a cure for a cold day

when we were little mum used to make doughnuts on the "coldest" day of the year. of course we never really knew for sure when exactly that day was, but, when it got real cold, we made the call. we had a wood stove, so it was a hot affair making doughnuts, not as hot as when bread was made mind you, but that had to happen every week and it just wasn't as fun as doughnuts. we have a wood cookstove where we are living now and since it's been below -35 for almost a week so i decided today was the day. the sun rose at 10:20am and i soaked it up, reading inside, then later going outside for a walk. but when it went down around 3:15pm i went back in to make doughnuts.

these aren't yeasted, but they are family tradition so of course the primary doughnut of choice.

sweet milk doughnuts

(joy of cooking)

beat:

2 eggs

add slowly, beating constantly:

1 cup sugar

stir in:

1 cup milk

5 tablespoons butter

sift before measuring (who really does this anyway!?):

4 cups flour

resift with (and again?):

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

combine the wet and dry ingredients. pat out on a lightly floured surface and cut into doughnuts. let sit uncovered for about 20 minutes. fry until golden, flipping once in 375 oil. 

i put a little white sugar and cinnamon in a paper bag and toss them one at a time once they've cooled just a little. you can toss then in powered sugar too, but i forgot about that this time.

horchata blanca!

...so i happened upon this recipe a while back (saveur.com) so i bookmarked it. its not really a "heidi" recipe at all... it has nothing good in it really, but it sounded interesting. after spending most of the day on the couch feeling a little under the weather, i decided to give it a try. its almost like eggnog...minus all the eggs and christmas flavour...actually it's like a fabulous rice pudding in a glass! maybe next time i'll give a more traditional horchata a try...one without all the odd milk, one a little more "heidi" like...but the idea had to come from somewhere...

horchata blanca

1/3 cup medium or long grain rice

1 1-inch piece Mexican cinnamon

½ teaspoon vanilla

12 oz. evaporated milk 

14 oz. condensed milk

freshly ground Mexican cinnamon, to garnish

instructions:

Toast the cinnamon and rice in a heavy skillet over medium-low heat until they release a nutty aroma. Remove from heat and transfer onto a blender; blend into a fine powder. Add the vanilla, evaporated milk, condensed milk, and 4 cups of water. Strain mixture through a wet cheesecloth into a serving pitcher. Chill completely, and serve over ice, or heat and serve warm. Top with freshly ground cinnamon right before serving.