My kitchen may not have every gadget and gizmo you'd find at Williams Sonoma, but it has everything I need to tackle just about any cooking or baking project that catches my interest. I'm a firm believer in making do with what I have rather than buying a specialty tool for every new recipe. After all, creativity in the kitchen isn't just about the ingredients; it's about the equipment too.
Recently, I helped with a Fall baking class at The Chopping Block, where students made Apple Cider Fritters with Cider Glaze. They looked incredible, smelled even better, and as someone who loves anything apple, immediately caught my attention. As with all classes, an extra perk, the mess of oil and the smell remained within the walls of The Chopping Block.
The craving to recreate something similar at home followed me home from work. I had the perfect idea: baked apple cider donuts! There was just one little obstacle. I don’t own a donut pan. I wasn't going to let that stop me. There had to be a way to make delicious homemade donuts without adding another specialty gadget to my kitchen.
There are all kinds of food and nutrition hacks. For my equipment workaround, I cut pieces of foil and wrapped them around my finger to make a tube that I placed in the middle of a muffin cup. Once the donuts were baked, I pulled out the foil, and reinforced the hole with the handle of a wooden spoon to get the donut shape.
Baked Apple Cider Donuts
Recipe courtesy of Sally’s Baking Addiction
Yield: 12-16 donuts
Active Time: 1 hour
Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
For the donuts:
1 1/2 cups apple cider
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon apple pie spice
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 egg, room temperature
1/2 cup light or dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the topping:
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon apple pie spice
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1. Simmer the apple cider, in a small saucepan over low heat until reduced to about 1/2 cup. Stir it occasionally. This may take up to 20 minutes. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a muffin pan with non-stick spray. Set aside.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, apple pie spice, and salt.
4. In a larger bowl, whisk the melted butter, egg, brown sugar, granulated sugar, milk and vanilla extract together.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet.
6. Add the cider and whisk everything together until smooth and combined. The batter will be thick.
7. Spoon the batter into each muffin cup until about half full.
8. Bake for 10-12 minutes. The tops and edges should be lightly brown and the donut should bounce back if poked.
9. Cool the baked donuts for 2 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.
10. Combine the sugar, cinnamon and apple pie spice together in a medium bowl.
11. Dunk the donuts in melted butter, and then into the sugar mixture.
I am not going to lie. My donuts aren’t as pretty as they would be with a donut pan, and I sacrificed a few whole ones with my process. However, the result was delicious and to me, that is most important.
This exploration led me to consider other kitchen tools that could be used when you don’t own the exact item a recipe mentions.
Instead Of... Try This
Tofu Press: Wrap tofu in dish towels or paper towels. Place the wrapped tofu between two sheet trays. Top with plates, dishes, and bowls.
Whisk: A fork works great for whisking.
Rolling Pin: Use a clean, long, cylindrical glass or plastic bottle. Grease and flour the outside to prevent the dough from sticking.
Pastry Blender: A fork or two at once can be used to cut butter into flour for pie dough and streusel toppings
Pastry Bag: Fill a Ziploc bag and snip the corner off.
Potato Ricer: A colander or a sieve can help you press cooked vegetables and extract moisture for dishes including mashed potatoes and gnocchi.
Butcher’s Twine: Try using skewers or unwaxed dental floss to truss poultry.
Cheesecloth: A coffee filter can help you trap small particles and moisture. Coffee filters do tear easily and work slowly, so be ready to double up when using this method.
Meat Claw: Two forks can help you shred chicken.
Cherry Pitter: Use a drinking straw to extract the pit.
Mandolin: Use a vegetable peeler to get thin ribbons.
The Chopping Block takes pride in using ingredients and tools that cater to the home chef. Of course, there are exceptions. Come to a class and try on a tool for size before purchasing one for your kitchen. Try different rolling pins at Hands-On Classic Holiday Cookies. Thinking of a pasta machine or gnocchi board, you get to use both in Hands-On Pasta and Gnocchi Workshop. You will use a pastry blender in Hands-on Homemade Breads for the Holiday Table. With the holidays around the corner it is a great time to consider what tools are worth the investment.
