Home-Made Donuts

I have been wanting to make donuts at home for years, but never had a fryer to do so. I love plain old fashioned donuts, but you can bet powdered, or sugared, tickle my fancy too.

But the truth is, I not only love donuts because they taste so good, but for their nostalgic childhood memories they bring me. Growing up, we used to go on trips to visit an ‘aunt’ in Vermont, who ran a famous little bakery, in her home. She wasn’t really me and my sibling’s aunt. Technically, she was my father’s sister’s husband’s brother’s wife . (It’s o.k. – You can take a moment to process that, if you need to. ) But it didn’t matter. She was just ‘Aunt Lorette’ to us, and it was in her famous little bakery home, called ‘The Big Loaf Bakery’, that I believe I fell in love with donuts, and home-made bread.

It was a fascinating place to me. Part of it was an old home….with 2 different stairways that led to a second floor, which seemed to be filled with so many secret rooms nobody used. (You know how a house seems so much bigger when you are little?) Downstairs, on each end of the house, there were some ‘home’ rooms too. But in the middle of the home….was where the bakery was. Sometimes, we could even go watch the donuts being made. I remember there was a huge (coldish) enclosed porch-like room, with lots of windows, and counters that came off the wall, covered in dough and flour. The ladies working in there just smiled down at us. (Like adults do when they look at cute children. ; ) It was also in that room where huge deep fryers were, often filled with donuts.

I can’t tell you how Heavenly (and I don’t use that phrase lightly) that place always smelled. When we went there, we stayed for at least a few days, sleeping over for several nights. Each morning while it was still pitch dark, we would wake to hearing the shuffling, and busy-ness of Aunt Lorette and her hired hand, who arrived in the very (very) early morning hours, getting to work–baking the fresh donuts, breads and rolls before the customers started coming. In the basement was another wonderland that seemed like another secret place to me: There were lots huge glass cases, filled with the largest cranberry glass collection I had ever seen. (Well….the only one I had ever seen at that age. ) It was beautiful down there.

In the front of the house was a room I think they called ‘the den’. We often played in there, I imagine because we were very ‘out of the way’ in there. But about mid-morning, Aunt Lorette would always come in to take a power nap. She would tell us to carry on playing, she was just going to take a quick nap and that we wouldn’t bother her at all. Then she proceeded to set this timer that sat on a chair beside the sofa, for only 10 minutes, lie down, and instantly start snoring like the dickens! I’d just watch her the whole time until “DINGGGG”….the timer would go off, she would pop right back up, and get back to the bakery for more work!

Us kids never wanted to leave, when the time came. But when we did, we would always bring home a big cardboard box filled with all kinds of baked goods. Most would go into our large freezer, to take out as needed. We loved to heat donuts in the oven before school on winter mornings, sprinkle a little sugar on them, and gobble them up. And the TOAST with that homemade bread was out of this world!

So that’s where my love for carbohydrates began. I have so many wonderful memories there.

I have really loved the idea of making donuts from time to time at home too, and that’s the sole reason why I bought a fryer. Granted, donuts aren’t really good for you, but that’s why they are a treat! Autumn seems to be such a perfect season to make and enjoy donuts. They go so well with favorite hot drinks, that come with the new and welcome crisp chill in the air.

Here are some photos from our first donut making experience.

3 donuts and a donut hole.

 

 

 

 

Floating….just about time to flip!

 

 

 

 

OHhhhhhh Yeahhhh.

 

 

Another batch.

 

 

I think they came out pretty good for our first try! A little inconsistent in shape, perhaps, but it’s all the same in your mouth!

 

I know there are lots of donut recipes, and we’ll likely try another next time. Actually, I think I’ll see if my (real) aunt (my father’s sister) has my (pretend) aunt’s donut recipe. Aunt Lorette is no longer living. I think her son is running the bakery now, but I can’t imagine it’s quite the same.

I loved seeing our donuts on the table like this. It really made me smile, every time it caught my eye. But, knowing we weren’t really going to eat all of those donuts in a few days (we are very healthy eaters), after each of us having one, I wrapped up the rest, each individually, and put them in the freezer for the winter months ahead.

Have you ever made home-made donuts? If you have a great donut recipe that you love, to share with us, please do! We’ll try them all, eventually!