Homemade donuts mark an occasion. They call out the day and deem it special simply because of their presence.

I love how food can do this; how it can turn an ordinary Sunday into something significant because of what is on the table. There are some celebrations such as birthdays, weddings, and anniversaries that ask the food to help illuminate the occasion and then there are the days, like today, where I ask the food to give us reason to pause, say thanks for all the good and to help set it apart from the others that passed without us really noticing.

Donuts, even in their humble beginnings, have this sort of power. Anytime a yeasted dough is involved I find a sudden reverence for the process because so much of it is out of my hands. I add a few things to the bowl, use the same folding, smooshing, turning and pushing technique my mom taught me and her mom taught her and then I wait. I wait for the dough to rise, always a bit anxious because of my lack of control. Please rise, please rise, please. I plead.

A hot pot of oil also gives us the occasion. While I probably fry at home more often than most, it’s not everyday and that alone is reason for us to see this day, a day of donuts, as different.

So while the house is still quiet I slip into the kitchen to wake up some yeast and set this day apart with something as simple as homemade donuts. The rest of the day can go on as normal and yet this day will feel different and perhaps even a bit memorable.

These Apple Cider Fritters are worthy of an occasion or powerful enough to create one. They require a few steps and need a bit of encouragement and folding to lure the apples into the dough. But what happens in the folding is evident as you fry – stunning laminations of cider poached apples and dough. While some still refuse to cooperate, jumping ship from the dough and bathing solo in the oil instead, enough stay put to give these fritters a bit of heft and a tart bite. An apple cider glaze and a sprinkle of flake salt aids in the occasion-making.

As I step back into the kitchen to hopefully find a risen bowl of dough destined for a hot pot of shimmering oil, I hope you will head over the Live.Love.Lux for the recipe and give this day a reason for celebrating.

Apple Cider Fritters with Cider Glaze

Click this link to Live.Love.Lux. for the recipe!