Mimi's Kitchen had to close for a few days so we could take care of our termite troubles. Not a fun activity. It's like moving, having to pack everything up and then unpack just a few day later. Now that I'm back in the kitchen, I hope to catch up on all the good food that you have posted to your blogs in the last week or so.
For our "welcome back to the kitchen" treat we jumped right into the Daring Baker's challenge, which was donuts. There is nothing like fresh donuts to pick up your spirits when you have been locked out of your kitchen for a couple of days! We choose to make the buttermilk donuts, and they were delicious- light, tender and cakey without being greasy. We iced them with a simple glaze and dressed them up for Halloween. They were good plain, but we began thinking of all the spices and flavors we could add to the dough for a new twist. We also liked that they can be decorated in so many different ways for various holidays or events, like baby showers or birthdays. 
The October 2010 Daring Bakers challenge was hosted by Lori of Butter Me Up. She used several sources for her recipes including Alton Brown, Nancy Silverton, Kate Neumann and Epicurious.
If you would like the recipes visit Lori or the Daring Kitchen. Donut making would not be complete without a few donut holes, which we rolled in cinnamon sugar. They would also be good in powdered sugar or dunked in any left over glaze.
Finally, the winner of the Dove Chocolate give away is Jamie of Good Eats and Sweet Treats. Please e-mail me your mailing information and Laura will send you your winnings.
Old-Fashioned Buttermilk Cake Doughnuts:
Yield: About 15 doughnuts & 15 doughnut holes, depending on
size
Ingredients
¼ cup sour cream
3 ¼ cup All purpose flour extra for dusting surface
¾ cup White Granulated Sugar
½ teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Kosher (Flaked) Salt (If using table salt, only use ½ teaspoon)
1.5 teaspoon Nutmeg, grated
1 1/8 teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
¾ cup + 2 Tablespoon Buttermilk3 ¼ cup All purpose flour extra for dusting surface
¾ cup White Granulated Sugar
½ teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Kosher (Flaked) Salt (If using table salt, only use ½ teaspoon)
1.5 teaspoon Nutmeg, grated
1 1/8 teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
1 large Egg
2 Egg Yolk
1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
Powdered (Icing) Sugar (Used for decorating and is optional)
Directions:
1. In a small stainless-steel bowl set over a pot of gently
simmering water, heat the sour cream until just warm.
2. Over a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking
soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg; make a large well in the center. Place the
yeast in the well; pour the sour cream over it. Allow it to soften (if using
packed fresh yeast), about 1 minute
3. Pour the buttermilk, whole egg, egg yolks, and vanilla extract
into the well. Using one hand, gradually draw in the dry ingredients. The
mixture should be fairly smooth before you draw in more flour. Mix until it is
completely incorporated. The dough will be very sticky. Wash and dry your hands
and dust them with flour.
4. In Sift an even layer of flour onto a work surface. Don’t be afraid
to use a lot of flour. You don’t want the doughnuts sticking to your counter.
Scrape dough out of bowl onto the surface; sift another layer of flour over
dough. Working quickly, pat dough into an even 1/2-inch (12.5 mm) thickness.
Dip cutter in flour and, cutting as closely together as possible, cut out the
doughnuts and holes. Place holes and doughnuts on a floured surface. Working
quickly, gather scraps of dough together, pat into 1/2-inch (12.5cm) thickness,
and cut out remaining doughnuts and holes.
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