I Heart Mom

Just in time for Mother's Day!  Show Mom your sweet side with a twist on Breakfast in Bed.  Present her with a big box full of sunny-hued hearts, each with a personalized message.

All you need is a dozen of Mel-O-Cream's Heart-shaped Donuts and some endearing messages you've been waiting to express on an edible canvas. 

Since Mother's Day falls smack-dab in the middle of the Spring, you can't go wrong with an assortment of pastel flat icings.  We chose white, pink, and buttercup. But mint, sky blue, and lilac are also big favorites.

You can be as ornate or simplistic as your heart desires.  But if you've got a typical Mom on your hands, make sure you've spelled all of your words correctly -- she'll notice right away!

Donuts That Make a Statement

Want to show your support for a special cause?  Got a sweet tooth?  Well Donut YOUniversity has the perfect project for you!  At your next meeting or fundraiser, why not bring along some iced cinnamon-twist Awareness Donuts?

These are so simple to make.  All you need is Mel-O-Cream Cinnamon Twist frozen dough, flat white icing, and food coloring to make your favorite colors.

Donuts That Make a Statement

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There are literally hundreds of causes that make use of colorful ribbons as a means of promoting awareness.  Here are just a few that can easily be transferred to an edible ribbon: 

• Heart Disease Awareness - Red                                  
• Tsunami Awareness - Teal
• Autism Awareness - Puzzle Piece
• Osteoporosis Awareness - White
• Lupus Awareness - Purple                                           
• Asthma Awareness - Gray
• Sickle Cell Awareness - Burgundy                                
• Breast Cancer Awareness - Pink
• Support Local Police - Blue                                         
• Cerebral Palsy Awareness -  Green Ribbon
• AIDS and HIV Awareness - Red                                
• ALS Awareness - Blue and White Pinstriped
• Alzheimer's Awareness - Purple                                   
• Lung Cancer Awareness - Pearl
• Substance Abuse Awareness - Red                             
• Support for the March of Dimes - Purple
• Environmental Awareness - Green
• Armed Forces/ Veterans Awareness - Yellow  
• Birth Defects Awareness - Pink and Blue
• Mental Illness Awareness - Green
• Leukemia and Lymphoma Awareness - Orange
• Arthritis Awareness - Blue
• Child Abuse Prevention Awareness - Light Blue
• Save the People of Darfur - Green
• Disabled Adults Awareness - Burgundy
• Gay Pride Awareness - Rainbow
• Support Anti-War - White
• Support Freedom of Speech - Blue
• Diabetes Awareness - Gray
• Down Syndome Awareness - Blue and Yellow
• Diversity Awareness - Black and White
• Haiti Recovery Awareness - Red and Blue
• Zombie Awareness - Gray

You can also personalize your ribbons by adding supportive messages or names.  Just remember that the more ornate your cinnamon twist ribbons become, the more time the project will take to complete.

Egg-ceptional Donuts

Easter is just around the corner, and that means that customers will hop on down to your store or bakery to purchase some tasty pastries for their early morning festivities: family get-togethers, church functions, volunteering outings, etc.  Customers want something quick but still special, and won't ruin their appetites in preparation for a big holiday lunch or dinner.  Why not showcase a fun and effortless design representative of the secular side of the Easter tradition?  What are we talking about eggs-actly?  Well at Donut YOUniversity we're making decorative delights that you don't have to hard boil.

To start, you'll need to thaw some Mel-O-Cream Oval-Shaped Shells.  This shape is so versatile: we'll show you what we mean in later posts.  While you wait for your unpainted eggs to thaw, start preparing your icing.  A traditional flat white icing works very well here -- as most eggs are white, of course.  But, you can add food coloring to your white icing to create a multitude of motley hues.  We recommend adding a conservative amount of color to render more of a pastel tint.

Now it's time to decorate some eggs!  Pastels are always a favorite during this season.  Just remember that most brands of gel icing do not offer pastel colors.  You may have to mix your flat icing by hand to achieve the desired color. 

Next, put one of your colors into a piping bag.  For quick and easy designs, a fine-tip applicator is recommended.  However, if your are a decorating wizard, you may opt for other tips with more flare.  Keep in mind that you will be decorating AT LEAST a dozen of these eggs, so stick with designs that can be completed in a single stroke or line from one end to the other, like this egg above.

 And there you have it!  And just like your other eggs, you may need to hide a few for yourself before they are all hunted down!

Krazy for Kabobs

Today, Donut YOUniversity is celebrating Something On a Stick Day.  Yes, there really is a National Holiday dedicated to skewered vittles.  So, we're going to show you how easy it is to make your favorite edibles portable. 

What you'll need:

• Your Favorite Mel-O-Cream Donuts Donut Holes
• Finishing Sugars or Cinnamons
• Glaze
• Icing
• Sprinkles
• Wooden Skewers
• Scissors
• Wax Paper

We'll show you 3 different ways to prepare Donut Kabobs. 

First, prepare a batch of your favorite donut holes by warming them in the oven at 375 degrees for no more than 30 seconds.  Once the donut holes are thawed, select one of these options to prepare them:

Krazy for Kabobs: Sugar, Spice, Oh So Nice!

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Krazy for Kabobs: Glazed Over Expressions

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Krazy for Kabobs: Quick Dip

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And remember, once you've created your kabobs, you'll need containers long enough to store them properly for your customers.  So enjoy your poppable pastries on a stick today!

Caramel-Glazed Butter Pecan Donuts

National Pecan Day is March 25, and to celebrate this wholesome nut of the Mid and Southwest, Mel-O-Cream Donuts makes every March its Butter Pecan Cake Donut Month.  These rich cake donuts have smooth, creamy taste and a hint of pecan on the pallet.  It’s as comforting as comfort food can get.

If you want to add a little more decadence to these donuts, why not try topping them with caramel icing?  Your distributor can provide you caramel icing, or you can contact Mel-O-Cream Donuts.  In past entries, Donut YOUniversity has shown you how to top your donuts with icing the good-old-fashioned way.  Now, we’re going to show you how to drizzle icing onto your cake donuts.

Our experts agree that glazing your donuts before you drizzle caramel icing is the perfect accent.  The glaze provides a sugary-sweet base, followed by a slightly more savory caramel dappling: this choice accompanies the Butter Pecan donut in an ideal concert of flavors.

First, while you wait for a tray of Butter Pecan cake donuts to thaw, prepare your glazing according to manufacturer’s instructions.  Once the donuts have thawed, coat the top of each with the glaze by brushing it onto the face of the donut or dipping it into the container of glaze.  We recommend glazing all of the donuts before you move on to drizzling the caramel icing.

Next, prepare your caramel icing so that it is the correct consistency.  You can tell it’s ready if you can make ribbons of icing by lifting your mixer or spatula.  If it creates lines or “ribbons” from your utensil back to the bowl, then you can create the drizzle pattern on your donuts. 

NOTE:  According to food preparation laws and regulations, all food products sold to the public should be prepared with gloved hands. 

Take your gloved hand and place your fingers into the container of caramel icing.  Your fingers should be slightly spaced apart.  Keeping your fingers still, pull your hand out of the icing.  Notice how the icing ribbons off of each of your fingers?  This is the effect you want to create on your donuts.  Move your hand (not your fingers!) approximately 6-12 inches over the donuts in a rocking or circular motion.  Remember, your fingers should remain steady: think of them as a paint brush that you guide over your edible canvasses.

And in case your customers may have food-specific allergies, it would be a great idea to let them know that although our Butter Pecan donuts taste like pecans, all of our items are 100% peanut and nut-free!

Lucky Four-Leaf Donuts

Looking for a way to make your donut case more interesting this St. Patrick's Day?  Not looking to spend a lot to do it?  No problem!  Make four-leaf clovers from yeast-raised donuts! 

Here's what you need:

• Heart-shaped, yeast-raised donuts -- If your distributor does not carry them, contact Mel-O-Cream for information
• White flat icing
• Green food coloring
• Other food coloring or different colored gel icings (optional)
• Colored sugars (optional)
• Sprinkles (optional)
• Piping bag

Four-leafed Donuts

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For the Pot of Gold, we used yellow round jimmies.  You can substitute gel icings for flat icing if you do not have piping bags or other food colorings.

The clovers should fit in most dozen-donut boxes; however, a cake box will also provide enough room for this design. 
 

So enjoy your Lucky Four-leaf Donuts!  And did we mention that they are the perfect compliment to your mug of green beer?

Kick-Up Your King Cakes

Fat Tuesday is quickly approaching, ladies and gents.  Have you been thinking about how to decorate your King Cakes?

For those of you who have never participated in this New Orleans tradition, the King Cake originated from a Catholic festival.  The King's Cake (as it was called) symbolizes the journey of the Three Kings to Bethlehem.  According to the story, they traveled for 12 days, arriving at Bethlehem on the day in which we celebrate Mardi Gras.  French and Spanish settlers introduced this custom to the New Orleans region, and this sweet and spicy confection has been a mainstay of Carnival cuisine ever since.

Not sure how to decorate a King Cake?  It's very simple -- and a lot of fun!  Mel-O-Cream provides customers with everything they need in a King Cake Kit, complete with multicolored sugars, beads, and the obligatory plastic baby.  If you don't have the kit, here's what you'll need:

• King Cake dough
• Flat White Icing
• Sugars in traditional Mardi Gras colors, such as gold, green, purple, and magenta
• Strands of plastic beads
• The Plastic Baby

Note:  The Baby is the quintessential decoration of the King Cake.  In some traditions, finding the baby inside the cake is good luck and the recipient is granted a wish.  Others consider the plastic baby to connote the Baby Jesus.  While others insist that this is just the most interesting part of the King Cake.  So beware - no baby could mean dissatisfied Mardi Gras enthusiasts!

The most important thing to remember about Mardi Gras is that you are encouraged to indulge that sweet tooth.  So get carried away with your King Cake: slather on those sugars and embellish with beads!  After all, it's only once a year, right?