12 Days of Goodies- Day 8: Apple Cider Doughnut Holes

So I'm sure you're wondering where the doughnuts are, if I made doughnut holes, right? Well, I did in fact make them, I just chose not to show them to you. They were rather... unsightly. It may be hard to tell from the picture, but these doughnut holes are actually quite large. Probably 2 or 3 times the size of your average, run of the mill doughnut hole. The frying oil acted as some kind of mutant enhancement serum, making the once tiny, round forms of dough, grow into these large, irregular puffs. So you can only imagine what the actual doughnuts looked like.

I had never even heard of an apple cider doughnut, until I saw them posted on Smitten Kitchen back in October. There, Deb (the author of that particular blog, which is pretty fantastic by the way) reminisced about these doughnuts, and their unique flavor. I could only assume they were a north eastern thing. Well, since that fateful day in October, I have been dying to join in this New England tradition. And although my doughnuts tasted quite yummy, the appearance was not really what I was expecting. But as they say, it's what's on the inside that counts.

Apple Cider Doughnut Holes

Recipe courtesy of Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 cup apple cider
1 medium Cortland apple, cored, peeled, and chopped
3 1/2 cups flour, plus additional for the work surface
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick or 2 ounces) butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
Vegetable oil for frying

For cinnamon-sugar coating:
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For apple cider glaze:
1 cup apple cider (reduced over medium heat in a small saucepan to about 1/4 cup)
1 cup confectioner's sugar

Directions:
1. In a saucepan over medium to medium-low heat, combine the chopped apples and apple cider. Cover and cook until the apples are softened, about 5 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook until the apple cider is reduced to about 1/4 cup, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

2. Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.

3. Using an electric mixer on medium speed (with the paddle attachment, if using a stand mixer) cream the butter and granulated sugar together. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue to beat until the eggs are completely incorporated. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the reduced apple cider mixture and the buttermilk, mixing until just combined. Add the flour mixture and continue to mix just until the dough comes together.

4. Line two baking sheets with parchment or wax paper and sprinkle them generously with flour. Turn the dough onto one of the sheets and sprinkle the top with flour. Flatten the dough with your hands until it is about 1/2 inch thick. Use more flour if the dough is still wet. Transfer the dough to the freezer until it is slightly hardened, about 20 minutes. Pull the dough out of the freezer. Using a 3-inch or 3 1/2-inch doughnut cutter — or a 3 1/2-inch round cutter for the outer shape and a 1-inch round cutter for the hole, cut out doughnut shapes, (or do as I did, and use just the 1-inch cutter to makes only doughnut holes). Place the cut doughnuts and doughnut holes onto the second sheet pan. Refrigerate the doughnuts for 20 to 30 minutes.

5. While the doughnuts are chilling in the fridge, make the apple cider glaze by whisking together the confectioner's sugar and apple cider reduction until smooth. Combine the granulated sugar and ground cinnamon to make the cinnamon-sugar coating. Set both aside.

6. Add enough oil to a deep-sided pan to measure a depth of about 3 inches. Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan and heat over medium heat until the oil reaches 350° F. Have a plate lined with several paper towels ready.

7. Carefully add a few doughnuts to the oil, being careful not to crowd the pan, and fry until golden brown, about 60 seconds. Turn the doughnuts over and fry until the other side is golden, 30 to 60 seconds. Drain on paper towels for a minute after the doughnuts are fried. Coat both sides of each doughnut in the cinnamon-sugar mixture, then drizzle all doughnuts with the apple cider glaze. Serve immediately.

Makes about 18 doughnuts and doughnut holes, or 3 dozen doughnut holes

Caramel Apple Pie

So I know it's a little late to be writing a post about the Thanksgiving I so thoroughly enjoyed last week, I mean most of us have already moved on into the Christmas mind set, but I really wanted to share with you, at the very least, the pie that I slaved over for more than 5 hours. I was in fact only willing to spend that amount of time on one little pie just so I could take some pretty pictures to upload for all to enjoy. And I really am sorry that it has taken me a whole week to share this recipe. I'm sure some of you may recall the promise that I made after my move back from the north, the one where I vowed to be super committed to this whole blogging thing. And I have just now realized that I only made 5 posts during the whole month of November, but did I also mention the whole catering thing? Yeah, thats a major time commitment, my friends. Also, I confess I've been somewhat of the social butterfly as of late, staying out way too late, thus spending the majority of my days nuzzling my face into a pillow trying to block out the sunlight.

Anyways, I guess sharing this recipe now is better late than never, right? It is worth sharing too, because this pie doesn't just have your run of the mill caramel sauce. No. It has a red wine caramel sauce. Caught your attention didn't I? At first, I wasn't too sure how the red wine would meld with caramel. I actually thought about swapping some Calvados for the wine. (Which I still think would taste divine). But I'm so glad I stuck to the original recipe, because this was such an interesting flavor combination. So rich... and complex... and delicious. I can't wait to incorporate this sauce into something else. However, I should provide a warning. This pie- mainly due to the sauce alone- is not for the impatient. Luckily, I was able to nail the sauce on my second try, but from reading many of the reviews on this recipe, it took others many more times to perfect it, and some never managed to get it right at all.

During my first attempt, I stirred the sugar and water mixture (the only 2 ingredients necessary to make caramel) continuously which resulted in a hardened rock like catastrophe. So I did a little research on the art of making caramel, and I would like to pass along my new found knowledge. The sugar and water should only be stirred together just until the sugar begins to dissolve into the water. Then let the magic happen on its own. The sugar will start to boil, and slowly it will begin to harden, and just when you think you've failed and ruined it, the sugar will melt again, this time turning into a bubbling brownish hue. When you've reached the desired degree of amber, begin to stir it again to smooth out the mixture. This is basic caramel. Adding butter and cream, or in this particular recipe red wine and cream, will result in a caramel sauce. Another little helpful suggestion would be to use a candy thermometer. At around 350º F is when the sugar will begin to brown.

The recipe also suggested using a paring knife to manually slice the apples, or perhaps a mandolin. Well, after three plus hours already invested into this pie, I was desperate to speed things up. I used my new elite food processor to slice the apples. I took all of 5 minutes to very thinly slice 8 rather large apples. Pretty exciting stuff! Hopefully, by offering some of my pearls of wisdom, I'll be able to save some of you some time, if and when you decide to try this pie. Instead of 5 hours, maybe you'll only have to invest, say 3 1/2? Trust me, it's all worth it for the red wine caramel sauce.

Caramel Apple Pie

Recipe adapted from Tyler Florence at Food Network

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
pinch of salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, cold, cut in pieces
2 eggs separated (yolks for pastry, whites for glaze)
3 tablespoons ice water, plus more if needed
For Caramel Apples:
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons water
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1 lemon, juiced
8 apples (I used Granny Smith and Honey Crisp)
1 tablespoon flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup unsalted butter
cinnamon-sugar spice mixture
Turbinado sugar (optional)

Directions:
1. To make the pastry, combine the flour and salt together in a large bowl. Cut in the pieces of cold butter with a pastry blender, a little at a time, until the dough resembles cornmeal. Add the 2 egg yolks and the ice water, and blend just long enough to pull the dough together and moisten. Be careful not to overwork the dough. Form the dough into a ball, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the refrigerator for 1 hour. (To speed up the process, you can use a food processor. Pulse the flour and butter together, add the egg yolks and water, pulse again to moisten the mixture, then form the dough into a ball with your hands).

2. While the dough is resting, prepare the filling. To make the caramel sauce, place the sugar and water in a small pot, and stir until the mixture resembles wet sand. Cook on medium-low heat and stir just until the sugar begins to dissolve. At this point, avoid stirring any further. The sugar will harden (and you will think you have burned it) but it will begin to re-melt and turn brown. A candy thermometer can help you know more exactly when to expect this re-melting process. The sugar will begin to turn brown at around 330º to 340º. Once the sugar is browning, begin to stir again to smooth out the caramel. (This process took me about 20-25 minutes). Remove the pot from the burner and add the cream, and then the wine slowly, so as not to seize the caramel. It may bubble and spit, so be careful. When the sauce has calmed down, return it to the flame, add the vanilla bean scrapings, and heat it slowly, until the wine and caramel are smooth and continue to cook slowly until reduced by half, about 10-12 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool until thickened.

3. Fill a large bowl with cold water and the lemon juice. Peel the apples with a paring knife or peeler, cut them in half, and remove the cores with a melon baller. Put the apple halves in the lemon-water (this will keep them from going brown).

4. Preheat the oven to 350º F. Take the dough out of the refrigerator, unwrap the plastic, and cut the ball in half. Rewrap and return 1 of the balls to the refrigerator, until ready for the top crust. Let the dough rest on the counter for 15 minutes so it will be pliable enough to roll out. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle. Carefully roll the dough up onto the pin and lay it inside a 10-inch glass pie pan. Press the dough into the pan so it fits tightly.

5. Drain the apples, blot dry with paper towel, and toss with the flour and cinnamon. Slice the apples using a very sharp knife, a mandolin, or a food processor fitted with a slicing blade. The apples need to be thinly sliced so that as the pie bakes, they collapse on top of each other with no air pockets. (I set my food processor slicing blade on 4). This makes a dense, meaty apple pie. Cover the bottom of the pastry with a layer of apples, shingling the slices so there are no gaps. Ladle about 2 ounces of the cooled red wine caramel sauce evenly over the apple slices. Repeat the layers until the pie is slightly overfilled and domed on the top; the apples will shrink down as the pie cooks. Top the apples with pieces of butter.

6. Now, roll out the other ball of dough just as you did the first. Brush the bottom lip of the pie pastry with a little beaten egg white to form a seal. Place the pastry circle on top of the pie, and using some kitchen shears, trim off the overhanging excess from around the pie. Crimp the edges of dough together with your fingers to make a tight seal. Cut slits in the top of the pie so steam can escape while baking. Place the pie on a sheet tray and tent it with a piece of aluminum foil, so the crust does not cook faster than the apples.

7. Bake the caramel apple pie for 25 minutes on the middle rack. Remove the foil from the pie and brush the top with the remaining egg white. Generously sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar mixture, and if using, a little of the turbinado sugar (this gives it a rustic look). Return the pie to the oven, and continue to bake for another 25 minutes, until the pie is golden and bubbling. Let the apple pie rest at room temperature for at least 1 hour to allow the fruit pectin to gel and set; otherwise the pie will fall apart when you cut into it.

Makes 6 to 8 servings