This is my husband’s favorite cookie. I made 200+ of them as favors for our wedding guests. After trying many recipes I found that the one on the bottom of the lid of the Quaker Oats container was my favorite. But when I saw this one in my Test Kitchen cookbook I thought I’d give it a try. You know, for research. They are quite good and may give the Quaker recipe a run for its money.
But really a fair comparison can’t be made. I’d probably have to have them side by side to decide which is better. These are puffier and more tender than the others, they are more full of oats and are flavored with nutmeg instead of cinnamon. I kind of missed the cinnamon, so I’d add some the next time. I might also add more raisins.
The moment I saw this challenge I had a sinking feeling in my stomach. Steamed pudding. As in British steamed pudding. Really? And get this. I was supposed to use SUET! Where would I find suet? A better question is, what exactly is suet?
The April 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Esther of The Lilac Kitchen. She challenged everyone to make a traditional British pudding using, if possible, a very traditional British ingredient: suet.
Esther explained on the Daring Bakers site that suet “is the hard but flaky fat found on the inside of a cow or sheep around the kidneys and that area of the body. Suet in its raw form crumbles easily into small chunks so much so that my butcher says it covers his floor in bits if he doesn’t have it taken out as soon as possible. In fact unless he knows he has a customer for it he has the abattoir take it out and throw it away and when I want some he gives it to me for free! It also melts at quite a low temperature, which has an effect on how it works in cooking. In some places such as the UK it is sold processed which basically means it is grated and combined with flour to keep the individual pieces from clumping together, and it becomes a sort of dried out short strands, almost granular in texture.”
I’m pretty sure that I didn’t follow all the rules of this challenge. I didn’t use suet. I used butter. My pudding did not have a crust with filling. It was more like a cake with fruit topping. I did not use a traditional pudding mold. I just used a bowl. I did, however, steam my pudding just as instructed. So, if I failed in all other categories, at least I did one thing right.
There are times in my life, for reasons unknown, that I just crave something. There isn’t always a good or rational reason for the craving. It just happens. Last weekend I was craving cake donuts. I was really craving blueberry cake donuts from Lone Star Bakery in Round Rock, Texas. But seeing as how I live about 500 miles from there now I would have to settle for these homemade donuts. Maybe settle is not the right word. To “settle” implies that I was accepting something less. These were no bakery donut, but I would not classify them in the “settling” category. These were some yummy donuts.
I found these donuts to be very simple and delicious. The texture was delicate and sweet. I liked the coating of cinnamon sugar and the contrast of soft donut to crunchy sugar. The slight nutmeg flavor is perfect.
This recipe is from allrecipes.com and I followed it word for word. Well, I guess I refrigerated the dough for more than an hour. It was more like 2 hours. But I don’t consider that a modification. I consider it more like bad planning. With the good results I got with the increased chilling, you could probably make the dough the night before and use it in the morning. I love things you can make ahead of time.
Cinnamon Sugar Cake Donuts
Ingredients
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup white sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
¼ cup butter, melted and cooled
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 quarts oil for deep frying
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ cup white sugar
Directions
In a large bowl, stir together the flour, ½ cup sugar, baking powder, salt, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg, butter, and vanilla. Mix until well blended. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Heat oil in a deep heavy skillet or deep-fryer to 370 degrees F (185 degrees C).
On a floured board, roll chilled dough out to ½ inch thickness. Use a 3 inch round cutter to cut out doughnuts. Use a smaller cutter to cut holes from center.
Fry doughnuts in hot oil until golden brown, turning once. Remove from oil to drain on paper plates.
Combine the remaining ½ teaspoon cinnamon and ½ cup sugar in a large re-sealable bag. Place a few warm donuts into the bag at a time, seal and shake to coat. Enjoy with a nice cup of coffee.
The cookbook that gave me macaroon pie also gave me the base for this pie. It is a buttermilk pie, but in putting it together I thought to myself, “What flavors could I add to this pie to make it less simple and plain?” The answer from my creative inner self was…eggnog! I had nutmeg and for some strange reason I had rum. I think I’ve had this bottle for a few years and I’m not sure where it came from. Anyway… I figured this was a good plan. After all, the holiday season is approaching and if the grocery store is selling eggnog, I can make an eggnog pie.
I have to admit something. I don’t like drinking eggnog. It makes me feel like I’m drinking melted ice cream. A little too thick for my taste. However, I do like things that are eggnog flavored. I like eggnog ice cream. While visiting my sister in New York one Christmas we went to Jacques Torres shop and I bought a box of holiday truffles. The white chocolate eggnog truffle was spectacular. If you’re in NYC this season you should stop by and get one…or more than one. The gingerbread truffle was also very good. Oh, and you have to buy the chocolate covered Cherrio’s that they sell! I’m getting carried away now.
Anyway, I won’t drink a cup of eggnog, but I will eat something that takes like it. It’s a texture thing I suppose. I guess I am my mother’s daughter. I’m not sure if this is acceptable or not, but I felt I should admit this character flaw to you.
I added some rum and nutmeg to the base of this pie. I contemplated adding cinnamon, but ended up deciding against it. Maybe I will try it next time. I used a store bought pie crust to save some time. I’ve tried my hand at making scratch pie crust before, and I don’t think it’s too terribly hard to make something edible, but achieving a perfect, buttery, flaky crust is no simple task. It is also a rather time consuming process and makes a mess of your kitchen. A weeknight dessert should not require a lot of cleaning up. The refrigerated crusts taste pretty good, so I am OK using them every now and then.
I liked the flavor, and found it pretty similar to eggnog. The crust had a good crunch, and the filling was smooth and creamy. I served this with simple sweetened whipped cream (you can use cool whip in a time crunch). A simple and easy pie. It may not make you fall over and cry with delight, but it it good. Try it without the nutmeg and rum for a simple buttermilk pie.
Eggnog Pie
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons flour
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons rum
1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 unbaked pastry shell
Combine sugar and flour in a large bowl.
Mix in eggs, buttermilk, butter, vanilla, rum and nutmeg.
Pour into pie shell.
Bake at 425° for 10 minutes.
Turn oven temperature down to 350° and bake for 30 minutes more.
The cookbook that gave me macaroon pie also gave me the base for this pie. It is a buttermilk pie, but in putting it together I thought to myself, “What flavors could I add to this pie to make it less simple and plain?” The answer from my creative inner self was…eggnog! I had nutmeg and for some strange reason I had rum. I think I’ve had this bottle for a few years and I’m not sure where it came from. Anyway… I figured this was a good plan. After all, the holiday season is approaching and if the grocery store is selling eggnog, I can make an eggnog pie.
