Donuts for National Donut Day and Foodie Friday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite - Homer Simpson had the first and last words on donuts..."Is there anything they can't do?" Today is National Donut Day and I can't let the day pass without sharing my favorite recipe for cake donuts with you. It first appeared in Gourmet magazine. The donuts are simple and inexpensive to make. They have the added advantage of being "make your socks go up and down" delicious. For as often as I make these, I still don't own a donut cutter. I, instead, follow the advice of Kitty Bartholomew, a designer from the early days of the Home and Garden Network who urged people to "make do with what you do have" rather than bemoan what you don't. So, my donuts are shaped using the rim of a 3-inch glass and an apple corer. It's the price I pay for a dislike of clutter and the accumulation of rarely used gadgets. The finished donuts can be dredged in confectioners' sugar, cinnamon sugar or dipped and iced in a frosting of your choice. These are not a figure friendly creation. To keep my appetite in check I find it helpful to remember an old German adage, "Fear makes the wolf seem bigger than he is." Scott Roenen has a response that keeps me on the straight and narrow. He says, 'The tub of glazed donuts doesn't help either." Enjoy in moderation.

Cake Donuts...From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs
12 cups vegetable oil
To finish:
Confectioners' sugar
Cinnamon sugar
Melted chocolate

Directions:
1) Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. Whisk together 1 cup sugar, buttermilk, butter, and eggs in another bowl, then add to flour and stir until a dough forms (dough will be sticky).
2) Turn out dough onto a well-floured surface and knead gently 8 times. Flour dough and a rolling pin, then roll out dough into a 12-inch round (about 1/3 inch thick). Cut out as many doughnuts as possible with floured 3-inch doughnut cutter and transfer to lightly floured baking sheets. Gather scraps, reroll, and cut more doughnuts in same manner.
3) Heat oil in a 5-quart heavy pot until thermometer registers 375 degrees F. Working in batches of 3, slide doughnuts into oil and fry. Once each doughnut floats to surface, turn over and fry 50 seconds, then turn again and fry 50 seconds more. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Cool slightly and dredge in confectioners' sugar, cinnamon sugar or dip and ice with melteded chocolate. Yield: 18 donuts.

I'm sending this recipe to Michael at Designs By Gollum for Foodie Friday, the blogging event she sponsors.