Chocolate Twist Doughnuts with Avocado Cream Filling

So I made you some chocolate twist doughnuts.

And I filled them with Avocado Whipped Cream.

Are you surprised?

Seriously, my addiction to avocados has become a joke in my family. My husband sees me cutting it and chortles "ha ha ha, I'm soooooo surprised we're having avocado for dinner!"

I don't know what I'm going to do when summer is over. Mortgage my house to feed my addiction, I guess.

Wilton generously sent me this Doughnut Twist pan. I was so excited to get my hot little hands on it. Have you seen it? It makes huge doughnuts.

Or is it donut? I really have no idea. Pardon me while I switch between the two. Call me a flip-flopper.

Like most Wilton pans, this one proved itself. A little cooking spray and bam, they popped right out. They were pretty, even nekkid.

I really think nothing is better than a chocolate glaze. What do you think?

And, well, avocado and chocolate are like, BFFs.

Did I mention that I made avocado whipped cream?

I can't wait to put it on ice cream.

Because I'm weird.

Or maybe those of you who blanche at the thought of avocado whipped cream are weird?

Hmmmm...

Wilton also sent me a bunch of fun sprinkles. I love sprinkles. I think life would be more fun if everyone walked around with sprinkles in their pockets. I want a sprinkle purse.

Did you know they make edible glitter sprinkles? And rainbow chip? I made a few of each.

Jordan was only allowed half a doughnut a day (these babies are large and in charge). She tasted half of each. To sprinkle taste test.

She liked the glitter ones best.

Me, I'm old fashioned. I like jimmies. Rainbow colored, of course. Rainbows and sprinkles could seriously make the world a better place, don't you think?

Chocolate Twist Doughnuts with Avocado Cream Filling

by Crazy for Crust (Doughnut and Glaze recipe adapted from Wilton)

Ingredients

For the Doughnuts

• 6 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups cake flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (full fat is best)

For the Avocado Cream

• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3 tablespoons powdered sugar, divided
• 1 avocado
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the Glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

Make the Doughnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray Doughnut Twist Pan with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Beat butter and sugar in a stand mixer until light and fluffy, about three minutes. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Add vanilla.
3. In another bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Add half the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until nearly combined. Add buttermilk and remaining dry ingredients, mixing until incorporated. Do not overmix!
4. Fill doughnut cavities 2/3 full. Bake 13-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (The original instructions said 18-20 minutes, but mine were a little over done at 15.) Cool in pan 5 minutes, then remove to a rack to cool completely.

Make the Avocado Cream

1. Add cold heavy cream and 1 tablespoon powdered sugar to a large bowl. Whip until stiff peaks form.
2. In a separate bowl, mix avocado, lime juice, 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, and vanilla with a hand mixer until most lumps are gone. Fold into whipped cream.
3. I filled my doughnuts using a pastry bag and Wilton tip #230. Pipe filling into both ends of the doughnut. (In mine, the center didn’t get filled, so I suggest poking the tip in to the center of one side to fill the center.)

Make the Glaze

1. Whisk all ingredients together in a large bowl. Frost tops of doughnuts and top with sprinkles, as desired. Glaze will dry in 10-15 minutes. Store in refrigerator. Avocado filling will remain green for at least 3 days if kept in a sealed container.


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Wilton generously sent me the pan and sprinkles to try for free. All opinions are my own! Want to win a Doughnut Twist Pan? Come back tomorrow!

Enjoy!

I link up to all of these fabulous parties each week!

Chef in Training, Trick or Treat Tuesday, Cast Party Wednesday, Sweet Treats Thursday, Chic-and-Crafty, Tastetastic Thursday, Sweet Tooth Friday, I'm Lovin' it Fridays, Sweets for a Saturday, A Well-Seasoned Life, Strut your Stuff Saturday, Weekend Wrap Up Party, Weekend Potluck, and all of these too!

Avocado Popsicles

Dear Avocados,

Oh, dear avocado, why can't I quit you? You are simply irresistible to me. Every time I pass you at the store I cannot help but buy three of you. I place you on my counter next to the bananas, who grow old and spotty as you disappear as fast as you're purchased.

See, I used to hate you. Loathe. And then I tried you and it was love at first bite. It started out simple. I put you in salads and mixed you with salsa. Once a week we'd eat an avocado.

But then you became this little nagging voice in my head. "Doooooooroooothhhhyyyy," you'd call out to me. Enticing. Calling me. My siren song.

Before long I was putting you in as many meals as I could. Substituting you for cheese whenever we ate tacos, which became increasingly often. Making turkey-bacon-avocado sandwiches. Putting you in pasta.

And then...then....you took me to the dark side.

Dessert.

Oh, avocado. First I turned you into a frosting. A sweet, green frosting that shocked everyone who saw you.

Then my friend Jocelyn made you into ice cream. And, oh, was I smitten.

I have so many ideas in my head for you, avocado. Too many.

And then one day I saw an article in People magazine. A little picture of you, dressed as a popsicle.

And not five minutes later I was unearthing my popsicle maker and turning you into one of the sweetest, fruity, and yummiest popsicles ever.

Who knew that mixing you with sugar and vanilla and lime could make you so addicting?

Who knew that my daughter would devour your popsicle without even wondering why it was green?

Oh, avocado. You and I, we were meant to be BFFs.

Thanks for the good times. Please don't ever leave me.

Love, your #1 fan,

Dorothy

Avocado Popsicles

by Crazy for Crust

(Adapted from People Magazine)

Ingredients

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 medium avocado
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

1. Heat sugar and water in a medium saucepan over low heat until sugar is completely melted. Cool completely.
2. Mash avocado with an avocado masher, mashing out as many lumps as possible. Add lime juice and mash some more. Whisk in vanilla and sugar water. Pour into popsicle molds and freeze until hardened. (Makes about 5 regular sized popsicles.)

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Thanks for reading!

I link up to all of these fabulous parties each week!

Chef in Training, Trick or Treat Tuesday, Cast Party Wednesday, Sweet Treats Thursday, Chic-and-Crafty, Tastetastic Thursday, Sweet Tooth Friday, I'm Lovin' it Fridays, Sweets for a Saturday, A Well-Seasoned Life, Strut your Stuff Saturday, Weekend Wrap Up Party, Weekend Potluck, and all of these too!

Avocado Frosting

Wait. Don't click away. Stay. I promise. You won't be sorry.

Okay. I know you're all "What??!" right now. Avocado Frosting? Is she nuts?

{Quite possibly I am, but this isn't why.}

Seriously, I know it's weird. Avocados are for chips and tacos and margarita night. Not cupcakes.

Until now.

You all know how picky I am, right? I mean, I don't eat condiments. Fruit makes me gag. I eat burritos inside out. Seriously, I have issues.

But recently I discovered I love avocados. A lot. Like, I could bathe in them and eat them every single meal of every single day and be happy.

And now? I can have them with dessert.

So...still with me? Good. Thanks. :)

Cinco de Mayo is Saturday. I wanted to do some sort of post themed for it. I couldn't make up my mind. Then I remembered this post by Jocelyn. And thought, hmmm. Avocados. What else can I do with them?

A quick search led me to this post by Jessica and I remembered that it intrigued me the first time I saw it.

So I made it.

And it's delicious.

Hear me, naysayers? Avocado frosting is delicious. This, from the pickiest person ever. It's good. It's fruity. It almost tastes like citrus. Pairs awesome with a chocolate cupcake.

Want another endorsement? My husband was eager to try it. He ate half a cupcake. That I made. He ate one of my desserts.

Did your head just explode? Because mine kind of did.

Mel doesn't eat my desserts. He looks at them, tells me how good they look, and then goes for his fat-free ice cream and WW brownie. He never eats anything I make unless it's carrot cake related.

BUT HE ATE THIS FROSTING. And he liked it too (and he is picky...although he won't admit it.)

{Hi honey! Just talking here...about nothing. No worries. Totally not about you...}

So...yeah. It's weird. But in a good way. Seriously. Try it. I mean, if I'll eat it, you know it has to be good.

Thanks for reading!

Avocado Frosting

by Crazy for Crust

(Recipe from How Sweet It Is)

Ingredients

• 1 ripe avocado
• 1 tablespoon butter, softened
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups powdered sugar (plus a little more if needed)
• Pinch salt

Note: this recipe will frost about 5-6 cupcakes. Double for a larger batch.

Instructions

Using a mixer, beat avocado and butter until combined and no lumps remain. Beat in vanilla and salt. Add powdered sugar slowly and mix until combined. (Depending on how wet your avocado is you may need to add up to an additional ½ cup powdered sugar.) Spread on cupcakes and store in refrigerator. (Frosting is soft and will spread on cupcakes.)

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**Updated: these cupcakes were in my fridge for about four days before they disappeared. They did not turn brown!**

I link up to all of these fabulous parties each week!

Tea Party Tuesdays at Sweetology, Talent Show Tuesday at Chef in Training, Trick or Treat Tuesday at Inside BruCrew Life, Cast Party Wednesday at Lady Behind the Curtain, Sweet Treats Thursday at Something Swanky, Chic-and-Crafty at the Frugal Girls, Tastetastic Thursday at A Little Nosh, Sweet Tooth Friday at Alli-n-sons, I'm Lovin' it Fridays at TidyMom, Sweets for a Saturday at Sweet as Sugar Cookies, A Well-Seasoned Life, Strut your Stuff Saturday at Six Sisters' Stuff, and all of these too!

Summer Salad

Okay, so I know I don't post many savory recipes here. I don't know why I don't share more of them. Maybe because they don't seem as fun as sweet treats? Baking and sharing a recipe just seems so much easier to me than cooking and sharing one. Why? Because I hardly ever measure when I cook. Even when I follow recipes I approximate. I go all Rachael Ray and use my hand as a 1/4 cup measure. And normally, when I'm cooking, it's for dinner. I don't always have the time to stop and measure and write while trying to get dinner on the table (to say nothing of trying to photograph quickly before serving to a hungry husband and a hungry but I'm-not-gonna-eat-that-it's-gross kid).

BUT I have a few recipes I have to share with you. I made several "old standbys" for my husband's party and managed to photograph them (sort of). I'm hoping, as time allows, to post one of these recipes each week for the next few. (The only reason I want school to start? So I can have time to write without feeling guilty.)

The first I have to share with you is this Summer Salad, or Summer "Explosion" Salad as I've alternatively titled it. I made this for dinner last Wednesday and it was so good I couldn't stop thinking about it. In fact, I'm making it again on Monday. And my husband doesn't care; that's how good it is.

This recipe is a knockoff of one we had on our Las Vegas trip. We dined at Spiedini Ristorante on our anniversary. It's an Italian restaurant that was in our hotel and I was pleasantly surprised by it; the food was great and the service was beyond awesome. This is my version of their Signature Chopped Salad. They molded theirs all pretty, see:

(Mel and I split it.)

I tried to mold mine, but my 6" cake pans were too big. Oh well, it was great anyway and much less work unmolded! They also topped theirs with crunchy fried onions, which are still conveniently tucked in my cabinet since I forgot to add them to mine. Now I must make it again!

This salad has so many good things in it. And so many good summer veggies.

But the awesome thing about this salad is that you can really put whatever veggies you want inside. Have some tomatoes? Go ahead, add them. Don't like raw zucchini? No worries, leave it out. Add carrots or cucumber or pickled radishes, whatever you want. (Well, maybe not the pickled radishes, but who am I to judge? After all, I like eating canned frosting with a spoon.)

BUT there are two items you cannot leave out: the avocado and the bacon (unless you're a vegetarian that is, maybe find a soy alternative).

The avocado really is the star in this salad. And the bacon adds a salty crunch. I mean, who doesn't love bacon?

Is it "vinagrette" or "vinaigrette"? I saw both spellings. To be fair, I used them both.

There is one thing I changed from the original. The restaurant version had a Russian Vinaigrette (which was very good) but when trying to find a recipe I just couldn't do it. Mayonnaise and ketchup? Worcestershire? Sauerkraut? I have a thing about condiments. (I don't like them. At. All.) So I used salsa and plain yogurt and made a creamy salsa vinaigrette instead. YUM.

The crispness of the vegetables along with the spicy creaminess of the dressing mixes with the salty bacon and creamy avocado and creates one heck of a party in your mouth. I'm so serious, you haven't lived until you've tasted this salad. GO MAKE IT! (Sorry, that was really bossy. Let's try this again: GO MAKE IT, please.) You won't be sorry.

Enjoy!

Summer Salad
(Note: there is a print option embedded in this post. Please visit the post to print.)

Ingredients:
Romaine lettuce, chopped (about 4 cups)
Corn, from one ear (already cooked; about 1 cup)
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 small zucchini, diced
1 avocado
4 slices bacon, cooked, drained, and chopped
2 tablespoons plain yogurt
2 tablespoons salsa
1 1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon honey
Salt and pepper to taste
French's Fried Onions, if desired

Directions:

1. Mix the yogurt, salsa, vinegar, oil, honey, salt, and pepper in a measuring cup or small bowl container and whisk until combined. Place your chopped lettuce in a salad bowl and toss with dressing.
2. Layer your corn, bell pepper, zucchini, and bacon on top of the lettuce.
3. Dice the avocado and place on top the rest of the ingredients. Garnish with the fried onions, if desired (it tasted fine without them!)
4. Repeat every day because the salad is so good you can't get enough.

Yield: makes two main-dish portions.

Source: copied from Spiedini Ristorante

This recipe will be linked with Savory Sunday (The Sweet Details).