Old-Fashion, Old-Fashion

Where a rye old-fashioned donut meets the classic cocktail

Listen, I am a donut person. As a self-proclaimed donut person, I can, with much authority, tell you that not all donuts are equal. You can line a path with warm raised, and I could easily crawl through, nose to the ground, without even stopping for a sniff. Switch them out with buttermilk bars, glazed old-fashioneds, even a jimmie-covered cake, and I’ll have crumbs in my hair within minutes.

#noregrets

The old-fashion cocktail has been having its moment lately, and its flavor profile quite nicely translates to the sweet side. Use a nice rye and fancy cherries to up the snob factor.

Old Fashion Donut
1/2 cup pumpernickel rye flour–toasted
2 3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
3/4 tsp ground nutmeg
4 Tbs unsalted butter-melted
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbs rye syrup (see note)
1 large egg
3 large egg yolks
3/4 cup buttermilk

Mix the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and set aside. In a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars until fully incorporated but not yet fluffy. Beat in the egg, egg yolks, and rye syrup and mix until they lighten. Add the flour and buttermilk alternately, beginning and ending with the flour. Scrape from the bowl onto a lightly floured workspace. Form into a square, wrap in plastic, and place in the refrigerator to rest for at least 1 hour or as long as overnight.
When ready to make the donuts, remove the dough from the refrigerator onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the top with flour and roll out to 3/4″. Cut into bars. Using the back of a knife or a bench scraper, make a deep line down the length of the bar, careful not to cut all the way through. Place back into the refrigerator until ready to fry.
Place enough oil in a heavy pan to at least 2″. Heat oil to 325F. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and fry in small batches, remembering that the cold dough will reduce the oil heat. Let the oil come back to temperature between batches. Fry for about 2-3 minutes on each side. The internal temperature of the donut should be 185-190F. Place on a cooling rack. Dip in the old-fashioned glaze.
Once the glaze is hardened, decorate with amarena or luxardo cherry and candied orange piece.

Rye Syrup
1 cup rye
1/4 cup (or so) candied orange peel
2 Tbs lemon-lime soda (optional)
Pour the rye and soda into a saucepan and add the candied orange peel. Heat over low heat for a minute, turn off the burner, and light the liquid on fire. Let the flame go out naturally. Remove the orange peel and place it in a dish of granulated sugar. Coat and use to decorate completed donuts. Use in donut dough and glaze.

Old Fashion Glaze
3 cups powdered sugar
1 Tbs tsp agar agar*
3 shakes of Angostura bitters
few drops of Fiori di Sicilia or a bit of orange zest
rye syrup

Place the powdered sugar and agar agar (if using) into a bowl. Add the Angostura bitters and the flavoring (and/or zest) and mix well. Add enough rye syrup to make a glaze slightly thinner than heavy cream.
*I use agar agar for my powdered sugar glazes as it hastens the hardening of the glaze. It can be an allergen, so use it with caution.

message in a bottle

Spring arrives and we run in full sprint preparing and tending. Summer has us watching, patiently waiting. Fall arrives with a prize: fruit grown in.the. bottle. Almost complete, almost. Large jars of ripe pears; bathing in brandy, infuse for months, monitored sip after sip after sip. When the time comes, the brandy pours; briefly veiling the pear. Bottles corked, ready for night capping and mood enhancing, hold secrets of the garden and whispers of the trees.

brandied apricots

We picked a bucket load of apricots the other day, and i have been working to preserve them for our winter larder. This year I have decided to brandy some. Which is a fancy way of saying,infusing with brandy. I’ve loaded my jars with freshly washed fruit (sliced in half and pitted), a sprinkle of sugar (about a tablespoon per jar),and poured on the brandy. In some i added a few extra bits, rosemary in one, cinnamon stick in another, vanilla bean in a third. There are so many lovely combinations to try. I am popping these onto a shelf, in a cool pantry. The fridge would be a great place too-if only i had room in the fridge

Watermelon Cooler

I woke up this morning in the pink. Peonies, bubble gum, flamingos, preppy handbook PINK. This refreshing cocktail, made with vodka, although more Wonka than Warsaw will put you in the PINK too!

Watermelon Cooler
3 TBS watermelon vodka (recipe follows)
1 tsp granulated sugar
1/4 cup watermelon dice
1/2 lime
2 mint leaves
tonic water
ice

Place watermelon, mint, sugar and lime in the bottom of a highball or old fashioned glass. Muddle until the lime has been completely juiced, the mint has begun to give off scent, yet the watermelon has not been pulverized. Add a few ice cubes and pour the watermelon vodka over. Add enough tonic water to fill the glass. Give a good stir and serve.

watermelon vodka
1 1/2 cups watermelon candies
3 cups vodka
Place the candies in the bottom of a large jar. Add the vodka. Let sit in a cool dark place for about 3 days or until the candies are dissolved (may take less time). Use as desired.

Sugared Oranges

A couple of weeks ago my good friend Julie handed me two grocery bags stuffed full of blood oranges. Gobs and gobs of amazingly sweet, stunningly hued orbs of delight. Best part. They were all mine. For the past fortnight, I have been concocting
all sorts in my kitchen. First up: sugared oranges.

Sugared Oranges
*to make approx 9 pint jars

blood oranges-or thin skinned oranges
(this recipe uses about 180-200 orange slices)
granulated sugar
ground ginger (optional)
6 cups granulated sugar
3 cups water
1 cup blood orange juice
2-1″ knobs of fresh ginger
Choose your oranges carefully. Make sure they have thin skin and that they are not so large that they will not fit into the jars you are going to preserve them in. Slice the oranges in rings no thicker than 1/8″ beginning at stem end. Arrange in a casserole dish in a single layer, slightly overlapping. Once you have your first layer, sprinkle sugar to lightly cover. Lightly sprinkle ground ginger on top as well (no more than 1/8 tsp per layer). Continue with a second layer of oranges and repeat with the sugar and ginger. Continue until you have reached your desired number of orange slices. Remember to reduce the amount of syrup if you are reducing the number of oranges. Sprinkle sugar and ginger on the top layer of oranges, cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit for an hour at room temperature. After 1 hour or up to 2 (if waiting longer than 2 hours, place in refrigerator) lightly pack your oranges into sterilized jars–each pint jar will hold approximately 20 pieces.
make the syrup
Place the sugar, water, blood orange juice and ginger in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the leftover juices from your oranges as well. Bring to a boil and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved and the syrup appears clear. Remove from heat. Using a ladle, spoon the hot syrup over the oranges, making sure there are no gaps of air. Use a knife to maneuver the oranges so the syrup can seep through. Leave a 1/4″ gap at the top of the jar. Seal the jar and process in a water bath per standard canning methods.
I processed my jars for 20 minutes at high altitude, but i cannot guarantee that this method will be appropriate for your batch.

And now for the big question: what would you use these for? Well, coming soon is a cake recipe using sugared oranges. You can also use for cocktail garnish-using the syrup in the beverage. Dry them in a slow oven and dip in chocolate. Top cupcakes and cheesecakes. Sweeten your morning yogurt. Garnish grilled chicken. The list is endless…