What's Baking: Baked Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts

 

We're officially one day into the autumn season (how is it already fall?!), and I'm pretty sure that I am supposed to be sharing recipes featuring pumpkin, apple cider, and other cozy fall favorites.

While I am the first to admit that fall is one of my favorite seasons (aside from that whole harbinger-of-winter part), I'm not quite ready to give up the bright citrusy flavors associated with warmer seasons.

So, on that note, yesterday morning I baked up a batch of lemon poppy seed donuts. Oh man, are these good! They are super-lemony, which is just how I like them.

They are delicious straight from the oven (let 'em cool just a little bit before taking a bite) – or you can let them cool a bit more (if you can wait that long!) and then dip the donuts in a lemon glaze.

A sprinkle of poppy seeds on top gives just a little more crunch to an already-tasty donut. Is there anything better than a freshly-baked donut? Not when you have a half-dozen of them sitting on your countertop!

Yeah, I couldn't help myself. I might have taken a little bite during the donut photoshoot. Don't worry, though, these donuts are all mine. Maybe not all in one sitting, though. Maybe.

 

And, never fear, I'll share plenty of pumpkin and apple recipes soon (it's apple-picking season, yay!). But until then, make this donuts, won't you? You won't be disappointed. 

Baked Lemon Poppy Seed Donuts (printer-friendly version)
makes six donuts

For the donuts:
1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 large egg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 heaping teaspoons fresh lemon zest
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
granulated sugar, for sprinkling

For the glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray a donut pan with cooking spray and set aside.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients.
3. In a separate bowl, stir together the buttermilk, egg, butter, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until evenly combined.
4. Carefully spoon the donut batter (it will be thick and slightly sticky) into the prepared baking pan. Fill each cavity about 3/4 full.
5. Bake for 9-12 minutes, or until the donuts just spring back when touched.
6. Allow the donuts to cool in the pan for five minutes. Then remove the donuts from the pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.
7. While the donuts are cooling, make the glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth.
8. Once completely cooled, dip each donut into the glaze. Sprinkle with additional poppy seeds if desired. Donuts are best the day they are made and should be consumed within two days.

What's Baking: Blood Orange Poppy Seed Muffins

Another day, another blood orange recipe. There's just something about that pink orange juice and bright red orange zest that I just can't get enough of. 

This time around I replaced the lemon with blood orange in my favorite lemon poppy seed muffin recipe. I love the sweetness and crunch in these bright citrus muffins. And paired with a steaming mugful of strong coffee? Now that's a match made in heaven. 

I made these muffins a little bit healthier by subbing in Greek yogurt for some of the butter and decreasing the amount of sugar. However, these muffins are still just as tasty as ever.

My favorite way to eat them? For second breakfast, of course. Or as an afternoon snack with a hot mug of green tea -- a delicious pick-me-up for that mid-afternoon slump.

Blood Orange Poppy Seed Muffins (printer-friendly version)
makes about 12 muffins

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon blood orange zest
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup fresh blood orange juice
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted, browned, and cooled
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 tablespoon turbinado sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Line a 12-count muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, use the back of a spoon to rub the sugar with the blood orange zest until fragrant.
4. Use a whisk to mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt into the sugar mixture.
5. In a medium bowl, stir together the yogurt, blood orange juice, eggs, vanilla, and cooled browned butter.
6. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to incorporate. Stir in the poppy seeds.
7. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.
8. Top each muffin cup with a sprinkle of turbinado sugar.
9. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
10. Let the muffins cool for five minutes in the tin before removing them and placing them on a wire rack to cool completely.

Made From Scratch: Citrus Poppy Seed Dressing

While the weather outside is anything but tropical, I am so happy to find the grocery stores full of citrus fruits -- navel oranges, blood oranges, cara cara oranges, tangerines, tangelos, clementines, the list goes on and on.

On a recent grey day, I couldn't help but fill my shopping basket with piles of the brightly colored fruits. I immediately made plans for a citrus salad (coming later this week). But, as I was working on the salad ingredients, a chicken-or-the-egg question arose -- what came first, the salad or the dressing?

In this case, the salad dressing came first. I had a delicious poppy seed dressing not too long ago, and I  wondered if I could make my own version from scratch. As is the case with many food items, the answer was a resounding "yes!"

Since I had those aforementioned piles of citrus on hand, I added a little citrus flair to the dressing in the  form of blood orange zest and blood orange juice -- although any type of orange would do, I would lean more toward a sweeter-tasting orange given the amount of vinegar in the dressing.

Citrus Poppy Seed Dressing (printer-friendly version)
makes 2 cups (about 12 servings)

1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1 teaspoon grated white onion
1/2 teaspoon blood orange zest
1 teaspoon fresh blood orange juice
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

1. Add together the sugar and vinegar in a small sauce pot. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves, about 1-2 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat, and stir in the salt and mustard. Let the mixture cool for 15 minutes.
2. Add the cooled mixture to the bowl of a food processor fit with a metal blade. Add in the onion, orange zest, and orange juice, and process for 20 seconds to incorporate.
3. With the food processor turned on, slowly pour the oil through the chute, and continue processing until the oil is fully incorporated. Add the poppy seeds and process for 10 seconds.
4. Pour the dressing into a container with an airtight lid. The dressing can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

What's Baking: Gluten-Free Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

The arrival of Spring has me craving lighter flavors. So, for this week's installment of Muffin Tuesday, I whipped up a batch of gluten-free lemon poppyseed muffins. These muffins get a double dose of lemon flavor from the addition of fresh lemon juice and fresh lemon zest. A sprinkle of turbinado sugar on top of the batter adds a subtle sweet crunch to the baked muffins.

These citrusy lemon poppy seed muffins definitely taste like Spring -- now if only we could do something about all those massive piles of snow outside my door to match the Spring-like conditions inside my kitchen!

Gluten-Free Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (printer-friendly version)
makes 10 muffins

2/3 cup organic skim milk
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1/2 large lemon)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 tablespoons plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest (from 1 large lemon)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour mix
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
turbinado sugar for sprinkling (about 1-2 teaspoons should do)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a muffin tin with cooking spray or butter, or line with paper liners. Set aside.
2. Pour the milk into a small bowl and add in the fresh lemon juice. Let sit, undisturbed, for a couple of minutes.
3. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Stir in one egg. Once the egg is completely incorporated, stir in the yogurt, lemon zest, and vanilla extract. Then stir in the lemon-milk mixture, which will be slightly curdled.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together the gluten-free flour, xanthan gum, poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
5. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined.
6. Use a small scoop to distribute the batter into 10 lined or greased muffin cups. Each muffin cup should be almost completely full. Sprinkle the top of each muffin cup with turbinado sugar.
7. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
8. Let the muffins cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove them from the tin and let cool completely on a wire rack.

(adapted from this recipe from An Edible Mosaic)

What's Baking: Honey Poppy Seed Banana Bread

A few weeks ago, my friend Sheri posted a recipe for banana bread that featured honey and poppy seeds, and I immediately pinned the recipe. Fast forward to last week, and what should I find on my kitchen countertop but three bananas that were quickly reaching the overripe stage. Ah, kismet! I listened to what the universe was telling me and made a loaf of banana bread using the new-to-me recipe. The addition of honey really gives this banana bread an additional depth of flavor, and I also was a huge fan of the added texture and crunch provided by the poppy seeds. This recipe (which is from the book Baked Elements: Our 10 Favorite Ingredients by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito) is a keeper, for sure.

Honey Poppy Seed Banana Bread (printer-friendly version)
makes one 9" loaf

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup organic skim milk
1/2 cup raw honey
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons poppy seeds

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9"x 5" loaf pan and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the mashed bananas, vegetable oil, milk, honey, and eggs.
4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until just combined. Stir in the poppy seeds; do not overmix.
5. Spoon the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
6. Bake for 60 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.
7. Let the bread cool in the pan for 15 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack, and allow it to cool completely.
8. Once cooled, wrap tightly in aluminum foil.

(adapted from this recipe)