The Spy Test Kitchens have been enjoying a breath of fresh fall air. We have flown the coop for a few days, so this is a column from our own Way Back Machine.
The days have been beautiful with bright azure skies, brisk zephyr breezes, and I can see a change in the light when the sun is about to set noticeably earlier and earlier- summer might finally be relaxing its grip on us.
In the next couple of weeks we’ll be taking trips to buy chrysanthemum plants for the front porch and big fat pumpkins that we will never carve. Our next excursion will be going to the farmers’ market to to acquire apple cider for a batch of apple cider doughnuts. There is nothing more tempting than a clutch of home-made doughnuts over a weekend. I have been resisting the siren song of pre-made, store-bought apple cider doughnuts at Trader Joe’s, which started appearing on displays the minute that September rolled in. We have no steely resolve in this house. We need this seasonal baking ritual to get us in the mood for fall as we prepare for our annual doughnut nosh.
Since we aren’t frying the doughnuts, we can enjoy the first tastes of fall without worrying about fats and all of the cardiac dangers associated with fried foods. I love the silicone doughnut molds we have, which are bright Lego colors. These molds are doughnut-shaped so we don’t have the added temptation of orphan doughnut holes, sitting sadly on the kitchen counter, warbling their alluring tunes. I love the genius of reducing the cider on top of the stove to concentrate its flavor. This is why we like to read recipes, to wallow in the vast and varied experiences of the home cooks who have cooked before. These doughnuts taste like a visit to the farm stand: Baked Apple Cider Donuts
If you do want the experience of frying doughnuts, à la Homer Price, please take a look at Mark Bittman’s recipe for fried apple cider doughnuts. I haven’t tried this recipe, but I bet it is deelish: Apple Cider Doughnuts
Apple cider doughnuts only require about a cup and a half of cider. Whatever should we do with the rest of the half gallon? We are concerned about food waste, and apple cider is so delicious! Naturally our thoughts first turn to cocktails:
Apple Cider Smash
Spiked Hot Apple Cider Punch
But life is not a big cocktail party, sadly. We do need to eat dinner and be civilized for the greater part of the day. This is an ingenious way to use up some cider, and do something different with sausage: Sausage and Apple pie
It is a good time for change. It’s nice to wear sweaters again. Socks! What a novelty! I know in January that a 66°F morning would seem positively balmy, but today I watched mist rising from the grass where the sun was burning off the dew, and it felt good to chilly for a few moments. It will be divine to sink our teeth into warm, sweet apple cider doughnuts, too. Welcome, fall!
“Two sounds of autumn are unmistakable…the hurrying rustle of crisp leaves blown along the street…by a gusty wind, and the gabble of a flock of migrating geese.”
― Hal Borland
