Sausage and Pepper Penne

Tags

dinner, onion, pepper, recipes, sausage

The days are ticking by. Just days before I head off on my first vacation- my first tropical vacation in 12 years. I am going through all of the perishables so nothing goes to waste. No real menu planning going on. Just a lot of random dinners.

Now that the weather in NY is finally warm, it reminds me of the upcoming street festivals. And at street festivals, I LOVE me some sausage and pepper heroes. With a lovely supply of onions and peppers from my CSA, and sausages in the freezer, the addition was pasta made this a go.

Sausage and Pepper Penne (serves 6)

Ingredients

1 lb of sweet italian sausage

1 medium onion, sliced

1 green bell pepper, sliced

1 box of penne pasta

1 cup of pasta cooking water

Parmesan cheese

1. I put up a huge pot of boiling water while in a separate frying pan, sauteed onions and peppers until tender (about 5 mins). Add penne and cook for 6-7 minutes (till almost al dente) and reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water.

2. When the peppers and onions are cooked, set aside and in the same pan, fry the sausages on all sides. Pan fry till fully cooked (can take about 20 minutes) When the sausages are cooked, slice them and return to the pan with peppers and onions. Season with salt if needed.

3. strain the penne and add it to the frying pan. Fold the pasta to get all the ingredients incorporated. If necessary, add some of the pasta cooking water with some parmesan cheese. Season if necessary.

4. serve.

Leftovers! Yay! Best way to use the leftovers? with a fried egg on top.

Yummy.

T minus 4 days till vacay! weeeeee

May Foodie Penpal

Tags

Foodie Penpal

This month, I decided to participate in the Foodie PenPal program again. After monthly (and drool inducing) posts from my friend Kristy, I decided to plunge back into the program. I crossed my fingers as relying on strangers can be tricky, and was extremely lucky to be picked by the lovely Deb.

This was Deb’s first time participating in the program and she really hit the ground running. Our initial email was to introduce myself and provide a shipping address; I also provided my list of likes and dislikes. I am pretty much open to anything and a link to my blog was provided. She chose a bunch of things that were not only amazing, but were brilliant on her part!

Enclosed were the following:

Mediterranean crackers. I tore into these with some peppery hummus. Pure heaven.

Dried Fennel sausage. Dried meat. YUM! MORE please!

Sweet Onion Tortilla chips: I tore into them the day I received them. Salty craving: done!

Smoked Sea Salt: She read my blog. She knows me. I can’t wait to use this stuff!

And the best chocolate peanut butter candies I have EVER tried. The Nectar Nugget candies are my official crack!

Thank you so much Deb for being so insightful and thoughtful!

Cooking With Del Monte Giveaway

Tags

corn, giveaway, green beans, peaches, pears, recipes, tomatoes

About a month ago, I was asked to participate in an opportunity with Del Monte to get a little creative with their canned goods line. Since I am no stranger to a little improvisation in the kitchen, I thought this was a great opportunity to challenge myself just a bit in the kitchen. Along with my push to work a little harder in the kitchen, Del Monte sent a little incentive in the form of canned goods and a gift card to purchase additional items that I might need to host a party showing off my skills.

I will let it be known that my tiny studio apartment, which I now share with BR, is difficult to host parties in but when I take great advantage of small get-togethers at moms house. 

Accepting the “challenge” of cooking with canned goods came easy. Del Monte was a brand I saw a lot of in my mother and grandmothers kitchen; especially since they both make an amazing marinara sauce from “scratch”. Del Monte takes great pride in delivering the same nutritional content in their canned goods as you would get in a fresh product. Fresh IS best, but sometimes, the week gets ahead of you and next thing you know, that huge bag of fresh green beans you got at the farmer’s market is sitting in your fridge turning to a pile of mush. And while I admit that I am now a proud CSA owner, there are times when my fresh produce doesn’t last as long as I need it to. So, sometimes I cheat and take advantage of the convenience of canned goods.

Del Monte was kind enough to send me an ample supply to sample:

- Green Beans (2)

- Diced Tomatoes (2)

- Whole Kernel Corn (2)

- Pear Halves (2)

- Sliced Peaches (2)

In addition the canned goods, I received a stipend for additional grocery shopping, an apron and can strainers to share.

The bonus is the prize pack to a lucky commenter below:

Green Beans (1)

Diced Tomatoes (1)

Whole Kernel Corn (1)

Pear Halves (1)

Sliced Peaches (1)

1 Can Strainer

1 Apron

(Details at the end of this post)

To get me started on this project, Del Monte sent along some ideas, which I have also included at the end of this post for your convenience, curiosity or whatever. Using the green beans as an addition to a potato salad, corn in a salsa, peaches in the hummus and even pears in a savory dish- so many uses!

I decided to branch out a bit.

Pears.

I have always always always loved pear juice. My mother says that I used to drink it a lot as a baby. Opening the can of pears in light syrup brought me back to those days. Ah, the 80’s. But thinking about pears, some of my favorite ways to eat pears involve cheese. After tasting a not so great pear salad, I decided to recreate a pear walnut salad over arugula with blue cheese. The sweetness of the pears with the spiciness of the arugula are a match made in heaven- add to that the creamy texture of blue cheese and the crunchy texture of toasted walnuts, and baby, you have yourself a tasty salad.

Ingredients: (serves 2)

8 cups of baby arugula

1 can of Del Monte pear halves in light syrup

4 ounces of blue cheese, crumbled

¼ cup of walnuts, crushed

Dressing:

Your favorite balsamic vinaigrette, or a homemade variety. (I whisked some of the pear juice with balsamic vinegar and olive oil- yum)

Directions:

Drain the pears and save the juice. Slice the pears into thin slices. In a large bowl combine the arugula, blue cheese crumbles, walnuts, and pears. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and serve.

Obviously not rocket science but in a pinch, a great dish! My next pear project is pear, walnut, blue cheese and arugula PIZZA!

Peaches.

For these peaches, I kept it simple. I am not a huge fan of canned peaches. There, I said it. The texture is the deal breaker for me. So when I came across the peaches I decided to put them in a sandwich. The result? a pretty interesting grilled cheese.

Ingredients: Makes 1

2 slices of multigrain bread

2 ounces of extra sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 can of Del Monte Sliced Peaches in Light Syrup, drained

handful of arugula

butter

garlic powder

Directions: Assemble the sandwich with cheddar, peaches and arugula. Spread butter on both sides of the sandwich and sprinkle with garlic powder. In a small frying pan, place the sandwich, buttered side down over a medium high heat. Cook on both sides for 3 minutes each.

Placing the sharp cheese and the spicy arugula with the peaches was a slick move on my part. The texture was as if I placed a ripe tomato inside the grilled cheese-I can only imagine that the addition of bacon would be amazing! The cheese was sharp enough to mask the peachy taste but there was a hint of sweetness in it that, in my opinion, worked. But then again, grilled cheese is grilled cheese. Toasty bread and melty cheese- win! Fruit= bonus.

Diced Tomatoes.

For the diced tomatoes, I decided to try it out by subbing canned tomatoes instead of fresh. The diced tomatoes worked flawlessly in the tomato fondue dish. Simply replacing the fresh tomatoes with Del Monte Diced Tomatoes saved time and was super convenient. Plus, it worked.

Whole Kernel Corn.

I revisited an old favorite recipe for the corn. Turkey Taco Salad. The original recipe called for fresh corn, but I subbed in a can of Del Monte Whole Kernel Corn and could not taste the difference.

However, I do love canned corn.  This was a no brainer. And awesome.

Green Beans.

An old reliable. Mom kept canned green beans on hand to add to dinners that were lacking vegetables. Having them plain was just fine when I was 9 but now? They seem plain. I like adding them to salads because they are quick.

While watching a rerun of Chopped, Leyla Ali added peanut butter to her vegetable dish and I thought it was brilliant. And because I love all things Thai, I made a peanut sauce with coconut milk.

Ingredients:

1 can of light coconut milk

3 T natural creamy peanut butter

splash of fish sauce

a pinch of red pepper flakes

touch of salt

1 can of Del Monte Green Beans, drained

Directions: In a large skillet, whisk coconut milk together with peanut butter and bring to a simmer over low heat. Add the splash of fish sauce, red pepper flakes and allow to simmer for 10 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken. You may add salt to taste. Drizzle the sauce over warm green beans.

This sauce really worked. So much so that I ate an entire can of green beans covered in this sauce.

But if the above isnt for you, that’s okay. Del Monte has provided their own recipes for you to try.

Marinated Potato and Green Bean Salad

Tomato-Basil Steak Salad

Corn Salsa Bake

Chocolate-Chipper Cake

Peach Ginger Hummus

**********************

So now that the meat and potatoes is out of the way, how about a chance to win a prize pack??? Post a comment below for a chance to win. Enter by Tuesday, June 4, 11:59 PM and I will announce a winner on Wednesday, June 5.

Want more entries?

Follow me on twitter.

Facebook.

Pinterest.

GOOD LUCK ALL!

Red Coconut Curry Shark

Tags

coconut curry, dinner, recipes, shark

In honor of having the entire Jaws series on HBOgo this weekend, I am posting my first experience eating shark. First, I should note that when I was at the fish market and I had originally gone in to buy basa fillet- they were sold out and in its place were these shark steaks. At a STEAL price of $3.99 per pound, I showed BR the steaks and asked if he liked shark. He said yes so I went with it. I had NO idea what I was going to do with it but at that insane price, I couldn’t let the curiosity go unanswered!

The first thing I tried to figure out was the texture. I thought about how sharks actually looked and they look kinda like swordfish…kinda. I’ve had swordfish before and found it to be a very meaty fish but on the fishy side. With that assumption, I thought the safest and tastiest way to try my first shark was in a coconut curry sauce.

Coconut curry couldn’t be easier to make, either!

Red Coconut Curry Shark serves 4-6

1 lb shark steaks

1 red bell pepper, sliced

2 Tbsp red curry paste

1 tsp fish sauce

1 14 oz can of light coconut milk

(optional: cooked white rice)

On a non stick grill pan, heat over a medium flame for about 1 minute and add steaks. Cook the steaks for 4-6 minutes on each side. When cooked, set aside.

In a medium sauce pot, sweat the pepper over a medium-low flame for 2-3 minutes. Add the red curry paste and whisk in the coconut milk, then add the fish sauce. Stir and allow to simmer over a low heat for 25-30 minutes.

Nestle the shark into the sauce to coat. Serve over rice with extra sauce.

The results? Shark is confusing.

While I was cooking the shark, there was a strong fish odor. I thought, okay, this is going to be fishy. And out of curiosity, I tasted a cooked steak. The texture was soft. The meat reminded me of the dark meat of chicken- moist and tender. Even BR was expecting a different taste but was overall really happy. I loved it! Will definitely make again!

A Smashing Good Time!

Tags

Restaurant Review, Yelp

I have been sitting on this post for a while. It’s not that I didn’t have a good time or that I hated everything, it’s just that this event was of epic proportions and every time I considered sharing, it seemed SO daunting!

But it must be shared with you because this is indeed a smashing good post.

Some weeks ago, I received an ultra-exclusive invitation from Yelp to attend an even at Brooklyn’s first and only Smashburger. I had never heard of smashburger but seized the opportunity to try something new and see what all the hype was about.

For starters, the establishment is bright and colorful. They obviously sell burgers but their mission was to set themselves apart from other burger joints by offering fast food with a twist. The founder of Smashburger first entered the food industry as a McDonald’s employee. Dissatisfied with the quality of the food, he set out on his own to start a company like Smashburger. At Smashburger, all the meat is fresh- not frozen. Also, a portioned amount of meat is place on the cook top and smashed. The smashing provides a beautiful sear and an evenly cooked burger. In addition to the method of cooking, smashburger has an assortment of fresh cut fries, ranging in flavors like sweet potato, plain, and garlic fries- hello heaven! You have the option to customize your burger, toppings, and bun.

Upon entering this burger heaven, we were presented with small menu’s for the evening, offered a drink, and greeted by the Smashburger team. I sat down, with an empty stomach and an open mind. The 2 hr event was filled with 8 burger samples, 3 fry samples and a surprise milkshake sampler. Despite being hungry when I arrived, I was ill-equipped in the stomach capacity department and after the 4^th sample, was only taking bites of the next few sandwiches. When the shakes arrived, I thought I would die.

To start, I was handed an ice cold Brooklyn Lager. A much needed refreshment on the muggy day. Beer at a fast food burger joint? NICE!

Plates of Sweet potato fries, garlic fries and salted fries landed in front of us. I took the initiative to try a small forkful of each. The thinly sliced fries were crisp on the outside with soft innards; my favorite way to eat French fries. They were designed to be served from freshly sliced potatoes and to maintain their crispness.

My overall favorite was probably the garlic fries. I love me some garlic.

We had a great pep talk from the Smash Burger Rep who was talking us through each sample and throwing some burger knowledge on us. Not only did I leave full, but I left a little wiser in Burger 101.

Each Smashburger location as a location specific burger that is exclusive only to that particular store. The Brooklyn, appropriately named, is Grilled pastrami, aged swiss, onion and yellow mustard burger on a pretzel roll. It was a sight to behold. The starter was definitely a winner in my book… and with plans to expand in the big apple, the next burger was The New Yorker.

The New Yorker is a burger topped with local cheddar, garlic grilled onions, spinach, tomato and peppercorn aioli on a brioche bun. Another really good burger.

With the exclusive location burgers, I have a really great incentive to travel and find a smashburger. The Colorado burger, for example is topped with green chilies, pepper jack cheese, mayo, lettuce and tomato on a chipotle bun- talk about SPICY!

Moving right along we tried one of my favorites. It was very much a hat tip to McDonald’s Big Mac, only the beef wasn’t gray and the burger was juicy! The Classic Smash was filled with American Cheese, Smash sauce, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, pickles (Amazing pickles!) and onion on a soft egg bun. Really good. Everything I loved about fast food when I was a teenager is now a possibility in that it won’t put me in the hospital (that is, if I only enjoy it once in a while).

Then, my favorite burger combination of all time: The Mushroom Swiss. It speaks for itself as a burger filled with mushrooms and swiss on a soft egg bun. The only thing missing from this classic was a dab of mayo. But I’m a mayo addict. (sorry mayo haters!)

By this time, with 4 more burgers left to try, my stomach was pretty much at capacity. I promised to take at least one bite of the last 4… but in all honesty, the first 4 were the best- the rest were good but not my favorite.

BBQ, Bacon and Cheddar had a lot going on. BBQ sauce, Applewood smoked bacon, cheddar, and fried onion on an egg bun. I have never really been into BBQ burgers mostly because I find the bbq sauce too overpowering for the other elements. And while everyone really liked this one, it was a pass for me. Texturally it was good, but all that lovely bacon was missing because of the heavy and spicy bbq sauce.

They spicy Veggie Black Bean burger was indeed Spicy! I couldn’t handle it. Pepperjack cheese, Guacamole, lettuce, tomato, raw onion, chipotle mayo and jalapenos on a chipotle bun. Spicy. Spicy. Spicy. The raw onions added a pungent element to this that just didn’t work in my opinion. However, they score points for the black bean burger. It was a great texture and it was made from scratch. We had a guest in attendance who was vegetarian and they had all the burgers but with the black bean burger instead of the beef…I can’t imagine how full they were at the end of the evening.

The last two were more sandwiches than burgers and for those that did not eat beef.

Classic Chicken was very good with lettuce, tomato, pickles, red onion and mayo on a multigrain bun. The chicken was fried but you can order it grilled (sound familiar??). Very crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside, thanks to not over cooking it and the dollop of mayo. A nice change of pace if you want to avoid beef.

Last but not least, the avocado club. A multigrain bun filled with fresh avocado, bacon, lettuce, tomato and ranch dressing. I took a bite. I couldn’t fit any more! But it was delicious.

      

Just as I thought the evening couldn’t get any better, they brought out the shake samples. Smashburger prides themselves on their shakes because they are the only franchise with an exclusive deal with Haagendaz. The shakes we tried were the cookies and cream and strawberry. They were awesome. The Cookies and Cream was an instant favorite for me… but for those that don’t like cloyingly sweet shakes, the strawberry does the trick!

I left with barely any room to breathe! They really piled the plates high. But I left with a great burger joint on my list of great places to go! This is quite a gem in the NY area that I cannot wait to catch on! A fast food joint with all the awesome quirks of a sit down establishment allowing you to customize your burgers with quality ingredients for unbeatable prices- great place!

BR’s Graduation from New York Law School

When BR and I were “just friends” 2 years ago, we loved to talk about life and mainly, school. I was giving serious thought to going back to school for my Masters Degree (which I FINALLY got around to doing recently) and he had just enrolled at New York Law School as an LLM Candidate in Financial Services Law (mouthful, right?). His passion for his studies was apparent immediately and his drive and motivation were inspiring. Also, a really attractive trait.

When our friendship became something more our summer romance, which was so new and exciting, was introduced to new variables which weren’t always easy in the beginning of our relationship. The months that followed were filled with evening classes, weekends at the Library and lots of nights in- studying. While he endured like a champ, its finally over.

On Sunday, on a miserable soggy rainy day, my family and I squeezed in to the very crowded Avery Fischer Hall at Lincoln Square and watched BR’s dream become a reality. He is now a full-fledged graduate from New York Law School with an LLM.

I am so very proud of him and honored to share this tremendous accomplishment with him!

The ceremony was long. Like 3 hrs. Complete with a speech from the Mayor and several from outstanding students, the first 1 and ½ went by kinda quickly. Because of his advanced degree he sat on the stage while 600 Juris Doctor graduates had their names read off. One. By. One. For each of the graduates, they were entitled to 4 guests plus the advanced degree students and faculty. 4 x 800…whoa nelly. But, we survived. And meeting up was a cinch since I stalked his exit and got him before he could get lost in the sea of black robes.

 

We posed for some pictures and then made our way uptown to Londel’s Supper Club. Soul Food! Londel’s supper club is in Harlem and a true reliable in the Harlem community for upscale soul food and good jazz. The business is run by Londel and his partner, and they really truly care about their customers and guests.

 

 

BR entered the establishment in his graduation cap and gown. All eyes were on him. He was greeted with many congratulations and handshakes and the staff and patrons at Londel’s marveled at his true accomplishment. I beamed with pride as one of the wait staff said “DAMN! You’re gonna be the next Colin Powell!” That’s my man!

Even more amazing was the head chef, Frank, coming out to personally greet and congratulate Brent- And if that weren’t enough, brought him to the back to meet Londel, himself. After the amazing greeting we received, we sat down for a well-deserved and much needed brunch after enduring a graduation ceremony on merely a half of a power bar.

Brunch at Londel’s is offered Buffet style. While en route, we dreamed of plates and plates of mac and cheese, collard greens, fried chicken, potato salad, ribs, and whatever else was there. It didn’t stand a chance in our minds. But once we got our complimentary champagne, we filled our first plate and never got back up. The sampling of everything we initially took was enough to not only satiate us, but completely inundate our appetites. We had hopes of taking advantage of the buffet and subsequently, waved the white napkin in defeat. Delicious defeat.

We left with a great appreciation for experiencing Londel’s and make note to come back on jazz night. The all you can eat buffet is definitely not needed… All I need is fried chicken and macaroni and cheese.

Me and Brent at Londel’s in Harlem

A huge congratulations to my love, and even though I have congratulated him tons, I am just so damn proud of him!

My handsome guy.

Mussels in White Wine broth

Tags

mussels, pasta, white wine

When I first started to cook for myself, I fell madly in love with Fresh Direct. And quite often, they would have amazing deals on fresh mussels. Mussel night became the ritual whenever I ordered from fresh direct. I would steam these babies after a good cleaning and then serve them with my favorite marinara sauce. I forget what happened to my little ritual but I gave mussels a good long break…

And then last week, my old reliable Fresh Direct, moved mussels up in my “Faves” list. So I bought some fresh mussels.

But I wasn’t going to have these babies with marinara. I had tons of garlic and a half a bottle of white wine to get rid of. I needed a simple sauce that was flavorful and balanced and not too rich.  I used this recipe from Simply Recipes and cooked them the way I knew how.

Ingredients (Serves 2)

2 pounds mussels, scrubbed clean under running water

1/2 cup dry white wine

2 Tbsp butter I used unsalted butter

1/4 cup minced shallots onions

1 Tbsp minced garlic

2 teaspoons flour (optional, omit for gluten-free version)

1/4 cup minced parsley

2 Tbsp dried Italian seasoning

Directions:

I set up a large pot and sautéed the onions in butter for 3 minutes over medium heat. When the onions were fragrant and translucent, I added the garlic. I sauteed  until the the onion and garlic started to brown. Finally I deglaze the pan by adding the white wine and scraping up all the delicious oniony bits. I simmered the sauce for 10 minutes over low heat. Then I threw in the mussels. Covered with a lid and allowed to steam inside the pot for an additional 8-10 minutes.

The mussels are done when they are open. Give the mussels a good stir to allow the broth to cover all of the mussels. Discard any unopened mussels.

I decided to serve over some spaghetti and tossed the spaghetti in the mussels broth. Sprinkled with italian seasoning and serve.

We enjoyed it with the rest of the white wine.

So good!

I love Mussels! And I especially love mussels covered in delicious broth!

CLM: Asian Marinated Steak with cucumber and Radish Salad

Tags

cooking light magazine, dinner, healthy, recipes

Every month, the new and crisp issue of Cooking Light Magazine makes its way into my mailbox. And when it comes in, I cozy up in the couch with a pen, paper and bookmarking tabs and get inspired. For some reason, an issue went missing and I never got to tab the hell out of it. While doing an intense spring cleaning, I found a crisp April edition of Cooking Light and when I was through with the issue, I was out of tabs!

BR shares a love of asian marinades with me. One of the first dinners I ever made for him was an asian marinated chicken with rice and its still one of his favorites. This recipe for an asian marinated steak was right up his alley and kismet since the ingredients were already on hand. The rich marinade did wonders for this dish and I now have a new appreciation for what rice vinegar and soy sauce can do to some plain old cucumbers!

Ingredients: (serves 2-3 ppl)

1 T rice wine vinegar

1 T sesame oil

1 T soy sauce

1 cup cucumber, sliced

1 cup radishes, sliced

2 flank steaks (I had top sirloin- so I used that)

3 T hoisin sauce

1 t fish sauce

1 t fresh ginger, grated

1 t garlic, minced

Optional: cooked white Rice

Directions:

1. Heat a stove top grill pan (lightly sprayed with oil), over a medium-low heat.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the rice vinegar, sesame oil and soy sauce. Add the radishes and cucumbers to the bowl, toss to coat and set aside.

2. In a separate bowl, combine hoisin, fish sauce, ginger and garlic and brush on to the steak. Turn heat up to medium. Place the steak, sauce side down and cook uninterrupted for 5 minutes. Spread the hoisin sauce mixture onto the other side of the steak and then turn over and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

3. Remove steak from the grill and place on a cutting board and allow to rest for 7-10 minutes. When ready to serve, slice the meat against the grain and serve with cucumber radish salad.

White rice is optional, I prefer it as it really rounds out the meal…especially if you are feeding greedy people.

This was amazing. The salad really complimented the steak. The salad was like a mild pickling to the cucumbers- I pretty much loved every thing about this!

This is definitely going into the rotation.

Turkey cheeseburger salad

Tags

dinner, healthy, lunch, recipes, salad

Behold! A very delicious and unphotogenic salad. All the elements of a burger  and fries but on a bed iceberg lettuce.

Wanting to satisfy a burger craving, I decided to follow a lead via the Weight Watchers website on a turkey burger salad.  This salad was satisfying and tasty. I surely enjoyed leftover for lunch and felt guilt-less enjoying such a hearty “burger”.

Ingredients: serves 4

1 lb extra lean ground turkey

1 small onion, diced

salt

8 oz white button mushrooms, sliced

4 ounces reduced fat cheddar cheese

2 large red potatoes, baked

8 cups iceberg lettuce

In a large skillet, heat 1 tsp oil over a medium flame and saute the onions until translucent, about 5-6 minutes. Then, add the mushrooms and cook through, about 3-4 minutes. Set the mushrooms and onions aside and add ground turkey to the skillet, season with salt to taste. Break up with spoon as you cook to make crumbles.

When the turkey is cooked, serve on a bed of lettuce, sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Add 1/2 a baked potato (roughly chopped) to the plate and add onions and mushrooms. I drizzled the potatoes with some ketchup and viola. The recipe this was inspired by called for balsamic vinegar but I wanted this to remind me of a real burger (minus the bun) and this was great.

I might have had two servings.

No, I definitely had two servings.

Baked Cinnamon Sugar Doughnuts

Tags

breakfast, dessert, doughnuts

I have read countless blogs with homemade doughnuts and always thought one day, I would have my own doughnut pan. The occasion to get a doughnut pan just never came up or never felt like a logical decision. But, I was feeling sorta whimsy while online shopping some months ago and using a gift card I received from the office for Christmas purchased this perfectly sized doughnut pan.

And then it sat in my cupboard for some months.

But then I had some serious urge to bake, which is rare these days with my lack of counter space and whipped out the ol doughnut pan.

My favorite doughnuts are dense and cake-like and dusted with cinnamon and sugar. It seemed simple enough so I did some research and found a recipe that I thought would be perfect. ( head over to HeathersFrenchPress for all her delicious photos and recipe instructions)

The doughnut batter was thick and reminded me of pancake batter. Rather than make a mess pouring the batter into the doughnut mold, I decided to make a piping bag to keep things neat.

The pastry bag was a great idea!

The doughnuts baked in no time.

The one mistake I  made in my eagerness to consume was forget to brush the doughnut with butter before rolling it in cinnamon sugar. The lack of butter made these taste like healthy baked doughnuts. I will be revisiting this recipe and definitely not omitting the roll in butter before smothering in delicious cinnamon sugar!

I love that stupid doughnut pan!!!

Also, there were a lot of coffee and doughnut brekkies. Can you blame us?