Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Cinnamon Rolls or Donuts? Yes, please!!

When Samantha was a little preschooler, if somebody asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up, she would tell them that she was going to be a doctor. If you ask Trey, he’ll tell you that he’s going to be a pilot someday. Toby, nutty Toby, always proudly told everyone that he was going to live at the Embassy Suites and work at the Krispy Kreme bakery.  He is a child with a passion for donuts, a fact he is quick to remind us of of every Saturday morning.

Every year at Christmas time, my family plays that crazy gift exchange game where you bring a gift that costs a specified amount, wrapped but untagged, and take turns stealing the best ones from each other (because that’s so Christmassy). You might snag something pretty nice, or you might go home with soap-on-a-rope. No pouting.  Now that they’re a little older, we let the kids join in the adult game. Toby, who has learned the strategy of stealing and clutching the most coveted gift while giving the evil eye to anyone who glances in his direction, brought home a mini donut maker last year.  (Can you guess who brought the mini donut maker as their gift?)

Of course, we tried it out as soon as we got home.  We made a mountain of mini-donuts, both glazed and covered in cinnamon sugar.

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They were simple to make and turned out really cute. However, they tasted more like cake than donuts, and the thing is, we Davidsons don’t really like cake. So, I reluctantly found space in the kitchen to store away the mini donut maker, thinking that someday somebody might want one and I could secretly give them ours.

Then earlier this week, I saw a recipe on Pinterest for making cinnamon rolls in your waffle maker, and since cinnamon rolls and waffles are number 2 and 3 on Toby’s list of loves, I wanted to give it a try. However, because my waffle maker is a Farm Yard Waffler and makes waffles in the shapes of cows, hens, pigs, and barns, it was a little tricky and took more patience than I was willing to invest. Then I thought, “What if I put the cinnamon rolls in that donut maker?” So I did.

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They were delish, super simple, really inexpensive, easy to clean up, and took only 1-2 minutes to make. That’s how I like to do it.

Here’s how you can:
1. Spray and preheat donut maker.
2. Unroll pre-packaged cinnamon rolls into strips. Cut into thirds.
3. Wrap into wells of donut maker and cook 1-2 minutes.
4. Drizzle with frosting.
5. Be loved.

(Notes: I used the store brand cinnamon rolls and they were the perfect fit. One can made about 18 donuts. Don’t worry if you need to cut a few extra pieces to fill in the gaps; they bake together perfectly.)