Apple Cider Donut Bread

I first became acquainted with cider donuts in 1993 when my husband took me to New Jersey for the first time to meet his family. One of the places he said we needed to visit was Delicious Orchards in Colt’s Neck. I didn’t get the attraction. I mean, what’s the deal? We have orchards here in Missouri. When we pulled into the massive parking lot packed with people, and headed toward the door of a large building set amidst fields of bountiful vegetation, I began to understand. It wasn’t until we walked through the door and the heady fragrance of baked goods hit my olfactory senses that I became a believer. What a place! They know what they’re doing by putting the bakery at the front of the store -- cookies, cakes, brownies, loaves of bread, and cider donuts -- three varieties of cider donuts: plain, cinnamon sugar, and those dusted with powdered sugar. I would’ve been happy, at that moment, to have never left that department, but eventually I made it through the cheeses, the deli, the beautiful, artistically stacked mounds of fresh produce, the nuts, snacks, coffees and teas, I didn’t want to leave.

I have been a lover of cider donuts ever since. I have tried different recipes to create them, but for the most part they’ve been rather blah. This recipe, for apple cider donut loaf, is better than the cider donuts offered at Delicious Orchards, or any place else. The secret is to boil down apple cider to a syrup to intensify the flavor. This is going to take you some time, but you can do this part the day ahead, cover it, refrigerate it overnight, and then make the bread in the morning. Put apple cider on your grocery list, you are definitely going to want to make this. You might even want to make two loaves. You’ll thank me later.

Apple Cider Donut Bread

 4 c. apple cider

½ c. butter, room temperature

1 c. dark brown sugar

1 large egg

1 t. vanilla

2 c. flour

1 T. apple pie spice*

1 t. baking powder

½ t. baking soda

½ t. kosher salt

 Topping:

¼ c. unsalted butter, melted

½ c. granulated sugar

1 T. cinnamon

 Pour the apple cider into a medium saucepan, place it over medium heat, and bring to a boil. Reduce it to a simmer, and cook until reduced to 1 cup, about 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool. At this point it can be covered and refrigerated for up to two days until ready to use.

 While cider is simmering combine ½ cup granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon for the topping; set aside

Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray a 9” x 5” loaf pan with Baker’s Joy; set aside.

 Place the butter and brown sugar into the work bowl of your stand mixer and beat until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla just until combined.

 In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients with the apple cider syrup alternately, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Mix just until combined.

 Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until it tests done. Allow to cool in the pan for 20 minutes.

 Remove the loaf from the pan to a cooling rack placed over a sheet of waxed paper. Brush the top and sides with the melted butter, and liberally sprinkle with the cinnamon and sugar mixture.

 Allow to cool for 30 minutes before slicing and serving. This bread is best when consumed within two days. It does freeze beautifully, so if you can’t eat it quickly, cut it into large slices, freeze it, and when you’re ready to enjoy it again, microwave it for 30 seconds.

 *Here’s a recipe for making your own.

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Streusel-Topped Pumpkin Loaf

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Over the weekend I made double chocolate brownies with pumpkin buttercream frosting. They were delicious. Unfortunately they were not photogenic. Not, in a very big way. As a consequence, I am going to have to make them again and have another photo shoot, because this is a recipe you absolutely must try. I had just enough leftover pumpkin from the buttercream to give this recipe a try. Am I ever glad that I did! I do believe that this is one of the best pumpkin loaves that I have ever tasted. I happen to be a big fan of streusel, totally convinced that it improves everything it graces, which may explain why I like this loaf so much. You have to make this one.

Streusel-Topped Pumpkin Loaf
Slightly adapted from cookiesandcups.com

Crumb Topping:

½ c. flour
½ c. dark brown sugar
½ t. pumpkin pie spice
1/8 t. kosher salt
¼ c. cold unsalted butter, cubed

Pumpkin bread:

1 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
½ t. kosher salt
1 c. granulated sugar
¾ c. vegetable oil
2 large eggs
2 t. vanilla extract
1 c. pumpkin purée
2 t. pumpkin pie spice

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray an 8” x 4” loaf pan with a Baker’s Joy; set aside

Prepare crumb topping: In the work bowl of a large or mini food processor combine topping ingredients. Pulse until large crumbs are formed; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla, pumpkin, and pumpkin pie spice until smooth and blended. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture and whisk until smooth and no lumps remain.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and top with prepared crumb mix. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until the loaf tests done. If you see the top is browning too quickly, loosely tent with foil.

Remove from oven and allow the bread to cool in the pan for 20 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Pumpkin Morning Glory Muffins

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I don’t know about you, but I can never wait for fall to drag out the pumpkin and start baking. Truth be told (and this is just between you and me), I made these in July. What can I tell you? I just had a hankering for pumpkin spice. These are chock-full of all kinds of goodness with pumpkin, dried fruit, warm spices, and everything that will make your breakfast, lunch, or dinner special. These are not overly sweet, so work well with soup and salad as much as they do for meals earlier in the day. I’ll tell you what, I am going to be making more of these.

Pumpkin Morning Glory Muffins

1 3-oz. pkg. Melissa's dried apricots, chopped
1/3 c. raisins
1 stick butter, melted
½ c. whole milk
2/3 c. dark brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
½ c. pumpkin purée
2 T. vanilla extract
½ t. rum flavoring
2 c. flour
1 T. pumpkin pie spice*
¼ t. cinnamon
1 t. baking powder
½ t. baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 medium carrots, grated
1 Granny Smith apple, graded and squeezed dry
½ c. shredded coconut
1 c. chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray a 12-cup muffin tin (or 6-cup jumbo muffin tin) with Baker’s Joy, or use muffin liners. (I like these.)

Soak the apricots and raisins in hot water while you prep the other ingredients.

In the work bowl of a stand mixer, place butter, milk, brown sugar, eggs, pumpkin, vanilla, and rum flavoring. Beat on medium speed until well combined. Add flour, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix on lowest setting just to combine.

Add carrots, apple, coconut, and nuts. Drain water from apricots and raisins and add them to the bowl. Stir just to combine.

Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Sprinkle with Demerara sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool on a rack for 10 minutes before removing from muffin tin. Enjoy.

 *Don’t have any on hand? You can make your own, recipe here.

 

Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies

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Fall is officially here, and my lifestyle has completely changed. With the cool nights, I’m leaving the windows open, I’ve put away my pastel pillows in favor of those in the colors of fall, and the fire is set in my fireplace just waiting for me to strike a match. I have also changed my methods of cooking. The crockpot has become a permanent fixture on my counter, and the smell of warm spices can be caught floating on the air in my neighborhood. Soups, stews, breads, and pumpkin everything is the order of the day. In case you are unaware (if you’re a new reader) my favorite dessert is cookies. I was wondering how I could alter one of my favorites to reflect my love of fall, and came up with this recipe for Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies. One bite, and you’ll find that it’s hard to stop eating them. Seriously, I had to bag mine up and put them in the freezer, the temptation was so strong. The molasses helps to enhance the spices, but if you don’t want that taste to be as strong, cut back to 1 tablespoon.

Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies

¾ c. butter flavored Crisco
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 large egg
2 T. molasses
2 c. flour
2 t. baking soda
1 T. pumpkin pie spice*
¼ t. salt
Granulated sugar for dipping

In the work bowl of your stand mixture, cream shortening and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Stir in egg and molasses. Sift together flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and salt in a separate mixing bowl. Slowly add the flour mixture to the shortening mixture, and blend the dough until thoroughly combined. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for one hour or up to overnight.

Remove dough from fridge, preheat oven to 375°F. Cover baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat. Using a cookie scoop, scoop up the dough, roll into balls, and roll in the granulated sugar to coat. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until they are puffed and cracked on top. Allow to cool a minute or two on the cookie sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 36.

 *DIY version can be found here.

 

Pumpkin Crumb Muffins

Who doesn't love a delicious pumpkin muffin at the onset of fall? And, who doesn't love a delicious pumpkin muffin with crumb topping? You could pretty much top anything with crumb topping and I would be fully on board. Not only is this muffin, from Chris Scheuer at The Café Sucre Farine delicious, but it's easy to make as well. I'm not a baker, as I’ve said many times, one of the reasons is because, honestly, I hate dragging out that big stand mixer. This recipe saved me from that, requiring only a couple of bowls, a whisk, and a spoon, and I liked that.

I whipped these up in the morning while the coffee was brewing, and enjoyed the fragrance while they baked. Spread with pumpkin spice butter, they were absolute heaven. If you are the pumpkin spice nut that I am, you are really going to enjoy these. Consider also topping them with a slathering of Pumpkin Cream Cheese. Fall is the time when we embrace pumpkin, and you're going to want to start right here.

Pumpkin Crumb Muffins

From The Café Sucre Farine

For the muffin batter:

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1 cup pumpkin purée

¼ cup milk

⅓ cup melted butter

2 large eggs beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

For the crumb topping:

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ cup brown sugar packed

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

⅛ teaspoon salt

7 tablespoons butter melted

Preheat oven to 400˚F. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with baking spray or line with paper cupcake liners.

Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice in a medium size bowl. Set aside.

Combine the pumpkin puree, milk, melted butter, eggs and vanilla in a separate bowl and mix well.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add the pumpkin mixture and stir, just until flour disappears. Scoop mixture into prepared pan.

For the crumb topping, combine flour, sugars, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Stir to combine. Add melted butter and stir with a fork until large crumbs form.

Divide crumb mixture between muffins pressing lightly on top of each as you go.

Place in oven and immediately reduce temperature to 350˚F. Bake for 20 minutes, then cover lightly with foil and bake another 5-7 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Shower with powdered sugar when completely cool, if desired.

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