Recipe: Key Lime Doughnut Holes

Key Lime Doughnut Holes

Happy & Healthy Cooking,

Fun-Da-Mentals Kitchen Skills

• grate :

  to reduce food, like a carrot, to very small shreds or pieces of the same size by rubbing it on a tool with an outside surface that has holes with cutting edges (a grater).

• whisk :

  to beat or stir ingredients vigorously with a fork or whisk to mix, blend, or incorporate air.

• zest :

  to scrape off the outer colored part of a citrus fruit's rind (skin or peel) using a metal tool with small sharp blades, such as a zester, microplane, or the small holes of a grater (avoid the "pith," the white, spongy lining of the rind that can be bitter).

History of Doughnuts!

• Although other cultures may have deep-fried dough over the centuries, Dutch immigrants to 17th-century New York (New Netherland) are primarily linked to the modern doughnut's origin. They made a fried sweet dough called "oliekoeken" or "oil cakes." They would put fruit or nuts in the middle of the dough balls to prevent the center from being undercooked.
• The name "doughnut" might refer to the nuts put in the middle of the dough ball to help cook the center, or it could come from "dough knots," a popular shape for Dutch oily cakes, sweet dough balls fried in pork fat. Today, "doughnut" and "donut" are used interchangeably.
• Three stories claim to tell how ring doughnuts came about, with a hole in their center, and the doughnut hole inventor in each story is the same. 
• Story 1: In 1847, Elizabeth Gregory was known for making a unique oily cake with a hint of nutmeg and a filling of nuts. This story says that on June 22, 1847, her son, Hanson Crockett Gregory, was captaining a ship that hit a sudden storm. He impaled his mother's cake that he was eating on a spoke of the ship's wheel to free his hands. The spoke put a hole through the middle of the donut. The captain preferred the cake that way, and the doughnut hole was born.
• Story 2: Captain Gregory didn't like nuts, so he poked them out and demanded that the ship's cook remove the nutty centers from all future doughnuts. 
• Story 3: Around the turn of the century, Captain Gregory told the third version in a Boston Post interview. The captain didn't like the greasiness of doughnuts twisted into various shapes or the raw center of regular doughnuts. So he got the idea to punch a hole in a doughnut with the ship's tin pepper box. 
• Large chains like Krispy Kreme and Dunkin' Donuts have dominated the donut world for the past few decades, but as the "boutique foods" trend continues to grow, donuts are not being left behind.
• Specialty shops making donuts with unique flavors and toppings are cropping up in major cities across America. Maple and bacon donuts, donut ice cream sandwiches, and even hamburgers on donuts instead of buns; it's clear that donuts aren't just for dunking anymore.

Let's Learn About Florida!

• Florida is the 27th state of the United States, located in the southeast. The Atlantic Ocean is on its eastern border, the Straits of Florida and Cuba are south of the state, the Gulf of Mexico is west, Georgia is north, and Alabama is northwest. 
• The state capital is Tallahassee, and Jacksonville is the most populous city. The Miami metro area is the most populous urban area, at about 6.2 million.
• The indigenous people who first came to America, the Paleo-Indians, arrived in Florida about 12,000 years ago. European explorers and settlers came to the area in the early 1500s. St. Augustine, a Spanish colony founded in 1565, is the oldest continuously lived-in city in the US.
• Florida became a state on March 3, 1845. In 1861 it was one of the original seven Confederate States that seceded from the Union. It was restored to the Union in 1868 after the Civil War.  
• Florida's total area is 65,758 square miles, and its population is 21,538,187. It has more residents over 65 than any other US state. Seniors often choose to retire to Florida for its warm, mild climate. 
• Florida is only 90 miles north of the island country of Cuba. Hispanics and Latinos make up over a quarter of the state's population, with the majority of Cuban or Puerto Rican descent. 
• The average elevation is 100 feet, with the highest elevation 345 feet and sea level the lowest.
• Most of Florida has subtropical weather, but in the southern part of the state, below Lake Okeechobee, the climate is tropical, especially in the Florida Keys. 
• The Everglades is 7,800 square miles of tropical wetlands and forests in southern Florida. The largest mangrove tree ecosystem in the Western Hemisphere is in the Everglades. Some animal species living there are American crocodiles, Florida panthers, West Indian (or North American) manatees, white-tailed deer, and banded water snakes. Bird species include American flamingos, green-backed herons, roseate spoonbills, and wood storks. 
• Three of the most popular amusement parks in the US are in Florida: Disney World, Universal Studios, and SeaWorld. 
• Several professional sports teams play in Florida: the Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Jacksonville Jaguars NFL football teams; and the Miami Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays MLB baseball teams. Golf is also an extremely popular professional and amateur sport in Florida.
• Florida grows the most oranges in the US, followed by California. Most of the oranges are made into orange juice. The state fruit is the orange, the state beverage is orange juice, and the state flower is the orange blossom. The state is also known for its Key lime pie, gator bites, and Cuban food.