Herb Donuts with Herbed Buttery Cream Cheese Spread

Ingredients:

For the Donuts

1.5 tbsp butter, melted

1.5 tbsp cream cheese, melted

3/4 c all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp fresh rosemary (or whatever spices/herbs you have on hand, can omit if necessary. It’s not essential to have ‘fresh’ rosemary for the recipe. Try dried

thyme, oregano, basil, sage, etc.)

1 tbsp Mrs. Dash seasoning blend (or whatever seasoning blend you have and like, i.e. TJ’s 21 Salute, a McCormick blend, or other ‘all-purpose’ seasoning blend)

1 tsp salt, or to taste

black pepper, to taste

optional to taste: garlic powder, onion powder, curry, paprika, oregano,

1 egg

1/4 c shredded cheese (I used Pepper Jack or try mozzarella, Colby, Swiss, Jack, Munster, soy, Daiya, etc.)

6 tbsp+ buttermilk (I used 1/2 c which is 8 tbsp. Add milk slowly until you reach a thick batter consistency)
Yields: 6 donuts in this Wilton doughtnut pan. Pans vary by size but this is not a “huge” recipe. Double or triple, or halve (beat the egg and then divide in half) the recipe as desired. Can be made as muffins in a muffin pan, and I’d bake at 325F for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Directions:

For the Donuts

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees and lightly grease or cooking-spray the donut pan (or muffin tin).
In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt/soften 1.5 tbsp butter and 1.5 tbsp cream cheese. No more than about 15 seconds.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, spices and seasonings, egg, cheese, and add the melted butter & cream cheese mixture to it all. Stir by hand tocombine.
Then, slowly add the buttermilk. You may need as little as 1/4 c or more like 1/2 c, or even a splash more. The amount of milk needed is going to depend on the type of cheese and cream cheese used. You are looking for a fairly thick batter. Thicker than cake or brownie batter, more like cookie dough consistency.
Use a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip (or a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off) to pipe the batter into a 6-donut pan. Or just be extra neat and do this with a spoon which is what I did.
Bake 11 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until doughnuts spring back when touched or until dough is set. Donuts will not be golden brown, but should be springy.
(I always underbake my baked goods but in my oven these took 11-12 minutes to set up)
Allow to cool slightly before removing from pan, about 5 minutes.
For the Herbed Buttery Cream Cheese Spread, optional
While donuts are baking or cooling, make the spread by combining and whipping by hand:

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp cream cheese

pinch of spice blend used in donuts, i.e. Mrs. Dash or similar

pinch of fresh herbs, i.e. rosemary

Double or triple the recipe as desired

WL-992659 / A DISH 8" X 4.5" | 20 X 12 CM
Recipe by: foodandwine.com