Blog · Page 14 of 22 · Jess in the Kitchen

Cherry Almond Glazed Donuts

If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you likely know that I often declare, “I don’t like donuts, but you’ll always get me at a good scone.” I’m changing my tune just a little: “I don’t like donuts besides a beautiful cherry almond glazed cake donut.”

My family loves donuts. Any stop at Kwik Trip results in a box of glazers coming home with us. They have to count and make sure everyone gets their fair share. This mom isn’t included in the count. I even joined a district where a certain group provides donuts every Thursday. I never took a one.

Then we were in Door County this last fall and some Door County cherry donuts were calling my name. We bought some and they were heavenly. More recently, Kwik Trip started carrying some plain cherry cake donuts. They were no Door County cherry, but they were dang good. And I knew I had to make my own version.

I generally try to make my versions of recipes healthier. This will not be one of those. These cherry almond glazed donuts are airy and perfectly pink. My son declared them the best donuts he’s ever eaten. I don’t know if that’s true, but I sure know I ate two of them and wanted two more. And I “don’t like donuts.”

Your ingredients for the cherry almond donuts

1 cup maraschino cherries, primarily drained and blended with an immersion blender until smooth (save the syrup!) (I love my Kitchen Aid blender!
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon oil
¾ cup white sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
½ teaspoon almond extract
½ cup Greek yogurt
2 ¼ cup all purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
additional cherry syrup

Your ingredients for the cherry glaze

4 tablespoons butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup cherry syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Your Steps to Cherry Almond donuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a regular donut pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine butter, oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla, almond extract, and yogurt. Whisk until smooth. Stir in blended cherries. In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Add to wet ingredients and stir until fully incorporated. You may want to add just an additional ½ tablespoon of cherry juice here to amp up the flavor a little more if you’re a guy or gal that gives the batter a taste test.

Divide the batter among 16 donut cavities, filling ¾ of the way full. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until firm to the touch or passes the toothpick test (a toothpick inserted comes out clean). Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove the donuts from the pan and place on a cooling rack.

While the donuts finish cooling, mix softened butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and cherry syrup for a glaze. If you dig a thicker glaze, add a touch more powdered sugar. Dig a thinner glaze? Add more cherry syrup. Whisk until smooth.

Dip cooled donuts in the glaze. I only did one side, but you can totally flip them to fully coat. If you choose to do both sides, you will need to double the glaze recipe. Best enjoyed within 48 hours of baking, but I bet they won’t last that long!

Gather a cup of mostly drained maraschino cherries

Tools of the Trade

I have a couple tools I love for these donuts. I totally dig my Kitchen Aid Immersion blender for all things. My banana nice cream, you name it. And if you are going to make donuts, you need a good donut pan, right?

Cherry Almond Glazed Donuts

You can't go wrong with the combination of almond and cherry in these light and airy almond cherry glazed donuts that are a cinch to make!

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Prep Time 20

Cook Time 14

Cooling Time 20

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings donuts

Ingredients

Batter Ingredients

1 cup maraschino cherries primarily drained and blended with an immersion blender until smooth (save the syrup)
6 tablespoons butter melted
1 tablespoon oil
¾ cup white sugar
2 eggs
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract
½ cup Greek yogurt
2 ¼ cup all purpose flour
1 ⅓ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
additional cherry syrup

Cherry Glaze Ingredients

4 tablespoons butter softened
2 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup cherry syrup from cherries
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a regular donut pan with non-stick cooking spray.
In a large bowl, combine butter, oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla, almond extract, and yogurt. Whisk until smooth. Stir in blended cherries.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Add to wet ingredients and stir until fully incorporated.
You may want to add just an additional ½ tablespoon of cherry juice here to amp up the flavor a little more if you’re a guy or gal that gives the batter a taste test.
Divide the batter among 16 donut cavities, filling ¾ of the way full. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until firm to the touch or passes the toothpick test (a toothpick inserted comes out clean). Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove the donuts from the pan and place on a cooling rack.
While the donuts finish cooling, mix softened butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and cherry syrup for a glaze. If you dig a thicker glaze, add a touch more powdered sugar. Dig a thinner glaze? Add more cherry syrup. Whisk until smooth.
Dip cooled donuts in the glaze. I only did one side, but you can totally flip them to fully coat. If you choose to do both sides, you will need to double the glaze recipe.

Keyword almond, baking, cherry, donuts

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

May 28, 2021December 28, 2021

Jess1 Comment

Rhubarb Pie

I’ve always declared myself, “not a pie person.” At Thanksgiving, it’s okay, but not something I crave. My husband, on the other hand, LOVES pie. His mom also loves to make it. It’s a rare weekend that we visit and a pie hasn’t been made. It’s also pretty typical to have her make a pie at our home out of whatever we happen to have in the freezer when she comes to visit. So, it makes sense that pie is always my husband’s request for his birthday; rhubarb pie to be precise.

One of the reasons I don’t love to make pie is the crust. I like to say I just don’t like to make it, but perhaps it’s more that it intimates me. Also, if I am going to pick a favorite pie, I’m going with banana creme and everyone knows those babies are best with a graham cracker crust. Am I right or am I right?

All that being said, after being married for 12 years, pie is growing on me. I still don’t dig the crust part of things, but I have you covered in this recipe. My mother in law has a crazy simple crust that I dig as the base for not only this rhubarb pie, but also an apple pie that use this great apple pie filling I freeze in the fall.

So it is May and the rhubarb is plentiful. Let’s put together a simple tart and delicious rhubarb pie everyone can enjoy! (And hey, if it isn’t May, you can always use frozen rhubarb too! Just thaw and drain it out first!)

Your Ingredients

For the crust:

1 ½ cups all purpose flour
½ tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup oil of your choice
2 tablespoons milk

For the filling:

4 cups diced rhubarb (fresh or frozen. If frozen, thaw and drain off ¾ of the liquid or so)
1 ⅓ cups sugar
6 tablespoons all purpose flour

Your Steps to Rhubarb Pie

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

In your pie plate, combine the flour, sugar, and salt for the crust. Mix together with a fork. Add oil and milk and whisk until well combined. Press into the ungreased pie plate. (If you are worried you’ll be too messy whisking right in the pie plate, feel free to do this in a bowl first. My mother in law taught me to do mix right in the pie plate to avoid one more dish. Genius!) Note: The pie crust mix will be wet. That’s okay.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour and sugar for the filling. Sprinkle approximately ⅓ cup of the mixture onto the pie crust. Mix rhubarb into the remaining flour and sugar and pour onto the unbaked pie crust that has been topped with the flour/sugar mixture.

Bake for 15 minutes at 450 degrees. Then drop the temperature to 350 degrees and bake an additional 30-40 minutes, until the rhubarb has set. It will set more after you pull it from the oven as well. Enjoy straight away!

Rhubarb Pie

Sweet and tart combine in this simple to put together rhubarb pie!

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Prep Time 20

Cook Time 50

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings

Ingredients

For the Crust:

1 ½ cups all purpose flour
½ tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup oil of your choice
2 tablespoons milk

For the filling:

4 cups diced rhubarb fresh or frozen. If frozen, thaw and drain off ¾ of the liquid or so
1 ⅓ cups sugar
6 tablespoons all purpose flour

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
In your pie plate, combine the flour, sugar, and salt for the crust. Mix together with a fork.
Add oil and milk and whisk until well combined. Press into the ungreased pie plate.
The pie crust mix will be wet. That’s okay.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour and sugar for the filling.
Sprinkle approximately ⅓ cup of the mixture onto the pie crust.
Mix rhubarb into the remaining flour and sugar and pour onto the unbaked pie crust that has been topped with the flour/sugar mixture.
Bake for 15 minutes at 450 degrees. Then drop the temperature to 350 degrees and bake an additional 30-40 minutes, until the rhubarb has set. It will set more after you pull it from the oven as well.

Keyword pie, Rhubarb, rhubarb pie

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May 21, 2021June 15, 2023

JessLeave a comment

Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal

I am back with another baked oatmeal recipe: carrot cake baked oatmeal! After I tried my first baked oatmeal recipe, I was itching to try another. I generally say that I don’t love breakfast. I have a few stand by things I eat and that’s it. When I ate at McDonald’s, I used to be so annoyed when I got there 20 minutes before their breakfast menu switched to lunch and I had to get breakfast. Now, I still don’t dig breakfast, but I am starting to branch out and discover new, healthy meals!

In a recent post, I talked about my favorite things: cooking from scratch, using what is on hand, and finally, inserting vegetables whenever I can. Which I did here, but we will call it a cake to trick our brains, right? 🙂

Rather than buy oat flour, I made my own using my food processor. It’s so simple my friends. Just put some old fashioned oats into your processor and hit blend until your texture is very coarse flour (I use my Kitchen Aid 7 Cup and it’s grand!). I poured a few cups of oats into my mixture, ground them up, and stored them in an air tight container.

I have a few other recipes that call for ground oats like these simple energy balls, banana nut baked oatmeal, and this great banana bread, so having some on hand isn’t a bad idea.

Ready to get mixing and baking? I hope so! Let’s make some carrot cake baked oatmeal!

Your Ingredients for Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal

⅓ to ½ cup grated carrot
⅓ cup oat flour
1 tablespoon maple syrup
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
⅓ cup unsweetened almond milk
⅛-¼ teaspoon vanilla extract, optional

Your Steps to Banana Nut Baked Oatmeal

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a ramekin with non-stick cooking spray. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, mixing until well combined. Pour into greased ramekin. Bake on the middle shelf for 15-20 minutes, depending on the texture you want your oatmeal to be. I like it to feel more like a bread than goo-ey, so I shoot for the 20 minute mark.

Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal

Cake and vegetables for breakfast?! Why not?

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings

Ingredients

⅓ to ½ cup grated carrot
⅓ cup oat flour
1 tablespoon maple syrup
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
⅓ cup unsweetened almond milk
⅛-¼ teaspoon vanilla extract optional

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a ramekin with non-stick cooking spray.
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, mixing until well combined.
Pour into greased ramekin. Bake on the middle shelf for 15-20 minutes, depending on your texture preference.

Video

Keyword baked oatmeal, Breakfast, carrot, carrot cake

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

May 7, 2021May 7, 2021

JessLeave a comment

Lemon Glazed Black Raspberry Scones (Sourdough!)

“The best scones you’ve ever made!” That’s what the Mr. said with such enthusiasm I was thrown off when I noticed he had eaten a couple off the cooling rack when he got home from work. He’s a donut fan. I don’t think he can stop at Kwik Trip without picking up a box of glazers. Me, I am a scone fan and I generally refuse a donut. Since he is a donut guy, when he raves about a scone I made, I take notice. It helps that these little treats are lemon glazed black raspberry scones.

Black raspberries are his favorite fruit and we grow a lot of them. I generally process them into beautiful deep purple jam and then freeze what we don’t eat. Then I pulled out a bag of them to top my yogurt and granola with and decided some scones were in order. I had freshly doubled sourdough starter. I had time. And I was in the mood to change up the recipe a little.

When I turned 33, I made it a goal to perfect my scone recipe. At the time, a parent of a former student of mine shared that she always freezes her butter before making scones. Honestly, I didn’t listen. I don’t like to have to plan that far ahead. But I tried it this time and I am digging the results. I also added more fruit than normal–a whole cup! Again, I am digging the results!

Ready to give these beauties a try? Let’s go!

Your Ingredients to Lemon Glazed Black Raspberry Scones

6 tablespoons butter, diced small and then put into the freezer for at least 40 minutes
2 ½ cups all purpose flour (I use this great heritage blend from Sunrise Flour Mill
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 ¾ -2 cups sourdough discard
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup black raspberries, frozen

Glaze Ingredients

¾ cup powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons lemon juice

A couple notes before you get started:

Don’t thaw the raspberries, but you may want to break them apart a bit. Also, if you don’t have black raspberries I would substitute blackberries. They aren’t the same, but will give a similar flavor profile. If those aren’t available either, frozen red raspberries would work too!

Some lemon zest would be a great addition in the dough as well or even into the glaze. Feel free to add it.

Glaze is a highly subjective flavor. If you want more lemon flavor, feel free to put ¼ teaspoon lemon extract or some zest. If you dig a sweeter scone, feel free to add less juice and let the powdered sugar flavor shine more.

Let’s get baking!

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, and baking powder. Stir in frozen butter. Add 1 ¾ cup starter, lemon juice, vanilla, and black raspberries. Work in by hand, incorporating the flour into the starter, turning as you go. I almost always have to add more starter in the end. The dough will be moist due to the berries warming up and breaking apart. It will be okay.

Once fully incorporated, cut dough into four equal pieces. Form each piece into a one inch thick disc on a parchment lined baking sheet and cut into 6-8 pizza slices using a dough scraper, a turner, or even a pizza cutter. I usually form and then flip the discs before cutting.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes, until the scones are firm to the touch. Remove and allow to cool. These are great on their own, but if you want to glaze them, feel free! Combine about ¾ cup powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup. Whisk until smooth. Give it a taste test and see if you need more lemon. If you like a thicker glaze, use ¼ teaspoon extract and then 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Drizzle over cooled scones. Then devour your black raspberry scones!

Looking for some other great baking or sourdough recipes? Click the buttons below to get to my other pages!

baking

Sourdough Adventures

Lemon Glazed Black Raspberry Scones

Leftover sourdough discard transforms into beautiful purple scones with the help of some black raspberries from the garden. Great texture and even better flavor!

4 from 1 vote

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 15

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings scones

Ingredients

6 tablespoons butter diced small and then put into the freezer for at least 40 minutes
2 ½ cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup white sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 ¾ -2 cups sourdough discard
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup black raspberries frozen

Glaze Ingredients

¾ cup powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, and baking powder. Stir in frozen butter.
Add 1 ¾ cup starter, lemon juice, vanilla, and black raspberries.
Work in by hand, incorporating the flour into the starter, turning as you go. Add more starter if necessary. The dough will be moist due to the berries warming up and breaking apart.
Once fully incorporated, cut dough into four equal pieces.
Form each piece into a one inch thick disc on a parchment lined baking sheet and cut into 6-8 pizza slices using a dough scraper or turner.
Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes, until the scones are firm to the touch.
Remove and allow to cool.
Combine about ¾ cup powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup. Whisk until smooth. Give it a taste test and see if you need more lemon. If you like a thicker glaze, use ¼ teaspoon extract and then 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Drizzle over cooled scones.

Notes

Some lemon zest would be a great addition in the dough as well or even into the glaze. Feel free to add it.

Keyword black raspberry, sourdough, sourdough baking, sourdough scones

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

April 25, 2021April 25, 2021

Jess4 Comments

Italian Sausage and Orzo Soup

At our home, we try to do only one grocery store trip a week. Yes, we may need more bananas or perhaps some milk, but overall, we can make it on one trip. If we haven’t meal planned for the week, this also means we purchase random proteins and roll with them. A few weeks ago, ground Italian sausage was one of those proteins. It’s what I would call a staple at our house. While we don’t always have a plan for it when we purchase it, I am always down for embracing my Italian roots. For this go around, I put together an Italian Sausage and Orzo Soup, and it’s a winner!

Honestly, this soup was born from both “We have to use this protein up before it goes bad” and “What else can I combine with this sausage to make a great soup without going shopping?” If you know me, I am also about sneaking in all the vegetables possible…and then pairing a salad with the meal for good measure. It’s how I roll and a joke around our house: “Look at mom, adding MORE vegetables to the meal.” But I promise, no one will be complaining about the vegetables in this Italian Sausage and Orzo Soup because the flavor is just that good.

Okay, we’ve talked enough. You want to get cooking right? Let’s go!

Your Ingredients for Italian Sausage and Orzo Soup

1 pound Italian sausage⁠
olive oil , about 1/2 to 1 tablespoon
1 cup diced onion⁠
1 cup diced carrot⁠
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed⁠
2 cloves minced garlic
t teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon pepper⁠
1 cup chopped frozen spinach⁠
1 can chick peas, rinsed (half of the can pureed)⁠
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock⁠ (I love Orrington Farm’s Chicken Stock. They also make a Vegan option! How cool!)
28 ounces diced tomatoes⁠
1/2 cup dried orzo⁠
salt, to taste⁠

Your steps to Great Soup!

In a large dutch oven, heat olive oil. Add Italian sausage and cook until browned. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Add onion, carrot, garlic, fennel, basil, and oregano. Cook on medium heat until softened, about 8 minutes. Add pureed chick peas, stirring often. Slowly add chicken stock, stirring after each addition.

Stir in the tomatoes, spinach, and browned sausage. Bring the soup to a boil and add orzo. Cook according to package directions. Allow to cool slightly and serve!⁠