chocolate-orange doughnuts.

This has been one horrible, no good, very bad week so far.

I know this isn’t why you came here. You came here for doughnuts, not to hear about how my car’s windshield wipers stopped working in the middle of a snowstorm, or how I broke my new necklace the first day I wore it and then subsequently spilled coffee all over my pants at work, or how I tried to make simple things like poached eggs and grilled cheese (grilled cheese!) for dinner and failed miserably, or how, lately, some of my life’s circumstances getting the better of me.

But I’m keeping it real, here, people. Sometimes, we just have a really crummy week.

Thankfully, we also have doughnuts.

baked doughnuts.

These doughnuts were the perfect things to wake up with on a bright, sunny Saturday morning. Thanks to the fancy schmancy doughnut pan the ‘rents bought me for Christmas, I could make these delicious, fluffy, citrus-kissed doughnuts and douse them in a gooey dark chocolate glaze. And now that I have this fancy schmancy pan, I plan to make homemade doughnuts a fairly regular part of my life. Especially on horrible, no good, very bad days.

mmm chocolate.

If you don’t have a doughnut pan, fortunately or unfortunately, for this recipe you’ll need to get one. The good news is they’re super easy to find and super not expensive. All you need is a little bit of room in your kitchen cabinet and an undying wish for doughnuts. Trust me, it’s worth every penny.

Orange-Buttermilk Cake Doughnuts with Chocolate-Orange Glaze
Adapted from Not So Humble Pie

Yields: 6 doughnuts

Ingredients:
For the doughnuts —
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon buttermilk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup cake flour, sifted (or make your own, like I did, with this here pro tip)
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
zest of 1 small or 1/2 large orange
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the glaze —
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
1 teaspoon light corn syrup
1 tablespoon butter, cut into tiny cubes
1 teaspoon orange juice

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Spray doughnut pan lightly with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together melted butter, buttermilk and egg. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg, orange zest and salt. Pour dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir to combine.
Spoon batter into doughnut pan wells so they’re about two-thirds of the way full. Bake for 8-12 minutes, or until the tops of the doughnuts spring back when lightly touched. Allow to cool in pan for a minute or two, then turn out onto a cooling rack with wax paper underneath and cool completely.
To make the glaze: Microwave all glaze ingredients in a shallow bowl for 10 seconds at a time, stirring between, until melted. Dip cooled doughnuts into the glaze (or spoon it over the doughnuts) and return to cooling rack to dry.
Doughnuts are best served the day they are made.