Hatching Day!

On Mother's Day, my family presented me with an incubator.

Some Mom's would've rather had flowers.

I prefer the poop that makes the flowers grow.

I may or may not have been dropped on my head as a child.

Chicken poop makes me happy.

So do baby chicks. Especially ones that I played a part in hatching.

Now, who's going to teach them how to scratch?

The first little peep hole.

After 24 hours of peeping and egg rolling, this one was the first to make its appearance.

We named it "Eggbert".

I was afraid Eggbert was a goner and warned the kids that it didn't look good.

Shows what I actually know about chicken hatching!

As of this posting, we are up to 3 healthy babies.

Eggbert, Yolky and Shelly.

Obviously, my children like the Ice Age movies.

And that first egg with the hole? It's still hanging in limbo. Chirping and pecking.

And apparently not ready to make its appearance.

With 10 more eggs in the bator, this could be a long night.

Each week, I note that another week has gone by. Who knew that those weeks would pass by and add up to a year. Another year.

Today is my birthday. I am now 43 years young. Most days I don't feel my age at all.

Most days, I feel...44.

In dog years, I'd be dead.

So, I'm going to embrace 43.

And thank God that I am not a dog.

In other news, I received a phone call from my daughter, Tia, who lives on the east coast. In early 2011, I will become a "Nana" for the third time!

Yes, I will embrace 43. It is looking to be a very good year.

Here's what's on the menu this week...

~Breakfasts~
*Pennsylvania Dutch Baked Oatmeal
*Cranberry/Orange Muffins
*Fried eggs & toast
*Speltcakes w/ fruit
*Soaked Oatmeal
*Homemade granola

~Lunches~
Smoothies, leftovers, Pb & J sandwiches, Maple/Walnut Scones, homemade tomato soup

~Dinners~
*Baked Dijon Chicken (new), Lima beans, roasted asparagus
*Baked salmon, Herbed Quinoa (new), farmer's market salad w/ citrus dressing (new)
*Barbecued meatballs, sweet potato fries, kraut
*Peanut & Sesame Noodles, steamed broccoli
*Homemade Sloppy Joe Burger Bites on Biscuits (new), farmer's market salad
*Lentil burritos, farmer's market salad
*Simple Supper Sunday

*I am still planning our meals around what I find at the farmer's market. Spring greens, carrots, zucchini, leeks, thinned sweet onions, asparagus, and sweet potatoes made the list this week. And because of the holiday weekend, (and the rain), the market vendors were few. I still feel like I scored big! One of the things that I've added back into our groceries though, is citrus. In the Pacific Northwest, we cannot grow lemons, limes, grapefruits or oranges, no matter how hard we try. I did manage to find all four items with labels from California.

No passport required.

For more menu ideas, visit The Organizing Junkie!

Teaching History

Back when I was a young whippersnapper, when I had to walk 10 miles to school, in the snow, with no shoes, I hated history. Hate is a rather strong word, but there were only 2 other things I hated more; math and squash.

If you knew how long it took me to finish a quarter of a cup of squash, you'd understand.

My hatred for history started with kindergarten. We learned about Christopher Columbus. He sailed the ocean blue. He was credited with discovering America, even though there were already people living here. Even at the ripe old age of 5, I knew that was messed up.

In first grade, we learned about Christopher Columbus.

In second grade...you guessed it...more Christopher Columbus. Same story, bigger words.

I think Columbus was overrated.

In middle school, the political side of history started. I got to learn about how the Indians were persecuted and had their land stolen from them. By none other than Christopher Columbus and his crew of merry men.

By high school, I was pretty sure that we were going to start with Columbus, so I just tuned out most of high school history. It showed on my report card with a big, bright, beautiful (to me), D. I was just happy that it wasn't an F. I did get the opportunity to memorize The Gettysburg Address. Whenever I was late to class, I got to spend a few extra minutes after class writing it all out for my teacher.

Not my fault that history class followed lunch.

When my Mister and I decided to homeschool our children, I knew that I wanted more for them than I got. Apparently, there were some wars we were involved in, men had landed on the moon, and pioneers had blazed some trails across the country to find cheap land.

I learned most of my history from "Little House on the Prairie."

God bless Michael Landon.

During 17 years (and counting) of our homeschooling experience, I have tried numerous curriculum. In fact, I have enough curriculum to teach 12 years of history and not repeat any one book!

I may or may not have a problem with book hoarding.

Here are our favorites...

Beautiful Feet Books~We have loved these books. The guide has only been used sparingly, mainly for ideas for me. In grade school, the goal is to engage your child and give them the desire to learn more. Half of the illustrations are in color, the other black and white. We photocopied some of the b&w's for coloring pages and made a timeline on the wall with them.

All American History~We started these in middle school, but took them into early high school. Now there is a second volume, which we will be adding. Volume 2 starts with the Civil War and goes to the 21st century. We used "History through the Age"s by Homeschool in the Woods for our timeline figures, which the kids enjoyed. Photocopy these onto cardstock if you will need to save them for younger children.






























There are plenty of mapping assignments that coincide with the lessons.















For high school, United States History, by BJU is an excellent resource. No picture with this one though, it is currently in storage...meaning it is buried beneath a pile of things that I need to sort through.

Tomorrow is another day.

For world history in elementary and middle school, The Story of the World is perfection. I am so in love with this series, words cannot describe it. As part of the Sonlight curriculum, we received the textbook, but only recently stumbled on the activity book. There are 3 more books and activity books after this one.

Where, oh where, have you been all my life?

For the classical learner, (aka: the squirmy child), this is truly the best of both worlds. There is a short chapter for the parent or older sibling to read, followed by some questions that are best answered orally. If you're into notebooking, you could also have them write a short narrative of what they learned.















From there, there is mapwork, a coloring page, hands-on activities, and crafts that can be done. As the parent, you choose how much or how little you want to do. What kid wouldn't want to make a cave painting, build an erupting volcano, make an Egyptian Death Mask, or cook up some Navajo Fry Bread? For that matter, what adult wouldn't have fun with this?

Just tell the kids it's for them.

Because you love them.

































































This book is needed to work with The Story of the World. Wonderful pictures. In fact, most of the pages in my copy are sticky or have dirty little smudges on them. There was a picture of the book, but I am tired and accidentally deleted it for the second time. Try here for a look at the cover.

This is the inside of the book. That's what really counts.















For high school, Streams of Civilization has worked for us. It wasn't necessarily a favorite, but we needed a semester and this fit the bill. There are 2 volumes, the first is "Earliest Times to the Discovery of the New World", the second is "Cultures in Conflict Since the Reformation". If you've already covered the basics of world history in the earlier years, go with volume 2. If not, start with the first volume.

A kid can only take so much Christopher Columbus.

And finally, Sonlight has an amazing history program for every level. We are using their world history programs for Core 2 and 6, along with The Story of the World. This allows our multi-age family to study the same things, but at levels that everyone can understand. The readers are engaging, entertaining and create a love for learning. It is fun for me to watch my children reading books that I loved at their ages and even more fun to sneak in a quick read after the kids go to bed!


Who could ever get enough of "Island of the Blue Dolphins"?















Remember, history started before Christopher Columbus, it continued after him and by the time you read this, everything that happened today will be in the past.

Also known as history.

Of which I now LOVE.

*I'll be sharing our favorites for different subjects over the next few weeks. Next up...Geography!

Rhubarb Crispy Pie

The sunshine finally made an appearance today, and boy was it a welcome sight. Since bringing home our honeybees 2 days ago, the only time we've seen them is when we've lifted the lid and caught them snuggling.

They don't like the cold weather either.

But today, they were out in full force, flying over the hive, circling the fruit trees, resting on the fences and doing what they do best.

I'll be darned if I know what that is.

My Mister has decided that he was born to be a beekeeper and has taken it upon himself to learn everything he can about the bees.

I've decided that it's my job to learn everything I can about rhubarb.

We complete each other.

Today, on my way down to check on the bees, I had to pass the garden. The garden is a sore subject right now because the rains came back before we were done planting. Now there's a nice green tinge over the whole area. The good news...the potatoes are up, the celery has new growth, and the broccoli and brussel sprouts are stretching upward. I also discovered that the first stalks of rhubarb were ready to be harvested.

This recipe is a mix between a crisp and a pie. There are no oats in it, nor is there a typical pie crust. It is not gluten free (it could be), and it is not a low calorie dessert. Just ooey-gooey goodness from one of the first harvests of the season.

Now, that's what I'm talking about.

Rhubarb Crispy Pie

Pastry:

1-1/2 cups flour

1 t. sea salt

1 Tb. sugar

1/2 t. oil (I used safflower)

2 Tb. milk

Mix flour, salt, and sugar. Pour oil and milk. Mix with fork and spread into a 9-inch deep dish pie pan or a 10-inch regular pie dish. Smoosh it up the sides too.

Filling:

6 cups rhubarb, diced

2 cups sugar

6 Tb. flour

1 Tb. unsalted butter, cut up

Combine rhubarb, sugar, and flour. Dot with butter.

Topping:

1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1/4 sugar

1/2 cup flour

2 Tb. walnuts, chopped

Mix butter, sugar, and flour with a pastry cutter. Stir in walnuts. Sprinkle over filling.

Bake at 350F. for 1 hour.

****VERY IMPORTANT****

If you do not wish to clean your oven at 8 in the evening, so that it will be ready for the baked oatmeal you were planning for breakfast, I suggest that you put a cookie sheet beneath the pie plate before baking.

I'm just saying....

Enjoy!

Gluten-free Carrot Muffins

For the last few weeks, produce has been scarce. The local farmer's market has had fresh spring greens and a little asparagus, but not much else.

Until last Saturday.

That's when I hit the mother load.

Fresh, organic carrots and some zucchini added a little variety to the meal plan for the week. We used the zucchini in a frittata, and today enjoyed the carrots in a new muffin recipe.

The great thing about this recipe is that it is "substitution friendly". Instead of carrots, zucchini could be used. Grate some apples, add an overripe banana or canned pineapple for a different flavor.

No matter what you add, this will still be gluten free!

Unless of course, you add wheat.

Then all bets are off.

Gluten-Free Carrot Muffins

2 cups gluten-free flour (I used Bob's Redmill)

1 t. xanthum gum (this acts like gluten and holds the ingredients together)

1 Tb. flaxseed meal

3 1/2 t. GF baking powder

1/2 t. sea salt

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/4 cup sucanat or light brown sugar

1 egg

1 1/4 cup milk

1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce

1 cup grated carrot

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Sift dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

Mix egg, milk and applesauce together in a small bowl.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix only until combined. The batter will be lumpy.

Fold in the carrots and nuts.

Fill greased muffin cups about 2/3 full.

Bake in 400F. preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pan.

These are great with cream cheese!

Enjoy!

The Newest Beekeepers on the Creek

Well, it may not be as catchy as "New Kids on the Block", but we're not new kids, don't live on a block, and have officially crossed over from being just consumers of honey, to honey producers.

Yep, we are officially referred to now as BEEKEEPERS.

Which means that we now have an epi-pen on hand at all times, because if anyone is going to be allergic to bees, it will be my Mister or I.

Or both.

Here is a picture of us, still basking in the glow of bee ownership. Before cynicism sets in and we realize the we are in way over our heads.

My hair is pulled back because Heather, the bee lady, said that "you don't want to let the bees get caught in your hair"...apparently, that is a bad thing.

And my goal in life is to avoid as many of those as possible.

My Mister had to chisel out a "back door" escape route for the bees, just in case the yellow jackets or wasps try to take over their kingdom.

I just love watching him figure things out.

This is the brood box. We fill the far left with sugar water and place the molasses patty on the frames and the bees stay happy and healthy.

I guess the Queen doesn't cook.

Forget the romantic thoughts of beekeeping. This is an ugly business. Ugly being the operative word. This little get-up of mine pulls tight downward, gets wrapped around my chest (in a not-so-flattering way), and ties in the front. My sweatshirt sleeves had 3 large rubber bands cutting off my circulation at the wrists, the netting on my face was hard to see through, and I'm 5'3 wearing rubber boots that cut me off mid-knee.

And I'm wearing 2 layers of clothes.

I looked like a character from ET.

The movie, not Entertainment Tonight.

The yellow in the front...pure net. (Just in case you were wondering where I purchased this very stylish scarf!)

You can't tell, but it had just started to rain when we got outside. I was in charge of smoking the bees while my Mister worked the tape and lid.

People with asthma should NOT work the smoker.

Lesson learned.

The sugar water is 1 part sugar, 1 part water.

This is when white sugar is a good thing.

If it were up to me, I'd have smoked those bees to death. Smoke is supposed to calm them.

I don't think they got the memo.

The little addicts finally calmed down.

If they were human, they'd be considered "two-pack-a-day" smokers.

We put 5 frames in this brooder box. In a couple of weeks, we'll add the second brooder box. The honey in these boxes are for the bees. When we add the third box, called the "super", anything that gets made in that, is ours.

Every bee counts when there is honey to be made.

All that's left is to put the top on. By now, it was pouring, I was in desperate need of oxygen and the bees were in a coma-like trance.

All in a day's work of a new beekeeper.

Visit Heavenly Homemakers and share what you are grateful for!

MPM 5/23

Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out....

Well I guess this proves that I survived last week.

That is good to know because there was some doubt.

I'm still working on Dakota's scrapbook; it is coming along nicely. I'm hoping that he won't notice the tear stains...

My Mister and I enjoyed the Tim McGraw concert Friday night. I discovered that, in traffic, I am not brave. There is absolutely no chance, ever, of me ever moving to a big city. Ever.

After getting home after 1 a.m., my honey and I got up early and went to the farmer's market. There we scored some beautiful lettuces and 3 really nice zucchini. In a couple of months, zucchini will be a noxious weed that cannot be destroyed. Our neighbors will eventually shun us for leaving multiple "gifts" on their front porches...but right now, this zucchini is a gift.

We picked up our bees today. God graced us with heavy rains during the transition. Which means that the bees were pretty mellow. Translation: we didn't get stung while moving them to their new home. My son was kind enough to document our experience with pictures. Scary pictures, which I'll share tomorrow. Prepare yourself.

In the meantime, here's what's on the menu this week...

Monday
~Soaked Oatmeal w/blueberries
~Peanut butter & honey sandwiches, tortilla chips/salsa
~Zucchini Frittata, farmer's market salad

Tuesday
~Pennsylvania Dutch Baked Oatmeal
~GF Carrot Muffins (new), fruit smoothies
~Pinto bean & cheese burritos, lacto-fermented salsa, farmer's market salad

Wednesday
~Speltcakes w/fruit
~Homemade tomato soup, cheese & crackers
~Red Beans & Rice (new), cornbread

Thursday
~Apple Pan Goody
~GF Carrot Muffins, fruit smoothies
~Pasta salad (brown rice pasta), baked chicken

Friday
~Fried eggs & toast
~Berry/Peach slushies, toasted cheese sandwiches
~White Chicken Chili (new/carried over from last week), farmer's market salad

Saturday
~Granola
~leftovers
~Homemade Chili/Cheese Hamburger Helper (new), farmer's market veggies (?)

Sunday
~Granola
~Simple Supper Sunday (to be determined on the way home from church!)

For more menu ideas, visit The Organizing Junkie.

A Pause for Station Identification...Beeeeeeep....

This week has been super busy. Remember the list on Sunday? Well, it grew.

For Mother's Day and my birthday (in a few days), my daughter and her boyfriend got me 2 tickets to see Tim McGraw and Lady Antebellum in concert!

No purple dinosaurs. No dancing Wiggles. No Big Bird on ice skates.

A real concert.

In Seattle.

The only other concert I've been to was to see TobyMac, Matthew West and Jeremy Camp a couple of years ago. It was amazing.

Did I mention that my husband had the stomach flu?

I'm also trying to fit in a movie date with my daughters and sister. Then there is my nephew's birthday, where he will be turning the wonderful age of 7. Can't miss that.

What am I forgetting....?.....Oh yes, and Sunday, after church, my Mister and I are heading north (again) to pick up our bees!! Since we're "newbies", we also get an instructional time.

Bees sting. And they make honey. That's the extent of my beekeeping knowledge. Guess I really need this class!

I'm still working on my son's graduation scrapbook. Up to page 5 now. Got a kink in my neck from looking down. Probably going to stay on page 5 until Monday.

Did I mention that he's being honored at church on May 30? Which is also the date that I need to present him with his finished scrapbook.

Because an unfinished scrapbook would be no memory worth keeping. At all.

Of course, it is one he would remember...Hmmmmm.....

So, I am taking a couple of days off. In fact, I started tonight. My daughter made biscuits and gravy with elk sausage for dinner. No vegetables in sight.

And I was just fine with that.

Have a blessed weekend and I'll see you on Sunday!

(((((HUGS)))))

Dark Chocolate Cake (GF!)

When I found this recipe for a flour-less cake, I didn't give it a second thought.

Cake with no flour? That's not cake, it's fudge.

I'm not a huge fan of fudge. My family loves it, but I'm just "eh-eh" about it.

Then my brain did something weird. It started thinking about flour-less cake and that recipe that I suddenly couldn't find anymore. It became my obsession. I needed chocolate, and flour or not, I was going to eat cake. That cake.

I am happy to report that not only did I find the recipe, but my bookshelves are the cleanest they've been in years!

I also found the recipe for a caramel apple trifle that I needed last Thanksgiving.

But, we'll save that for another day. Today is all about the cake. Gluten free cake.

Dark Chocolate Gluten-Free Cake

The Players:

16 oz. 100% cacao Belgian chocolate

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup very strong, hot coffee (I used espresso)

1 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces (room temperature)

2 Tb. unsweetened cocoa powder

8 large pastured eggs

1 Tb. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 10-inch springform pan with parchment paper, then butter the paper.

Using a food processor, pulse chocolate bars until small bits. Add sugars. Pulse until mixture resembles sand.

As you continue to pulse, add the hot coffee. The chocolate will melt. Add the butter pieces and cocoa powder and pulse to combine.

Add eggs and vanilla; process until smooth and creamy.

*Note to self: teach 18 year old son that licking the blade of the processor is a BAD IDEA.

Pour batter into the springform pan. Wrap aluminum foil around the outside of the pan. This will prevent any leaking onto the heating elements. Just in case...

Bake for 1 hour, in the center of the oven. Check doneness with a toothpick.

Here's where the picture of the baked cake should be. For some reason, not one of the pictures turned out.

The cake will deflate as it cools. When completely cooled, cover and refrigerate for 3 hours, or until ready. Remove from pan.

Serve with freshly whipped cream.

Now, I need to go and whip some cream!

Enjoy!

Turkey Love

After reading Barbara Kingsolver's book, "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle", we decided to start our own turkey breeding program.

Actually, we decided it just before we reached the end of the book.

If only we'd have waited until the end. What a difference that would've made.

We decided to get Bourbon Red heritage turkeys. Our second choice was Narragansett's, followed by Royal Palms. When I inquired of the chance of getting the Bourbon's, the people at the feed store told me that they had already ordered and those didn't make the list. So we went with choice #2. Then we waited 2 weeks for their arrival.

Guess what didn't come? Not one single Narragansett turkey. Disappointed, I asked, "Well, what do you have?" The girl on the other end of the phone replied, rather sullenly I might add, "They sent us some Bourbon's instead."

Needless to say, I arrived at the feed store exactly 20 minutes later. (I am pretty sure there were some laws broken. People should not drive under the influence of baby turkey love!) We wanted 6, and that is exactly what the feed store had.

Some would say, "Lucky you."

But, I actually finished the book.

Apparently, turkey's do not naturally breed, which is important for a breeding program. They need someone (*cough*...the farmer) to set the mood.

Ummmm...excuse me?

Yes, I have to set the mood. The only thing I know about turkey love is "whiskey makes him frisky" and "brandy makes him dandy". Alcohol lets down the males inhibitions. Well, duh. Do I also supply the cigarettes for after? What about mood music? Do turkeys prefer a little jazz, or maybe some reggae with a little beat? (Bob Marley anyone?) Or should I just park an old junker car up at the coop and let teenage hormones take over?

All I know is...this farming business is going to be tougher than I originally thought.

See that turkey pulling on the Aracauna's foot? I put him in time-out for that one.

The turkeys and chickens are now separated for not playing nice.

But for now, I'm going to enjoy their childhood a bit longer.

MPM 5/17/2010

This week is going to be a "hit the ground running" week.

Here's some of what's going on...

~Oldest son, Dakota, is graduating. This means transcripts, invitations, senior pictures, ordering the diploma and tassel, and planning an open house is underway.

~Graduation means scrapbook. Each of my children gets a memory book when they graduate. These are not to be confused with Momma's brag books; they are created with each child in mind. Meaning, it takes thought. And imagination. And me trying to figure out the "who, what, and where" of each picture that doesn't have a note on the back. Which most of them do not.

~I haven't done too much with the scrapbook yet. Still in the weeping uncontrollably phase.

~We're in the midst of planting season. Good news. Mother Nature doesn't care and is going to "gift" us with some rain this week. I'm breathing a sigh of relief. But only until the scrapbook is done.

~We've had a population explosion in the chicken department. I can't seem to drive past the feed store without stopping. And I can't seem to leave the feed store without at least a half dozen new chicks each time. Not good if I'm visiting the store twice a week.

~The incubator is happily humming along with 13 more chicks. As their mommy, it is my duty to sing them lullabies while I gently turn them 3 times a day. "Lullaby and goodnight, I'm going to eat you baked or fried...." my children think that I've lost my marbles. Maybe I have.

~As further proof of lost marbles, I brought friends home for our chicks. 6 little Bourbon Red heritage turkeys are now calling our garage home.

~We need to expand the chicken coop.

~And build a turkey run.

~Have I mentioned school yet? Yep. It's still going.

~And apparently, people need to eat.

~Oh yeah. Food. Planning. Where was I again?

Here's what's cooking (or attempting to cook) this week...

Monday

~Pennsylvania Dutch Baked Oatmeal with peaches (GF)

~Corndog muffins, fruit smoothies

~Chicken Tortilla Soup, farmer's market salad (GF)

Tuesday

~Speltcakes with blueberry syrup

~leftover soup, buttermilk biscuits

~Macaroni & Cheese (with rice noodles), Salmon patties, farmer's market salad

Wednesday

~Soaked oatmeal w/ blueberries

~Kefir smoothies, Sourdough Scones

~Texas Style Lasagna (carried over from last week), farmer's market salad

Thursday

~Pennsylvania Dutch Baked Oatmeal with apples

~muffins (to be determined), homeade blueberry yogurt

~Risotto, swiss chard, elk roast

Friday

~Eggs & elk sausage

~PB&J, chips, fruit

~Spaghetti, green beans

Saturday

~Granola

~leftovers or sandwiches

~White Chicken Chili on Corn Tortillas (new) (GF), farmer's market salad

Sunday

~Granola

~Eggs in a Nest (new) or Grilled Hamburgers (depending on the weather!)

Desserts/Snacks

~GF Chocolate Cake (new)

~Raw Milk Chocolate Ice Cream (new)

Gluten-Free Applesauce Cake Donuts

Dear Mr. Krispy Kreme,

It was good while it lasted, but I am over you. I have found a new love. Once word gets out, you will need to find a new career. I hear the feedlots are offering a dessert bar.

Sincerely, Me and the 20 lbs. you left...on my behind


This is a recipe that I found in my MaryJane's Farm magazine. I have made the regular version, using white flour, and the gluten-free version. I prefer the GF version. These are so light and fluffy, are as sweet as you want them to be, and best of all, they are baked, not fried! With a cup of coffee, (didn't see that coming, did you?), and a bowl of fruit, this makes for a perfect weekend breakfast.

Old-Fashioned Mini Applesauce Cake Donuts/Gluten-Free

*You will need a mini-donut pan for these.*

1 cup organic white rice flour

1/2 cup organic sugar

1 t. baking soda

1 t. baking powder

1/4 t. sea salt

1/2 cup milk

1/3 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

2 Tb. mild-flavored oil (I used safflower)

1/2 t. pure vanilla

2 egg whites, lightly beaten

In a small bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda and powder, and salt.

In a large bowl, whisk together milk, buttermilk, applesauce, oil and vanilla.

Fold flour mixture into wet ingredients and stir just until moistened; fold in egg white.

Grease mini donut pan. Add 1 Tb. batter per mold, leaving the center peg showing above the batter.

Bake in 400F. oven for 10 minutes, until donut springs back when touched.

Remove from oven and cool for 2 minutes, then loosen donuts. while still warm, dip donuts in sugar, powdered sugar, or a mixture of cinnamon and sugar, coating well.

Makes approximately 36 mini-donuts.

Pour yourself and cup of coffee and enjoy!