Mini Pumpkin Donuts with a Cider Glaze {recipe}

Lately I've been itching to make donuts with my new mini donut pan.  And I know 'pumpkin season' is 'over'... but I've had my eye on this recipe, and we had some cans of pumpkin left in the pantry.  And exactly enough apple cider left in the fridge.  I figured it was meant to be!

This was not my husbands first choice of recipes when I told him I was making mini donuts for breakfast, but he ended up loving them.  Clara loved them too - and they were just her size!  There were none left after we got through with them.  The cider glaze is a very thin, clear glaze.. just enough to give it that cider taste.  And it goes so well with the pumpkin.  And of course, the donuts go well with a cup of coffee.  ;)

And here is the dough all piped in the cute donut tins, and ready for baking..

Mini Pumpkin Donuts with a Cider Glaze (Printable Recipe)

Glaze

• 1 cup cider
• 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter

Donuts

• 1 1/4 cups cake flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• pinch of cloves
• pinch of nutmeg
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup buttermilk*
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• sprinkles or nuts to top them off - optional (I did not use any)

Preheat oven to 425 F and lightly grease a mini donut pan.

For the glaze:  Simmer the cider over a med-high heat in a saucepan until reduced to 1/4 cup, about 15 minutes.  Whisk in the confectioners' sugar until smooth, and then whisk in the butter.  Set aside.

Meanwhile, for the donuts:  Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg together in a medium bowl.  In a larger bowl, whisk the egg with the pumpkin puree, brown sugar, buttermilk, butter, and vanilla, and then add the dry ingredients.  Using a rubber spatula, mix gently until just combined.  Transfer to a resealable plastic bag.  Cut the corner off the bag and pipe the batter evenly into the mini donut molds.

Bake until just springy to the touch, 5-7 minutes.  Let cool in the pan for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack with parchment paper underneath.  Spoon and spread the glaze over top.  Top with nuts or sprinkles, if desired.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes roughly 12 donuts.

*Buttermilk:  If you don't have buttermilk, you can use a buttermilk substitute.  Or I highly recommend purchasing a powdered buttermilk.  I purchased it at WalMart and use it in all kinds of things - including pancakes (it has a yummy pancake recipe on the canister).

source:  Food Network Kitchens

Back on Track

It's been over 2 months since I've blogged.  I kind of miss it!

We were blessed enough to be able to spend the holidays with family this year.  Got through a bunch of sickness.  Our New Years was quiet, but nice.  And now it's a fresh new year.  There's just something I love about a new year.  A 'fresh start'.. and a whole year of fun to look forward to.

There are a few things I want to do better at this year, and one of them is managing my time better.  For me, it's easy to get off track while being a stay at home mom.  And I've found that if I have more structure to my day, I feel better and more things get accomplished.  Breakfast time, TV/movie time for Clara while I do some cleaning, then play/color/reading time with her, go run errands or take her somewhere fun/go for a walk and get fresh air, lunch time, nap time, more play time while listening to music, snack time, etc.. you get the idea.  Everything needs to have it's place, or I become overwhelmed and end up sitting on the couch watching movies with her all day long and nothing gets done.  That may not be how everyone is, but that's how it is with me.. and so time management is really important for me.

One thing I did to help myself, was print out a schedule for my cleaning.. so I can look and see what I need to get done each day, and I don't feel overwhelmed thinking that everything needs to get done at once.

A schedule for cleaning?  Go ahead and laugh.  My husband did.  ;)  But whatever works, right?  It has daily things and monthly projects.  It works for me.. and for that, I am thankful.  Haha.

  And.. just because she's cute.  My favorite view every morning.  ;)