Happy Sunday to everyone! It looks beautiful out this morning so hurry in and get your cider donuts, cider and apples to enjoy for the week!

As I was looking through our new Farm Fresh Recipes from Lapacek’s Orchard Cookbook this one from Patty Koch caught my eye. I hope it sounds yummy to you too!

Sour Cream Apple Coffee Cake

by Patty Koch

Topping

1/2 c. white sugar

1/2 c. chopped pecans

2 T. melted butter

1 tsp. cinnamon

Cake

1 1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. shortening (oleo)

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. sour cream

2 c. flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 c. apples (chopped up)

Cream together brown sugar, shortening, egg, vanilla and sour cream. Sift flour, baking soda and salt. Add sifted ingredients to creamed mixture and blend; fold in apples. Grease and flour 9 x 13 cake pan. Pour in batter and cover with topping. Bake at 350-degrees for 45-50 minutes.

ENJOY!

Most of you all know that Friday night is Donut Night at the Lapacek’s household (Kroncke Road). Jared starts around 7 and I join him after the girls are in bed (or right away if Aunt Karma or my mom and dad around to put them down). This past Friday I took some great pictures of the entire process so everyone could see! I have to send out a huge thanks to Al, Jeremy, Leslie and Karma for all their help getting these done. We would never have the energy we still have if it weren’t for our friends. Thanks guys!The batter in the machine getting ready to be fried up!The donuts begin!Now for Number 2 They sizzle away as they get fried and delicious! Jared is in charge of getting the dough ready. My fabulous deal on a Kitchen Aid Mixer comes in handy for this (only $60!)! Al was in charge of moving the new donuts out of the way of the previous donuts. Jeremy was the cinnamon/sugar-er… I was the bagger. Leslie labeled (no picture taken…ooops) Our assembly line in action.Jeremy decided he needed an apron so I found him a really nice one to wear :) Al needed one too…

It was a successful and fun night of donut making!

Now onto the Sunday Recipe. I had never had cider donuts and since we get busy in the fall I didn’t know when I would have a chance to try them. So, Diane made up a batch of cider donuts for me at the end of the season one year…I was hooked. The recipe I am going to share with you is not the one we use for our donuts we sell at the store but it is quite delicious. This recipe can be found in our Farm Fresh Recipes Cookbook either online at Kim’s Crafty Apple or when you stop by the apple store.

Apple Cider Doughnuts

by Diane Lapacek

1 c. Lapacek’s Apple Cider

1 c. sugar

1/4 c. margarine

2 lg. eggs

1/2 c. buttermilk

3 1/2 c. flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

vegetable oil or shortening for frying

2 T. Cinnamon

1 c. sugar

Boil cider in small saucepan until it is reduced to 1/4 cup, 8 to 10 minutes; cool. Beat sugar with margarine until smooth. Add eggs and mix well, then add buttermilk and reduced cider. Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg in another bowl. Add to liquid ingredients; mix just enough to combine. Transfer dough to lightly floured board and pat to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut with 2 1/2 to 3-inch doughnut cutter, reserve doughnut holes and re-roll and cut scraps. Add enough oil or shortening to fill a deep pan 3 inches; heat to 375-degrees. Fry several doughnuts at a time, turning once or twice, until browned and cooked through, about 4 minutes. Remove to paper towels with slotted spoon. M ix cinnamon and sugar. While still warm, shake a few at a time in a paper bag containing cinnamon-sugar mixture. Cool on a rack.

Or, if you want to try some cider doughnuts and don’t feel like doing all that stop by the orchard on a Saturday and get your own bag that we’ve already made for you! (Sometimes Sunday’s too!)

After working three years to compile the third cookbook from Lapacek’s Orchard…it’s finally here! We’ve been gathering recipes from friends, families and customer’s ever since the previous cookbook, Apple-tizing recipes first arrive and then typing them onto our cookbook provider’s site. Diane spent many, many, many nights combing through the recipes to find my typo’s or other things that just didn’t seem to make any sense. We had to decide on a cover art, cookbook style, even the binding to come up with this fabulous book. When that was all said and done, we sent it in and waited…

They FINALLY arrived on the UPS truck late this morning and I couldn’t help but jump up and down a bit (Diane and Tom can attest to this…). It was like Christmas…Diane and I quickly ripped open the boxes while Tom (our tour guide this year) anxiously watched to see what it was that we were so excited about. I think he was slightly disappointed to see it was just a cookbook…but Diane and I definitely were not disappointed at all. We just love how it turned out and we hope you do too!

The cover art was done by Sharon Christensen, an artist from south central Wisconsin, whose favorite subject to paint is the rolling agricultural landscape of the state. The scene she painted was inspired by a photo we took of the barn at Lapacek’s Orchard, W7729 Bohling Road, Poynette, WI.

37 people contributed to this cookbook which is broken down in the Index of Contributors on page 123. The recipes are well organized to help finding what you want to make easier in the ‘Index of Recipes.’ on pgs 125 through 127.

The Table of Content’s of Farm Fresh Recipe’s includes Appetizers & Beverages, Soups & Salads, Vegetables and Side Dishes, Main Dishes, Breads & Rolls, Desserts, Cookies & Candy, and finally, This & That. All the recipes include at least one ingredient from something we grow or make at the orchard: apples, applesauce, cider, peaches, plums, pears, blueberries, raspberries, pumpkins, squash, and zucchini.

What else can you find in the cookbook?
The answer to the best apple for baking, a helpful guide to determining how many apples one may need for making sauce, pies, dried apples, etc, and a fun section filled with pantry basics, cooking tips, herbs & spices, rules for baking breads and desserts, tips on fruits and vegetables, napkin folding how-to guide, measurement and substitution table, equivalency chart, food quantities for large servings, quick fixes, a calorie counter, and cooking terms dictionary.

This cookbook is dedicated to Mercedi Rose and Capri Grace Lapacek. They are the third generation at Lapacek’s Orchard and they are the very best reason for everything we do. I took the photo on the back cover of the cookbook of my daughters, Mercedi and Capri, in the blossoms this past spring in Lapacek’s Orchard at N1959 Kroncke Road, Poynette, WI, with our dog, Tank.