Man Made DIY

There's a somewhat famous pumpkin festival about an hour from my house, which came very highly recommended when I first moved to the city six years ago. It's standard fair and festival stuff: touring food trailers and games, local non-profits and faith communities fundraisers, student art, etc. It's kinda crazy and kitschy and pretty awesome, and certainly worth a visit. But, after a few years, my attendance slowed: mostly 'cause all we'd do is stand around and eat mediocre food that's really bad for you, look at the cloggers, get stuck behind the parade, and stand in line for forty-five minutes for some seriously tasty, piping hot fresh pumpkin doughnuts, the highlight of the festival if you ask anyone.

So, this year, we decided to skip the drive and the parking fiasco and the food-on-sticks, and just make pumpkin doughnuts at home.

And they were… read more

I never had a real doughnut until I was eight or so.

Well, I guess by real, I mean "fresh, and from a bakery." See, my earliest doughnut memories involve 1) either those awful powdered sugary things that come in the re-sealable bag, or 2) those things my parents would cook in the crock pot..which actually had to be some sort of deeper fryer, but it lived in the lazy susan, and I wasn't allowed to touch it, so it was all the same to… read more