Mini Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins

I'm from Kalamazoo, MI (odd name, I know) but they're home to some of the best donuts (doughnuts?) in the country - Sweetwater's Donuts. I have found no real comparison in Los Angeles, so when I saw this recipe on AverieCooks, I thought I'd make my own as a nice morning treat with a cup o' coffee. If you have half an hour to spare and a mini muffin tin, you should definitely give these a shot (I may or may not be typing with one hand with a mini doughnut in the other...)

To make 24 mini donuts, you'll need:
1 large egg
5 Tablespoons of softened unsalted butter
1/4 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
3/4 cup of buttermilk (I used 2% and they came out fine)
1 1/4 cup of flour
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of nutmeg
Pinch of salt

For the sugar coating you'll need:
3 Tablespoons of melted unsalted butter
1/4 cup of sugar
1-2 teaspoons of cinnamon (the more cinnamon you use, the darker they'll look)

Start by preheating your oven to 350 and spray the inside of your mini muffin pan with PAM.

Add the egg, butter, sugars, and vanilla to a stand mixer and beat until it's light and fluffy. Be sure to scrape the sides to it's all whipped together. Add the (butter)milk and beat to combine.

Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, nutmeg, and salt on low until just incorporated. Expect it to be a little lumpy and thick.

Add the mixture to your mini muffin pan until each cavity is 3/4ths of the way full.

Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until you can insert a toothpick and the center comes out clean. Let them cool for 10 minutes in the pans before removing, at which point, you can make your sugar coating.

To make the sugar coating, use two bowls - one with the melted butter (about 20 seconds in the microwave should do it), the other with the sugar and cinnamon. Do not combine the two!

Once the donuts have cooled, dip the tops into the melted butter bowl and then roll around in the cinnamon sugar bowl so the tops are completely covered. If you want to cover the entire donut with cinnamon sugar, just make sure you melt enough butter and have enough cinnamon sugar on hand! Note that depending on how much cinnamon you use will depend on how dark the donuts look.

You can eat these right out of the oven, refrigerate them for later, or freeze them for up to 3 months for another morning snack (though to be honest, I'd be surprised if these lasted for more than a couple days in any household!)

TOTAL COSTS: About $24 (if you don't have any ingredients - prices from Vons)
$2.79 for eggs (though you only need one)
$.99 for butter
$2.69 for sugar
$2.29 for milk
$3.29 for flour
$4.79 for cinnamon
$1.99 for baking powder
$3.98 for nutmeg
$.99 for salt (though you only need a pinch)
Used homemade recipe for brown sugar and vanilla extract

TOTAL AMOUNT OF TIME: 30 minutes
15 minutes to prep mini donuts
10 minutes to bake
10 minutes to cool
5 minutes to dip all in butter and cinnamon sugar

EASY-PEASY SCALE (1 super easy - 5 very difficult): 2 out of 5
The hardest part is making sure they don't burn in the oven but as long as you keep an eye on them, they'll be fine. My favorite part? They're enjoyable for any season!

Apple Pie Cookies

One of my favorite seasons is autumn because I love the leaves changing colors, the pumpkin patches, Halloween, and of course, picking apples... too bad it won't be here for another 6 months. No worries, OhBiteIt introduced these delicious apple pie cookies which taste just like fall! But the best part? Not having to deal with cleaning up pie plates or even having to use a knife and fork!


Warning: unless you have a tiny cookie cutter, you won't be able to make more than 4-6 so be prepared to have your heart broken when you eat them all in 10 minutes... whoops... at least you'll have a lot of leftovers!

Ok, run to your grocery store or your pantry and grab these ingredients:

1 box of pie crusts
1 can of apple filling (I only used about 3/4ths of it)
About a cup of caramel sauce
1 egg for the egg wash
Cinnamon sugar for sprinkling on top
Nutmeg for sprinkling on top
A little flour
A cookie cutter (if you don't have one, like me, just use the top of a glass!

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees so it'll be ready by the time you're done assembling. 

Unroll one of the pie crusts and dust it with a little flour. I decided to lay down a piece of parchment paper first and I'm so glad I did because  a.) it was a no-mess solution and  b.) I was able to use the same piece when it came time to putting the cookies in the oven.

Grab your caramel sauce and lightly coat the pie crust. If you don't have a brush, a knife would do just fine.

On a cutting board, pour out the contents of the apple filling and chop up the apple slices.

Pour a thin layer of apples on top of the caramel sauce. Don't make it too thick or you'll have one heck of a mess in the oven...

Now take your other pie crust, spread it out (again, I recommend doing this on a piece of parchment paper because you'll be using it later), and cut it into thin slices so as to make your lattice crust.

Place the strips directly on top of the apple pieces to create the pattern. This was the most time-consuming step but it's not difficult, just over... under... over... under...

Once you're done, take your cookie cutter (or glass), dip it into the egg wash (completely optional), cut out a piece, and place the cookies on top of the parchment paper you used to cut the strips. As for the scraps, don't throw them away because you can bake those too!

Take your egg wash and cover the cookies with a thin coat, then sprinkle on your cinnamon sugar and nutmeg. Do the same thing to the leftover pieces.

Every oven is different so bake them for anywhere between 20-25 minutes (or until they're golden brown). Let them cool, as they'll still be oozing apple goodness, and enjoy this autumn treat on a spring day!

TOTAL COSTS: About $11

$2.79 for the pie crusts

$4.49 for the apple filling

$3.69 for Smuckers caramel topping

Egg, cinnamon sugar, nutmeg, flour, glass, and parchment paper already on hand

TOTAL AMOUNT OF TIME: 50 minutes
25 minutes to prepare
25 minutes to bake

EASY-PEASY SCALE (1 super easy - 5 very difficult): 2 out of 5
The hardest part for me was making the lattice but that's only because I laid all the strips down first and then had to pry them off of the sticky apple filling in order to have them go under and over. Other than that, though, this is easy enough for your kids to help you make and for everyone to enjoy!