest. Instead of using water, I used vegetable stock for more flavor. Follow the directions on the package

.

2.Prepare the squash. Cut the tops off, then cut the squash out in cubes. Set aside because you will be using this in the veggie and rice mixture.


3.Start preparing your veggie mixture: Preheat a skillet and add 1-2 tablespoons EVOO. Add your diced onion and pressed garlic. Let cook until the garlic becomes fragrant. Add the peas and squash. I added a little dried Rosemary and dried Thyme at this point. I would had used some fresh from my garden but it had been monsooning for a couple hours, and we were having quite the storm while I was preparing this.
Cook until the onions and squash soften. Once the rice is cooked, add it to the veggies and combine well.


4.Put the squash in a baking dish. I spray the baking dish with olive oil spray to prevent sticking. Brush the insides with a small amount of olive oil, and sprinkle them with salt and pepper.


Fill them both with the rice and veggie mixture:


And put the tops back on:


5.Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the squash is fork tender.

You'll be able to tell when it's done- the outer skin will be a tad darker than it was before it was cooked.

We served ours as the side dish to Slow cooker Braised Short Ribs (that recipe will be posted as well.) My husband and I both agree that the rice and veggie mix tasted like Thanksgiving stuffing- it was so good!

We always teach our children not to play with their food, but this time my husband just couldn't help himself.


And then he ate his masterpiece:-)

Kicking the Habit ~ the Soda Habit

I don't smoke, I have NEVER tried any sort of illegal drugs, I do drink alcohol but only in moderation- and not liquor. But I do have one addiction that started back when I was in high school- Soda. Pop, Coke, Tonic, Soda- whatever you want to call it. Diet Coke used to be my biggest vice- in college I drank more of that than anything else. I wasn't a coffee drinker so my caffeine came from my soda. First thing I would grab in the morning was a Diet Coke out of my mini fridge. I'd have soda at lunch too, and then grab another out of the vending machines on the way to my afternoon classes. You'd seldom find me without a soda- I always had a spare tucked in my bag. Looking back I know it was incredibly unhealthy of me but I was young and just didn't care. (I also lived off Taco Bell, Easy Mac, and Ramen Noodles- what was I thinking??)

Back about 5 years ago my husband and I learned the side effects of Aspartame, as well as the dangers of it. One of the most notable side effects for me was migraine headaches. I've always been prone to headaches, but starting in my last year of college I started getting horrible migraines. As soon as my husband came across the aspartame research, he suggested I stop drinking diet soda to see if that helped. Guess what- my headaches went away! I was actually able to give up soda at that time because I felt better. And we eliminated aspartame from our diet. We don't buy anything that contains it.

When I started having my health issues caused by my severe lactose intolerance, I dropped a lot of weight fast. I'm talking A LOT. I'm small to begin with so dropping 20lbs in the matter of a month is a lot. (Yes I went to the doctor, yes they kept tabs on my weight, I was on meds for GERD, and it all got straightened out-once we knew it was the dairy causing it all). I did have a hard time finding things to eat when we went out, and I would get sick feeling fast if I was hungry, so I started grabbing those mini cans of coke to take along with me. Those and a pack of almonds and I was all set. Of course, that got me back into my soda addiction- although this time was regular Coke. My husband is well aware that if there is soda in the house, I WILL drink it. So we had to stop buying them. I allowed myself to have 1 or 2 once a month ( at "THAT" time) but that was it.

Recently we had a huge party at our house and bought Pepsi and Sprite to have for our guests. Guess who has been drinking the leftovers? Me. Guess who put on a couple pounds in the past couple of weeks from the soda. Me. Now I haven't been able to put any weight on in a year. I didn't gain any extra over the recommended weight gain when I was pregnant with my last child, so I dropped it all (and a few extra pounds) immediately after she was born. And I have not put it back on. I am actually 2 sizes smaller now than I was the day I got married almost 9 years ago.This is thanks to eating an all Dairy free diet (and having 3 kids to chase around!) But it was eye opening to see that just 1 soda a day for a couple weeks actually caused me to gain weight. The only change to my diet has been the soda. But it is still so very hard for me to give it up. I've tried several times. And I justify my having it by reminding myself that I've already had to give up so many of my favorite foods, so why give up more? But the answer to that is easy- because it's not good for me. So I am going to try to really give it up (FOR GOOD). There are still a few cans left in the fridge in the garage but I am pretending they aren't there.

Yesterday afternoon I really wanted a soda. REALLY REALLY BADLY. But instead of reaching for one of these:



I reached for this:


And I brewed up some fresh iced green tea for myself.
Since I have this nifty electric tea kettle it takes a fraction of the time to boil water.


I like my tea strong (even my green tea) so I used two tea bags of Trader Joes Organic Fair Trade Green Tea- in a small pitcher I have. Since I was craving something sweet, I added 1 tablespoon of raw cane sugar to the hot tea.



Instead of grabbing a soda, I had a nice tall glass of this:


Hopefully I can keep this up! I am determined to give up soda once and for all- but bad habits are hard to break. The occasional root beer is exempt from this- I do like a root beer float about once a year:-) Pepsi and Coke are my vices and those are the ones I have to give up for good.

Do you have a food vice that you are trying to give up?

Roasted Red Pepper and Walnut Pesto~For Kim

This recipe is a special request from my friend Kim. We had her and her husband Kevin over for dinner last Sunday evening- a simple dinner of grilled burgers, macaroni salad (my friend Jess's recipe), baked beans, and watermelon (because what summer cookout is complete without fresh watermelon?) I always try to have something for my guests to munch on before dinner, and this time I made Roasted Red Pepper and Walnut Pesto and served it with mini toasts. I always have the ingredients on hand because I use the same ingredients in other dishes. I found the original recipe in "The Food Matters Cookbook", but I no longer follow it exactly.

Ingredients:
Walnut halves- roughly a cup (I just added a couple handfuls)
2 jars Roasted Red Peppers- drained
3-5 cloves garlic- peeled
handful of fresh basil
a couple tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
pinch of salt


Directions:
1. Put the walnuts in your food processor.





Pulse until they are reduced to this:


2.Add in your red peppers (remember to drain them), garlic, basil, and a pinch of salt. Pulse until smooth. Slowly drizzle in your olive oil- roughly a couple tablespoons. I tend to use less because I don't like my food oily.

And you're done! So simple! It takes about 5 minutes to put together. You can serve it immediately, but I prefer to chill it first. It is even better the next day!



*Adapted from "The Food Matters Cookbook" by Mark Bittman

(Please excuse the quality of my pictures. My poor camera is on it's last legs- it has survived 3 kids, lots of beach vacations, being dropped several times and it's finally giving up. I am in the process of researching and deciding what I want to replace it with. And since I have a birthday fast approaching I have asked for one as my gift. So hopefully I will have a new one in the near future- if I could just decide what I want!)

Four Squash Marinara Sauce with Fried Polenta

We are trying to do more meatless meals during the week, and the plan is to actually incorporate some vegan meals into our menu as well. My idea of a perfect weekly menu plan is to include at least 1 vegetarian day, 1 vegan day, and 1 seafood day each week.
I have been wanting to try polenta for a very long time. However, my husband did not think he would like it since he doesn't like "gritty" food- grits, Quinoa, couscous. So I've put off trying it.
There were a few days during the week that he was not supposed to be home for dinner, so I figured I would make the polenta one evening he wasn't here.
I had bought a jarred marinara sauce to go with the polenta, but I decided that plain marinara sauce wouldn't be enough. I had just gotten my CSA delivery for the week, and it was full of squash, so I picked out 4 different ones to add into the sauce.

This was such an easy summer dish- Vegan and Gluten Free too!

Ingredients:
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Olive Oil spray
Earth Balance Dairy Free Margarine
1 large onion- sliced thin
garlic- I used about 3 cloves- minced
8 ball squash- diced
1 ball squash- diced
Zucchini- sliced
yellow summer squash- sliced
Trader Joes Tomato Basil Marinara
1 green pepper- chopped
Fresh Thyme
Fresh Basil
Fresh Oregano ( you can use dried if you don't have fresh)
Trader Joe's organic polenta



Directions:
1.Cut all the veggies and set aside.



2.Spray a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray- I prefer Trader Joes Olive Oil spray. I find that lightly spraying a pan before adding the oil helps prevent sticking- especially with eggs and veggies. Add about 1 tablespoon EVOO. Add all the veggies at the same time. They will cook down.


3. Let them cook on medium- stirring occasionally, until they start to soften. While the veggies are cooking, prepare your herbs (if using fresh).

I am loving having fresh herbs at my fingertips all summer. I am going to go out and get some more to have, and next year I will devote one entire garden to growing herbs.

4.Once the veggies have cooked down, and the squash has started to soften, add the marinara sauce and the herbs.


5.Let the sauce simmer while preparing the polenta. If using the kind from TJ's- slice it. Next time I make this I will make my polenta from scratch, but this worked well for a quick and easy dinner.



6.Spray a skillet with non-stick cooking spray, add the margarine and minced (or pressed) garlic.


7. Once you can smell the garlic, add the sliced polenta. Premaid polenta is pretty bland so I cooked mine in the garlic to add extra flavor.


8. Let cook until heated through. Make sure to get both sides. I drained mine on papertowels before serving them.

9.Serve the polenta with the sauce on top.


My husband actually got home from work early the night I made this, so he had some too. Surprisingly, he loved it! We both agree that homemade polenta would be better- more flavor- but that it was definitely a filling meal. If you don't like polenta this sauce would be good on pasta, or over rice.


You could use different types of squash- I used what I had gotten in my CSA bag.

This and That

Here's a short update of what's new and things we've been up to this weekend.

Yorktown Farmers Market
Every Saturday morning from May to November there is a Farmer's Market at the Yorktown Riverwalk. You can get just about anything there- from locally grown fruits, veggies, and herbs, fresh farm raised meats and eggs, locally fished seafood (I LOVE living near so much water!), baked goods, treats for your pets, and flowers. Local artisans are also there selling things like handmade jewelry, wreathes, and knick knacks. There is live music playing too- I think it adds to the festive atmosphere of it all. But the location is what I love the most- right on the York River in the Historic District. As you walk down the hill from the parking area the view is spectacular! Of course, I am biased since I happen to love where I live.




Yesterday we didn't get a whole lot or stay too long. It was so very hot, and my allergies have me not feeling so great this weekend. I have a gorgeous Magnolia tree in my backyard and it has huge blooms on it this week, that I happen to be highly allergic to! I just can't bring myself to have it taken down- it's so pretty. But I digress...:-)

We took the girls this week. As I've said before, we try to include our daughters in our grocery shopping as much as possible in an effort to teach them healthy eating habits. Yesterday my oldest picked out tomatoes. Big, red, beautiful tomatoes.




We also got some spring onions and fresh red and white potatoes. Oh, and a free reusable bag. I actually did not need a lot because we are still working on getting through our CSA share from last week. Next week I will have a longer list.





New Recipes
This past week I have had a lot of fun trying new things in my kitchen. Yes, it's been hot- insanely so! But that's no reason not to cook in my opinion. I keep the house cool all day by keeping the shades drawn, lights to a minimum and ceiling fans on. I save my cooking for when the temperature starts to go down a bit. With 3 kids and a husband depending on me for meals I can't not cook. So I just plan ahead on the hot days.

A few new recipes to look forward to this week:
Slow cooker Braised Short ribs
Stuffed 8 Ball Squash
Zucchini Bread (I'll actually be making some today since the two loaves are already gone!)
4 Squash Marinara sauce and fried polenta
Plus a few more.

We also made our first batch of Strawberry Ice Cream Friday night. It was a success, but I am not yet ready to share the recipe. While it was good, it needs a little work in my opinion.


The girls are so excited that we can make our own ice cream and have been sharing ideas for new flavors. They want peach, triple berry ( blueberry, strawberry, and raspberry), chocolate, and vanilla. I want to make these, perfect them, and then share the recipes. I have a few ideas of my own for new flavors too, as does my husband. So stay tuned on that one!

What I'm Reading
For Christmas last year my Mother-in-Law gave me "The Food Matters Cookbook" by Mark Bittman as one of my gifts. I have been loving trying new recipes from it, and sharing a few with you all. I downloaded "Food Matters" the book on my Kindle and have recently found some free time to start reading it. (With 3 kids, quiet time for reading is a rare luxury!) I have really enjoyed the book so far and highly recommend it to anyone who is looking to eat a more sustainable and healthy diet.




Vegan Challenge
Ever since I've had to stop eating Dairy I have often thought that being vegan might just be easier. But I confess, I like meat too much to go vegan. We don't eat meat at every meal, but we do eat it often during the week. Over the last year or so we have become smarter in our meat purchases, getting organic free range beef from a private farm in W.Virginia and organic free range chicken and eggs from a local farm. Soon we'll be getting our pork from there as well. We do now have a meatless day during the week- and this past week we had 3 meatless days- which was awesome!
I mentioned to my husband that we should do a Vegan challenge: for one week we would eat a vegan diet. He actually agreed that it would be a good idea. This is going to take some menu planning and recipe research so it won't be this week, but we are hoping to do it the following week or once we get back from vacation. When we do this I will be sharing our experience of meat eaters going Vegan, as well as sharing the recipes that we try.

And one final thought: Dairy Free Omnivore is on Facebook! If you want updates on new recipes, please visit http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Dairy-Free-Omnivore/212813875397790. Anyone who "Likes" the page will get my Pork BBQ recipe. (I haven't shared this one on the blog yet)

Happy Cooking!

A Taste of the South~Peach Cobbler

We got some gorgeous peaches with our CSA delivery yesterday, but unfortunately some of them got bruised in the bag. I think the squash landed on them. So rather than waste perfectly good, but bruised, peaches I decided to try my hand at peach cobbler.


Now, I may have primarily grown up in the South, but I was raised by Yankee parents- both are from Massachusetts and therefore my Mom cooks like a good Yankee should. It helps that her mother was also a professional cook and passed along her talent to my mom- so I had an AWESOME teacher! I didn't grow up on peach cobbler, but instead we had apple crisp. I have always loved peach cobbler, though, and this seemed the perfect opportunity to make some.
I started looking through recipes to see what I could throw together out of ingredients I had on hand. I happened across a Paula Deen recipe. Now anyone who has ever watched Paula Deen knows that she uses huge amounts of butter, cream, milk, and or cheese in just about everything! This recipe was really no different, but I saw it as a challenge. And I was in the mood to experiment. Her recipe called for 8 tablespoons of butter, I turned that into 3 tablespoons of dairy free margarine. It also called for milk, I used soy milk (of course.) I also used a total of one cup of sugar instead of the 2 called for, and added cinnamon to both the peaches and the batter. So I essentially adapted this recipe to make it dairy free (and cut out some of the calories and sugar).

Ingredients:
4 cups peaches, peeled and sliced
1 cup sugar, divided
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons dairy free margarine
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups unsweetened soy milk
Ground cinnamon


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

1.Combine the peaches, 1/2 cup sugar, and water in a saucepan. I also added about a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon to the peaches. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir often to prevent sticking. Remove from the heat.





2.Put the 3 tablespoons of margarine on a baking dish. Place in oven to let margarine melt.


3.Make your batter by combining the flour, sugar, milk, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a bowl. Combine well and make sure there are as few lumps as possible.

4. Pour into the heated baking pan, over the melted margarine. Do not stir.




5. Spoon the peach mixture on top of the batter, making sure it evenly covers the top. Pour the remaining syrup from the peaches in as well. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon. (if desired)




6. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the batter looks done.




Oh and here's what we got in our CSA bag this week:

Fresh peas, zucchini, yellow summer squash, eight ball squash, one ball squash, peaches, green peppers. You'll see a few more recipes this week using these veggies.
It's not too late to sign up for a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). If you live in the Tidewater, Virginia area, Clayhill Farms has an open registration. Visit Clayhill Farms for more information.

*Recipe Adapted From Paula Deen: found Here

"Utterly Irresistible" Pumpkin Doughnuts

To be honest, I have never really been a fan of doughnuts. I don't like Krispy Kreme or Dunkin' Doughnuts- the thought of both of those gives me a stomachache! Really think it's because I don't like glazed baked goods. They get gooey, and are far too sweet and sugary. I have a very limited sweet tooth- I much prefer salty treats to sweet ones. I do, however, like cake doughnuts-baked in the oven, My mother in law has a delicious recipe for apple cinnamon ones that I used to make all the time, but unfortunately they contain both milk and yogurt so I have not made them in a long time. I have also not found a yogurt replacement that I like. Every time my girls see my doughnut pan they ask me to make some homemade doughnuts for them. I found a great recipe in my "Deceptively Delicious" Cookbook by Jessica Seinfeld.
I actually came across this a long time ago and my girls have been asking me to make these for a while. (Can you tell that I mainly cook for my kids?) The other day we had a free afternoon, and I had all the ingredients on hand. So while the littlest one napped, my girls and I played in the kitchen and had a good time baking.

This is a super simple and quick recipe and these are healthier than other store bought doughnuts! There is only 1/2 cup of sugar, no trans fats, and there are "hidden" veggies too! The whole idea behind this cookbook is to find ways to add extra veggies to kids' meals. This recipe adds sweet potato, along with the pumpkin. I always have some veggie purees on hand in the freezer. I freeze them in 1/2 cup servings to use in cupcakes, muffins, breads, pancakes, and waffles. I have also added some to sauces- back when my middle daughter went through her picking eating phase.

Ingredients:
Nonstick cooking spray
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 cup sweet potato puree
1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
1 large egg white (You could easily make this vegan by using a vegan replacement for the egg.)
1 tablespoon dairy free margarine, melted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar for dusting the doughnuts (optional)



Directions:
1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a doughnut pan with nonstick cooking spray.
I LOVE my doughnut pan! I actually have all sorts of specialty pans for baking- animal shapes, Christmas shapes, special shaped cake pans, and more. I think when you have kids, they are a must have for baking. The kids really love when you put that effort into treats for them.


2.In a mixing bowl combine the sugar, pumpkin, sweet potato, soy milk, egg white, melted margarine, and vanilla.



Beat together until combined.
She thought it was great fun to get to operate the mixer!






3.Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon. Mix well.








4. Pour the batter into either a gallon sized plastic bag or a pastry bag. I happen to have a ton of pastry bags with my cake decorating supplies so I used one of those. But plastic bags work just as well.



Cut the bottom tip off the bottom of the bag. Squeeze the batter through and into the doughnut molds.

My oldest took this picture.


5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the tops are lightly browned and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.



6.Let them cool on a rack. Once cool dust with confectioner's sugar ( if desired).




We made these two days ago and they were gone by yesterday afternoon! I have been asked to make more today, and will probably double the recipe this time. My oldest loved them so much she has asked me if we could play around with this recipe and make some apple cinnamon ones too. If that experiment turns out well I will definitely share it!

Recipe from: