My Life as a Stay at Home Mom: Donut Worry- Be Happy!

It's summer in South Carolina which means it's hot and humid outside and the mosquitoes are buzzing around like crazy. This makes playing outside for more than a few minutes no fun at all. So, that means that I have to come up with fun ways to entertain the children inside and one of my favorite indoor activities is baking or cooking.

I love making food creations with my kids for a few reasons. For one, cooking is a basic life skill. Sure, the things they're making in the kitchen right now aren't going to score them a spot on Master Chef but they're stepping stones. Another reason I enjoy baking with them is because it's something I'm relatively good at and I like imparting my knowledge. And one more reason is because not only do you find a way to keep kids entertained for a bit but you also get to eat a delicious treat when you're done!

So, today we made some simple, easy donuts. This recipe is very basic so my kids can actually do a good bit of the work.

First, gather your ingredients. For this recipe all you really need is can of crescent rolls, some icing (any flavor would really work but plain vanilla tends to work the best), sprinkles, and oil to fry them in (or you can choose to bake them).

Not Pictured- Oil for your fryer

I always choose to fry my donuts in my fryer because its fast and I like that crispiness you get from fried donuts. I suppose you could easily make these guys in the oven as well, though. If you choose to make them in the oven just follow all the steps like normal but preheat your oven and bake according to the normal instructions on the crescent roll package instead of frying them. Which ever method you choose, make sure it is preheated and ready to go before you start making your donuts so you "donut" have to wait.

1) Open up your crescent rolls and take two of the triangular roll pieces still connected and pinch them together along the seam to make one larger rectangle.

2) Cut your rectangle in half horizontally to give you two longer rectangles.

3) Roll each half piece into a long "worm" as my kids call it!

4) Loop the dough around so that it makes a circle and pinch the ends together to make your donut shape.

5) Once all your donut shapes are made, it's time to drop them in the fryer (or bake them if that's your preferred method). Frying them only takes about a minute per side. Since my fryer is smaller I only drop in about 2-3 at a time to keep them from sticking to each other. Flip the donuts over when you can clearly see the golden brown creeping up the sides. Your donuts should be a nice golden brown when they are done. AS you remove them carefully from the fryer, place them on a plate with a paper towel to help soak away the extra oil.