By Teri Cayton
The Parsons Advocate
I have good news to share about my brother. He is doing very well and feeling a lot better. Hopefully he will have a procedure around Christmas (hopefully before) to get the trach tube taken from his neck. I am so grateful for all the prayers that were sent his way and I got to hear his voice last week for the first time in months. Momma Said, “Faith will see you through.”
I cannot picture my life without him and I hope I never have to experience anything like this again. But, I might find out because if he picks up another cigarette after this, I will dispatch him myself. I think this is the second hardest thing I have ever had to go through in my life.
I think fall has officially begun in West Virginia, the mornings have already been below freezing in our area and the robins are getting fattened up ahead of the annual migration south. There is a flock of them outside my window here at work eating berries off the dogwood tree and they look like little pumpkins with legs, they are so fat I don’t know how they can fly.
I don’t know how far south they migrate but I hope it is not to Florida. With this crazy weather going on right now they may get caught in a hurricane and end up back in Vermont. And speaking of the weather, I know I will sound like a conspiracy theorist but, I don’t think it has been a coincidence that Hurricane Helene hit the area close to a lithium mine and a quartz mine. Now we have a giant forest fire in Montana that has consumed over 73,000 acres and climbing and that is where the Pedro Mine is located that mines such things as gold, copper, platinum, palladium and zinc. All of which, including the lithium and quartz from North Carolina, are used in computers, solar panels and cell phones. Does that not strike you as odd? How many movies on TV have we already seen of people manipulating the weather? Momma Said, “Just sayin’.”
Baked Apple Cider Donuts
Ingredients
- ▢1 cup apple cider
- ▢2 cups all-purpose flour
- ▢1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- ▢1 tsp. apple pie spice
- ▢½ cup granulated sugar
- ▢2 tsp. baking powder
- ▢1 tsp. salt
- ▢2 large eggs
- ▢1 tsp. vanilla extract
- ▢½ cup vegetable oil
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- ▢⅔ cup granulated sugar
- ▢1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- ▢½ tsp. apple pie spice
Instructions
Donuts
- In a medium saucepan over high heat, bring the apple cider to a boil. Once boiling, turn the temperature down to medium and allow the apple cider to boil down for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and measure, you want ½ cup. Allow the apple cider to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Spray a donut pan with non-stick cooking spray then use a paper towel to evenly coat the entire donut well.
- In a smaller bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, apple pie spice, sugar, baking powder and salt, mix until combined. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the apple cider, egg, vanilla extract and vegetable oil, use a whisk or spatula to beat. Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing by hand with a spatula just until combined.
- Transfer the batter to a ziplock bag, then cut off one corner and pipe the batter into the donut wells. Alternatively, use a cookie scoop and drop dollops of batter into the wells. Use a small spatula to smooth the tops of the batter if the batter is uneven. Fill the wells 1/2 to 3/4ths full.
- Bake for 10-11 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a donut comes out clean. Allow the donuts to cool for 10 minutes in the donut pan. Then, turn the donut pan upside down and hit the pan again a counter a few times to release the donuts.
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- Combine the sugar, cinnamon and apple pie spice in a ziploc bag. Add one donut at a time to the bag, shake to coat. Repeat as necessary. If the coating isn’t sticking, very lightly brush the donuts with melted butter then shake in the bag.