I’ve got some good things for you Girlfriends!!! MUSICA
Oh, how I’m loving October! 🍂 Weather has totally changed on the island, summer is a thing of the distant past. We’ve had two Nor’easters recently, wild wind and rain out of nowhere . . . ferry boat was stopped, we’ve been cut off, out here alone, leaves flying by the windows. My favorite. Light the candles, make a fire, cook, and cozy-in to the quiet. With Jack. And Joe.💞
Look at me! After three months of an out-of-order broken wrist, I’m painting again!
I wasn’t sure I’d still know how! I’ve started working on the 2021 calendars (yes, 2021 😜, try not to think about it). As you can see Jack has been lending support. I’m still going to Occupational Therapy once a week, working to get all that luv-lee flexibility back. But I’m sooo much better. Lifting little weights! See that writing up there? Now look at this:
This is a shopping list I wrote with my left hand a couple of months ago! I told my brain, “MAKE A ‘G'”, but my brain said, “Is that a right turn or a left?” This took HUGE concentration! I kind of liked it!
Still eating healthy, and still loving it. Doesn’t that look delicious? Well, it was! Best words I ever told myself about losing weight? “I don’t care how long it takes, I’m doing it.” Very powerful. As they say in the Biz, “It’s a Lifestyle Change.”
Here’s a wonderful little healthy snack. If you are a homey cottage-cheese lover like I am (and many aren’t for good reason ➡️), there is nothing nastier than the milky wet cottage cheese you find in so many grocery stores. So I have something new for you to try. Look for Friendly Farms Cottage Cheese. It’s heavenly. Sturdy and creamy. Not drowning in milky wetness!! Available in tons of places. Perfect to put on crackers, or, like above, on buttered, toasted Ezekiel Bread, sprinkled with seeds, nuts, salt and pepper! Sprouts taste good on it too. It’s a treat!😋
Yes, it’s that time of year for Carrot Cake! Lots of Birthday’s around here lately . . . and Saturday is Rachel’s Birthday! 😘😘😘 Sending love to you Ray ~ I really wish you could help yourself (all of you!) to a piece of this! I won’t be a bit surprised if they figure out how to do that someday! Wish they’d hurry! You can wish Rachel a Happy Birthday here in the comment section, OR, write her on Twitter, HERE!❤️
You’ll recognize the recipe for the three-layer carrot cake I took to Jaime’s house for a birthday party . . . I forgot how good it is! Everyone loved it!
If you’ve never tried to make a carrot cake, you really should! It comes together so easily, and it’s filled with fruit and nuts! Right, Jack? Right!
Here I am at the party, sitting on the floor in front of the fire, among my oldest and dearest, toasting Joe through the crowd as he takes a nicely blurry photo of me!
In this one, I have the camera, so you can see what my view was from my floor position. People putting their rings around the candles, so everyone gets to make a wish.
My cake came in last and I was too busy cutting it to take pictures! I’ve made it lots of times, but usually, I just 
put frosting between layers and on top. This time I made extra frosting and did the sides. Decorated with chopped (green) pistachio nuts, a marigold from the garden, and strips of carrot peel I rounded at top with a knife, and made pointed at bottom. Isn’t it cute? I thought it looked like a happy circus cake! There were zero leftovers, no crumb went unattacked! You could do this!!!😘
The fans would love it! This recipe also makes amazing cupcakes. You can tint the cream-cheese frosting if you like.
All home-sweet-home this time of year. Hovering between 50º and 60º most days now. See our wisteria, so insidious, sneaking its way around everything, will crawl under a window and into the house if we aren’t careful! But very gracefully!
I love being a homebody. Garden is changing so fast . . . but we still have a few herbs, some nasturtiums, kale, lettuce, and a couple of tomatoes growing. A few rose buds and marigolds. No freeze yet, so we’re milking the garden for all it’s worth.
The wind blew our yard full of leaves . . .
And, btw, that Carrot cake recipe (and cupcakes) is in the book on the table! (Heart of the Home 30th Anniversary Edition.) If you make it, cool the cake before you put the frosting on!
Look at this! Fun with food! Joe cut into this radish and look what he found! Good enough to sell on eBay! (No, we won’t😅) Had to take a picture of it! Love the tail! Crazy radish bug!
And yes, Casper is back in his high spot, in the guest room on the second floor . . . looking out . . .
Over the neighborhood . . . he’s become a tradition, lighting up this window every October for years.
Cheering a stormy day, a harbinger of Halloween . . . he’s got a perfect view.
I wob him. When we go into downsize mode someday and sell this house, I hope the people who buy it will want Casper too! Because I know he will want to stay.🎃
There is something in October . . .🍂🍁🍂
Out on our walk, the bittersweet is wild!
Such a magical vine . . . invasive, they say, but what a way to go! We’ll be decorating around our front door with it!
The woods are prettier every day . . . we’ve had lots of sunny, crisp, and breezy days . . .
And the rainy days just make it better!
We just make a fire! Last night, girlfriends came over after Mahjong, we sat on the sofa and talked in the quiet, listened to the fire popping, clock ticking, wind blowing outside . . . 🍂🍁🍂
What’s up at the Studio? We’re getting new things all the time, I can’t quite keep up. Doing our best to make our web store one-stop shopping where you’ll find lots of little special things filled with ❤️ ~ with the holidays coming up so fast, it’s that time again!
Just in ~ our brand new Winter Dream Charm ~ like any starry night, you can make a wish for dreams come true.
And these too, precious house cut-outs ~ one of which is now sitting on my stove shelf. I tried it all over the house, on a window sill with my rusty birds, on the mantle with a candle behind it, there’s no bad place! It’s going to be gorgeous with my white Christmas trees!
SO, something else . . . There’s a new article featuring guess who? Me! in Edible Vineyard (the 2019 Harvest Issue), a wonderful island food magazine produced through the Martha’s Vineyard Times. It’s available everywhere here on the island . . . and I have to say, every article in it is interesting! Really well-written. Kind of like the New Yorker of food! I don’t know if the paper is selling them, but I’m sure you could ask.
On October 26, I’ll be speaking and signing books at the 
newly renovated and beautifully restored Carnegie Library on North Water Street in Edgartown, MA, from 2-3 pm, sponsored by the Vineyard Trust and Edgartown Books. It’s free! And they have a gift shop! 😜 I’ll bring signed copies of Edible Vineyard to give out! Come join us! And guess what? Kellee and Sheri will be there (Joe too!). They’re coming to stay with us for a few days next week, to get a little taste of New England fall!🍁 💃
The Edible article was beautifully written by Alisun Armstrong, photos by Lexi Pline. Quotes from the Fairy Tale Girl and Martha’s Vineyard Isle of Dreams. Recipes from the 30th Anniversary version of Heart of the Home and my Autumn Book.❤️
No reason for this photo, just loved the colors!
This too! I told you it was a huge Birthday Month . . . I also had a Birthday Party for Martha . . . this was the table setting. Very simple, purple flowers (Johnson Brothers WindsorWare plates) and plaid napkins on old bedspread, with hydrangeas from the garden.
Colorful! Girl Party! This whole lunch was scarily done without a recipe. When we were in Hudson, I tasted some fantastic things, spicy 
sweet-potato fingers with minted lemon sauce and a Coconut Cilantro Chutney (with hot peppers and garlic and ginger). I wrote down what I could, so I could try making it at home. I was nervous, realizing too late that this might not be the smartest way to do a birthday lunch, but it turned out GOOD. I served it with deviled eggs, minced red onion, and smoked salmon, and toasted walnut bread ~ with homemade Basil Ice Cream and Lemon Polenta Cake for dessert. My wrist allowed me to do everything except Joe chopped the onion and got that pretty green ice cream out of the freezer container! Pretty darn good!
And then there’s this! Because I couldn’t find them on the Island, I had to make them. Since they’re not here, I imagine you may not be able to find them either, so I thought this recipe could come in handy, for Apple Cider Donuts! They’re easy! They bake in the oven like a cake! You have to have them!🍁
So Here’s what I did . . . first off, on the stove, out of sight, is a pan filled with Apple Cider (the plain, non-alcoholic kind) boiling down to a syrup (don’t worry, I’ll put the recipe at the end of the post). Then I buttered the donut pans with melted butter and set them aside. Don’t have donut pans? Stay tuned . . .
I lightened the flour by stirring it with a whisk so I wouldn’t have to sift it. Then I measured it out lightly and put it in a medium bowl . . .
and whisked it together with baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and salt.
In another large bowl, I whisked together egg, milk, vanilla, brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
whisking . . .
. . . adding in the reduced cider . . . whisking until it was blended.
Then, because it’s too difficult to get the dough neatly into the tiny donut pans with a spoon, I poured the batter into a plastic bag …
. . . then squeezed the messy thing down to get most of the batter in the bottom of the bag,
then I twisted it up at the top, and cut off a tiny bit of corner, so the batter would come out in a controllable manner.
. . . and Voila . . . into the oven they go!
While they baked, I melted some butter and mixed together sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon for coating the donuts when they were done.
And here they are, hot from the oven. I slipped a tiny spatula around them and they came out like buttah.
I dipped them, tops and bottoms in melted butter, and laid them into bowl with the sugar and spice . . .
Spooned over sugar, pressed it in, until they were well coated. Pushing Joe, get away. no touching. Oh, poor baby, okay, eat one. Gimmie a bite.💋
I wrapped the rest of them in an old linen bridge-table tablecloth, put them in a basket and walked over to lowely’s for Mahjong . . . we start with tea, and yesterday, with donuts still warm from the oven!
The recipe made six large donuts and ten small ones. So, who wants to make donuts? Leave a comment, we’ll have a drawing, and the winner will receive the exact tins I baked these donuts in! Two tins, used once only, they’re festive, they have red bottoms, together they make six large donuts and a dozen little ones . . . there are more in our web store, just in cases. And I’m including a package of holiday recipe cards!
I’ll toss in a signed copy of Edible Magazine too…
So that’s it . . . sunshine through blowing leaves, through kitchen windows, sliding across the stove, weaves through sugar-donut fragrance, skips along the floor, over the table, dancing fairy-like over a bowl of apples, and shimmers onto our walls.
Our world sometimes feels upside-down, we can feel overwhelmed by daily happenings, making ends meet, meeting the needs of our beloveds, drains energy, there’s no rest for the weary or the worried! Dreaming of a better tomorrow? Let it show in everything you do. Let the things you value in life shine through, home, family, friends, the little things that make life sweet. Do stop and smell the flowers, run and catch a leaf in mid air. Watch an old movie with your petty pet. You’ll feel better, I promise. Kisses and blessings on you and yours. Take a deep breath . . . ahhhhh.
Don’t forget to leave your comment for the drawing! HERE is a little chart that shows you how to sign up to get this BLOG delivered to your email address.❤️
A P P L E C I D E R D O N U T S
Makes six large donuts and ten small ones.
Set out 1/2 c. whole milk and one egg to come to room temp. Slowly melt 1 1/2 c. (12 TB. or 1 1/2 sticks) butter (you’ll ned some to grease the pans, some for donut batter, and some for the topping). Put 1 1/2 c. non-alcoholic apple cider in small saucepan. Bring to boil, then simmer until liquid reduces to one-half cup. 👀 Watch it. Takes about 15 min. Set aside to cool. Use a pastry brush, butter the donut cups.
Preheat oven to 350º
- 2 c. all purpose flour, whisked to lighten, then measured
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp. cloves
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1 egg, room temp.
- 1/2 c. whole milk, room temp
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 TB. melted butter
- 1/2 c. reduced apple cider
- 1/2 c. dark brown sugar
- 1/3 c. granulated sugar
T O P P I N G
- 1 c. granulated sugar
- 3/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice*
- 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- the rest of the butter, put in shallow wide dish.
Preheat oven to 350º. In a med bowl, whisk together first 7 ingredients. Set aside. In large bowl, whisk the egg, then whisk in the rest of the ingredients. Add dry ingredients to wet and whisk until smooth. Fill a large plastic bag with batter. This is messy. Once filled, hold it at top and squeeze batter down, twist the top so batter is pushed into bottom. With scissors cut a tiny corner off the bottom of the bag (not too much, you can always cut it bigger). Squeeze the batter into the donut cavities, filling about 2/3 full. Bake 10-12 min until they spring back when you poke them (I baked the small donuts slightly less time). Let cool 5 min in pans, Use a small spatula to loosen each one and turn them out onto tea-towel-covered cooling rack. While they are baking, make TOPPING: in a small bowl, mix together first 3 topping ingredients. Put the rest of the melted butter in a shallow dish. When donuts are cool enough to handle, dip tops and bottoms in melted butter, put them in the sugar mixture and spoon over generously, patting them so the mixture will hold on. Eat! Lovely in a cloth covered basket to bring to tea! Excellent with a cup of coffee!
*You can make your own PUMPKIN PIE SPICE for the topping, just add 1/2 tsp.nutmeg, 1/4 tsp.ground ginger, and 1/4 tsp. ground cloves to the cinnamon.
So happy your wrist is finally doing what you ask of it. How could Fall not be my favorite? I was born and married in October. I met my wonderful husband late September in Hell, Michigan ! I just love saying that ! I am over the moon with your new Winter ❄️ Dream Charm. I also love winter , blue and snow flakes. All the best Susan and Joe 🇺🇸
I met my husband in Hell must be the tag line of the century!!!🤣
Just the weather here in Idaho to make apple cider doughnuts. My mouth was watering looking at the photos.
Susan Branch, you and your donuts radiate LOVE! I am going to make them for my next work meeting I host at my house and I know my colleagues will LOVE them too! Thank you for making the world just a bit more sweet and lovely…..
My total pleasure, thank you for excellent receivership! 💞
Makes me happier that Fall has arrived – doing a color tour in Michigan in chilly weather!! Now I am feeling better about Fall coming and grey clouds..
Susan, I so look forward to your newsletters and everything you have to show us! Your home and your gardens always look so beautiful, no matter what the season – tress with or without leaves, your pathways filled will color and beauty…! I loved the pic of kitty in front of the fireplace! So warm and inviting! Here in Idaho, we’re close to our first real snow of the season, and I’m so looking forward to baking and sitting in front of the fire with a nice cup o’ tea! The Apple Cider Doughnuts would be perfect for this!!
Thank you for sharing bits of your days with us!
~Shannon from Idaho
Hello Susan, Joe, Jack and everyone,
Loved all in this email, especially the radish heart as we experienced something similar with an apple!!! My birthday is on Halloween and I will be 64! Yikes! Hope I win!! Good luck to all girlfriends!!
Peace and love,
Doreen
Fall flavored donuts are my favorite! They sell out immediately at our local stores so it will be fun to make them at home. Thanks for the recipe!
You are so cheerful….I love reading your blog! Those donuts look killer!!!
Missing the Vineyard so much as you share photos, recipes and happy thoughts. Thank you.
What a wonderful blog! As usual, it came at just the right time to lift spirits and provide inspiration. I sure miss Fall in New England and your blog stirred so many beautiful memories of long fall weekends spent touring New England in the Fall when we lived in NYC. The colors, the smells, and tastes of Autumn are like no others, but in New England, they always seemed enhanced with a special something that I could never describe. I remember stopping at pumpkin patches and cider mills and drinking hot cider and doughnuts to take the chill away-it was heavenly. The carrot cake looked absolutely stunning and expect it was quickly gone once served. So very glad that your hand is better and hope it continues to mend!
There’s a smell in the air. Chilled and mulchy because of the leaves. Heaven. xoxo
I am a Minnesotan who has lived on the Central Coast of CA for a number of years. I love living here but get homesick for the Midwest every autumn as the vivid colors are few and far between. Thank you for the yummy recipe — I can smell those donuts just by looking at your photos!
Hi Carol…I’m a Central Coast transplant from Minnesota too! I’m missing Autumn colors too, but love life here!
Love you, Susan, and love your blog!
Thank you, Susan for another lovely post. Here in south western Alberta, Canada, we’re a little farther along in our autumn. We’ve had snow twice already. Both times I thought there was too much to melt, and we’d be under the white stuff until spring. But it did melt for the most part, so we can still enjoy some fall colour.
Your donuts look absolutely delish! So appropriate for the season. I like that they’re baked, opposed to fried.
Please give Jack and Joe a warm autumn hug from me!🍁
Bunny Blessings,
Laurie, Nico’s mom
P.S. Happy birthday, Rachel! I feel as if I know you, so I’m going to tell you a secret … I think your hubby is adorable! But don’t tell him…
I sent your comment to Rachel, I know she’ll love it, want to make sure she sees it!❤️
Thank you SO much for the sweet wishes…i’ve had a wonderful day! Paul is REALLY cute…you have great taste! ❤️
I second that emotion! 😁
❤️❤️❤️
My mom saw this a forwarded it to me. I wanted so bad to get apple cider donuts at a pumpkin patch we went to as kids. Unfortunately I ran out of time but now I can make my own! Thank you!
👏👏👏❤️
I loved this post (as usual). So glad to see you’re able to paint again & Jack is taking care of you! Sometimes I feel guilty for being a homebody so that is for making me feel normal 🤗
An audible ahhh when seeing Jack’s adorable face. The donuts look lucious!
Good Afternoon, Susan…I am always so anxious to just stop the world…sit down and enjoy your delightful Blog! Your Apple Cider Donuts sound delicious as well as your beautiful Carrot Cake! I have always wanted to visit Your Magical Martha’s Vineyard…We had planned to visit several years ago when we were on Cape Cod…But, the Ferry Crossings were closed due to high winds and warnings of a hurricane…I’m not sure when I might get a chance again. I am so glad to hear that your wrist is recovering and you are back to being able to use it again. You are such an inspiration and a loving spirit for all of us. I almost feel like I have visited your magical world. Sending Love & Blessings, Jeanie in Colorado
Lovely to hear from you Jeanie. Boats were closed again last week, big Nor’Easter came along ~ lots of folks stranded, both sides. You’ll have to try again. It really DOESN’T happen that often! ❤️
These doughnuts must smell heavenly.
I have never tasted Cider Donuts. Yours look professionally made! Yum! Happy Fall, Susan.
So nice reading your experiences with fall–the best season! Thanks for the donut recipe—-how great to not have to deep fry!
Dear Susan,l love seeing the Fall through your eyes and pictures. Your fallen leaves, the rain..your fireplace so cozy with Jack. Those donuts look so yummy, it all looks wonderful to me. You did make me sad when you said “whoever buys our house when we downsize..etc..don’t ever move Susan, your house would miss you so. Now, 2 blogs ago you played “That Sunday-that Summer” I believe by Dinah Washington well..I’ve been singing that wonderful songs for WEEKS..lol and now you gave to me again by all those wonderful singers..I’m singing again! Thank you Susan. What a perfect song. xoxo
Heaven musica! xox If you play it in your house while you do the housework, you dance through the entire thing. Turn it UP! 😄😘
Happy birthday Rachel!
Thanks so much Tammy! 😘
Such luv-lee words:
sunshine through blowing leaves, through kitchen windows, sliding across the stove, weaves through sugar-donut fragrance, skips along the floor, over the table, dancing fairy-like over a bowl of apples, and shimmers onto our walls.
Thank you!
Happening again right this moment . . . 🍁🎃🍂 another one of those sparkly afternoons. Thank you back Tammy!
Your posts make my heart merry! Loved the just because photo. It made me smile. The little things really are the big things after all, aren’t they? We were out antique scouting today. I had to stop reading your blog so as not to miss the beautiful scenery here in rural Illinois. I did not have breakfast and I can tell you I will be making those donuts!!
👏👏👏
I heard so much about Apple Cider donuts this fall and thought how wonderful it would be to make my own. And now you’re make that possible!! How perfect is that!!
Perfect! ❤️
It’s been a troubled day here…and reading this let me escape all those thoughts for a bit…and then the last paragraph felt like you were whispering in my ear and steering me in a better direction. Thank you for the inspiring words! <3
My pleasure . . . go outside and breathe a bit if you can, so much joy and real life in nature. xoxoxo
Fall has finally arrived in SW Ohio — so long, 90s; hello, 60s! It’s been great, snuggling under a quilt while I bind it. Sleeping is wonderful at this time of year, too. Nothing better!
I live in Michigan during the summer and we have Crane’s Pie Pantry Restaurant in Fennville. They have absolutely wonderful cider donuts that we can get all summer but once we come to Florida they don’t have them here. 🙁 So I would love to try your recipe and the pans in which you make them. Love all you news and I’m glad your wrist is better. Love to you.
P.S. I love my sailboat mugs. I thought it was time for some new ones since I lost two of my flower mugs this past year.
That’s Joe’s new favorite cup, the sailboats! Glad to hear it Barb! Thank you dear. xoxo
What a wonderful Autumn Blog! You are really in the thick of the season.. Those donuts look amazing and edible.. Not all deep fried and greasy!!!! Think I am going to have to try these! Thanks Susan!!
Oh, boy! The donuts 🍩 sound soooo delicious! I love to bake so I am going to give your recipe a try. Thanks for sharing and for brightening my day with your inspirational words. You put a smile in my ❤️.
Thank you, dear Susan. You are always a delight!
Susan,
Once again all the happiness of fall, starts in your Autumn post. Thank you for the inspirations, the recipe for the most delightful donuts, and just sharing a bit of your life, while having fun with friends. And how nice they must be.
I spent the day baking little fruitcakes for the freezer. It brought my husband to the kitchen just following his nose. Yes, of course, he could have a little one. We cannot say no to our guys. They look too pitiful.
Happy Autumn, Happy Birthday fun, and Happy Halloween.
Bunny hugs to all,
Shirley
Okay, what first!!! Carrot cake or apple cider donuts!!! Decisions, decisions!!!
Hi Susan! We are spending a few days in Boulder, Co so we are getting a chance to see a bit of autumn’s color. Heading back to California soon. Once again, thank you for a lovelee blog. So glad your wrist is healthy.
You are so awesome, Susan!
Fall is my favorite time of year and I miss it terribly living now in Florida!
Thanks for sharing your wonderful life!
Hugs to you
Your Blog always brightens my day!!! I can’t wait to try the donuts!
My mouth is watering over those donuts. I’ll have to try that – I love baking. Your posts are such a wonderful mixture of home, love and friendship! Thank you for being “out here” where we can find you!
Having a lovely autumn in St Louis, too. The donuts look great and remind me of a pumpkin muffin which is rolled in butter and similar spices after baking. Glad the wrist is stronger. 🕊️ Judy
Those doughnuts look wonderful as do the baking pans. I just love autumn and your blogs. Great to see your wounded arm and hand wielding a brush again 🙂
Thank you for the cider donut recipe! I’m so excited, never had one and they are difficult to find. Making them this week! Thanks also for the inspirational food photos, I’m going to look for that cottage cheese! I’m so glad your hand is better but your lefty didn’t do so bad at that list! We escaped the past weekend storm that hit here on the Cape while off to Vermont camping with friends and the lovely fall foliage! (still green here) We returned to a storm ridden yard of leaves and small branches, but never lost power. Some people here still didn’t have power today, and we counted lots of linemen trucks all over. Bless those people! Happy Fall and please snuggle Jack for me!
I love donuts, and this blog was a joy to read, made my day happier.
Hope to win, so to bake your donuts with your recipe. Have a lovely Fall week.
Fall is my favorite time of year. I love everything about it – the cooling temps, cooking, decorating, traveling, the changing scenery, etc. It’s the best. Thanks for a great post. Namaste.
When I leave a comment, I don’t see it anymore. I used to see it, and it would tell me that it is awaiting approval. I hope you’re getting them. No need to post this one. Just curious.
I am. For some reason they took away that “waiting for approval” message, but I do get them.
Yay! Thanks for letting me know.
By the way, there’s so much love and friendship and joy here. Thanks for that too.
Thanks for your positive vibes ! I always feel good after reading your blog. ♥
Apple cider doughnuts — what a wonderful idea! Thanks for sharing the recipe. Your articles always make me smile and help me to realize what is really important in life. Thank you so much!
So happy to see you are painting again! Baked apple cider doughnuts?… can’t wait to try them!
I love fall the best too, and I can imagine it must be wonderful there by the ocean!! This donut recipe looks so yummy and I can almost smell them baking!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe and all the others…I just pulled out your Autumn book to keep handy during this season…I love looking through it over and over again….it was the first book of yours that I got!!!! Thanks and Happy Fall….God bless you and yours… Donna, from Montana
The donuts look so great I could almost smell them! Thx for the recipe!
So glad your wrist is feeling better! The donut recipe will be tried as soon as I finish writing to you! They look delish and I LOVE that they are baked, not fried. Wonderful. Once again, your post brings joy to my heart. I love the FEELING you put forth with your photos, words and music. Hard for me to describe, actually, but I look forward to checking in with your blog and feel as if we are all connected through our shared interests in some way….. Thank you!! Continued healing!
❤️❤️. I am an Occupational Therapist😉Glad you’re doing your therapy so you can continue to brighten our world with your lovely writings and paintings. Happy Fall❤️🍁
I can smell the donuts all the way to Colorado!! What a generous and fabulous giveaway! Thank you!
I cannot wait to try the donuts. My mom use to make the deep fried ones. These sound so much easier and healthier! Thank you!
What a lovely blog post Susan. Thank you for sharing your lovely days with us!
I love cider donuts. I always ask my Vermont friend to go to The Cider Mill and buy a couple and bring them back to me in California. Now I have your recipe, so I must try them myself. Your blog is the best. I look forward to it every time. Thank you and so happy to hear your wrist is better. Happy fall to you and Joe and Jack.
The donuts look so yummy 😋, I can’t wait to make some. Happy your wrist is getting better and you are able to write and paint. Your new charm is beautiful. Enjoy your Autumn 🧡🍁🎃
Susan, I get excited every time I see that you’ve posted a new entry to your Blog on my I phone….love the way this is working. Then I find a perfect time to just sit, and relax, read and enjoy. Just being with you as share your cooking & baking and you invite us to your parties and you take us along on your adventures….such a treat…thank you! How did you know I’ve been wanting to make Apple Cider Donuts? Like your read my mind girlfriend. I’ll let you know how they turn out. And most important, I’m glad to hear that you’re back to painting again. Love the fall colors…sorry we left Minnesota to head back to San Diego but we were lucky to see the colors change and it was glorious.
Best to you and Joe
Your apple cider donuts are beautiful & I’m sure a nice change from pumpkin overload.
I’m a new friend of yours! I adore your blog. How exciting that you are back to painting and your wrist is healing well! I sure bet those donuts would smell lovely baking while working on the quilt I’m making for my daughter. Autumn is here in Colorado and we had our first bit of snow already. Loving the cooler days and chilly nights. I’m looking forward to enjoying more of your blog!
I love cider donuts!! I always ask my friend who goes to Vermont to bring me some back from The Cider Mill. Now I will make my own. Thank you for your wonderful blog. It is always inspiring. Happy fall to you and Joe and Jack.
Happy fall.
You have the most delightful ideas for gifts! That said, you have the most delightful ideas for everything!! I love your books and your blog! Thank you for being you and for sharing YOU with us!
Apple Cider Donuts. *sigh*
Oh my goodness! Those doughnuts look scrumptious! I was wandering through Trader Joe’s in Morgan Hill, CA last week and saw that they were selling apple cider doughnuts. Tempting but not the genuine article. Having only been to New England in the fall one time, and 15 years ago, I sadly cannot recall the flavor of the real thing. Here’s hoping I win, and if not, I may have to get a pan so I can conjure some New England autumn to my small farm in Aromas, CA where the apples grow in abundance! Thank you for continuing to speak out on Twitter as well as helping us calm down by reading your blog. Your magic is real!
Autumn….my favorite season! And those donuts!! I love that they are baked, not fried. Can’t wait to try them!
Again you’ve written a bog that came at a time I’ve needed it most. I saved reading this until I could actually take a breather from my crazy life and sit and devote my complete attention. What wonderful words that calmed my mind and body. Thank you again Susan. ❤️ And those doughnuts 😍
ah Susan those look delicious, I can smell them from here! always, thanks for the lovely words and a fun giveaway!
Happy Autumn!
Hi there – its Julie Child (not of the Julia Child fame)
It’s fall out here in Northern California too. Just something about the air that’s different, leaves starting to change colors and just not so darn hot! Your snack of cottage cheese and toast sent me searching for that delicious looking Friendly Farm brand but only east coast – darn it! The bittersweet color is so lovely and its just so darn cute how Jack just curls up right by your hands while you paint. Sweet companion! Happy Fall!
Yumm I love your recipes, every one of them! I’ve been a fan since I got your Traditions cookbook many years ago. My daughter’s love to cook from them as well. We all have a copy. My cover is a little yellowed with age, I like it better that way.. and a spot here or there on the pages. Always something new, here’s to Apple Cider Donuts! Thanks!
Ahh the thumb on broken hand looks tender still. Yet..let painting begin..so happy for you and before the holidays. Rest, walk let Joe cook and spoil you some. Wonderful Willard. Thank you soooo much.
Hi Susan
I’m so happy your back to painting. I’m sure it has been a struggle to get your strength and dexterity back. Sending you healing thoughts and wishes!
Planted bulbs today for the first time ever. Yikes our ground is very hard. I hope they pop up this spring.
I just placed a Christmas order and can’t wait for my new treasures.
Your online shop is the best! I’ve sent several cards from your lovely assortment of cards box.
It is sooo you- flowers and happiness everywhere.
We are off to Sanibel Island for a few days. Looking forward to doing nothing but read and walk the beach.
Happy AUTUMN
I was in Vermont a couple of winters ago and saw a sign out by the road for fresh, cider donuts and made my husband turn the car around so I could try some. I remember reaching into the brown paper bag slightly stained from grease and lifting a warm, sugary donut to my mouth and tasting that first bite. YUM!!! I make cinnamon sugar donut-muffins and love them but I can’t wait to try these. It would be especially great if I had those pans so I could make true donuts!
Thanks for another enjoyable blog. Have a wonderful October!
Dear Susan,
I’m so glad that your new diet is not so strict that you cannot enjoy a doughnut!! As I’ve gotten older I have developed allergies to milk and wheat, but I love doughnuts so I’ve had to look for ways to make the kind I can eat. The world is getting a little better with the quality of what is available for folks like me, so I’m happy to be living in this day and age. Thank you for giving us all the encouragement to delight in our homes and make them havens for our loved ones and the occasional stranger. XO
P.S. The colors in Michigan right now are glorious!!
Can’t wait to try your recipe for Apple Cider Donuts. Already have the donut pan! How fortunate. Made Pumpkin Spice ones a few weeks ago! Wish I had a fireplace like yours! Such hygge.
Hi Susan; Sounds like you are enjoying Autumn to the fullest. I’d love to win the donut tins so I could try my hand at making some cider donuts. I don’t know if we have them here in Canada, but they sound delicious, and I love apple cider.
Love fall! Love donuts! LOVE your blog! Thanks Susan! I needed to read this cheerful account today.💕
I love the positive feelings, smell of seasons and love of life that your blogs always bring with them. Thank you for that.
Yaaaay, i decided to take a day for me and who showed up?…. YOU. Feel like we sat down with a BIG pot of tea and gabbed away sharing all fun stuff. Luv all the pictures you shared. Luv Jack helping you. I luuuuuv your carrot cake design and was so glad that u said u shaped the and was so glad to see that u shaped your ingenious carrot peels. I was agonizing immediately of how to do that lol. I just thought …u are the fairy tale girl and maybe all ur carrot peels look like carrots hee hee luv you autumn pics and it brings some Fall to texas as it is still warm here. Your description of the storm and cozy fire was the very ideal for my perfect night. Parties look fun and cozy those hydrangeas were drop dead gorgeous. Luv all your new things and everything you do and share. I have a mi i bundt tray that i think i will try w ur recipe. Thank you so much. I dont know if i ever said thank you to you for sharing ur trip to Vermont a few years ago. I was totally inspired and went ALL BY MYSELF a few years ago and stayed in stowe at a gorgeous little country inn. Edson Hill in Stowe. I went to a lot of the places u visited and a ton more. And have been back 5 times since and am going again in Dec. I made friends w the owners and it is like a second home to me. All because of you. Thought i would share
Ooh I so want those donuts NOW with a cuppa tea in one of my wonderful SB teacups, I’ll try to be patient and wait… Okay, time is up! This was a lovely post, filled to the rim with goodness, love and playfulness. Thank you!
We love donuts! Thanks for the recipe, and great giveaway 🧡
Susan, I enjoyed this post so much. Your pictures make me feel like there might just be light at the end of the tunnel. Your comment at the end about the world feeling upside down and caring for the needs of your beloveds and letting the things you love in life shine through actually made me cry. I will be seeing your kitty in front of the fire in my mind all day. It made me feel warm, at home and loved. Thank you so much. Sandra
Glad to see you are painting again! I love your recipe books! The apple cider donut recipe came just in time! We are harvesting our backyard apples here in Northern California! Can’t wait to bake the donuts with some bits of apple in them!
Thanks for the great cider donut recipe !! Glad your wrist is doing so much bettet Susan. God bless you and heal you, patty
YAAAAAY I decided to take a day for myself and guess who stopped by for a chat?… YOU!! I feel like you stopped in for a BIG pot of tea and we gabbed and gabbed about all sorts of fun things. Luv you pics of Jack helping and all of the Autumn pics too. It helped bring Fall here as we are still warming in TX. Those hydrangeas were drop dead gorgeous and your parties looked so fun. Your description of the storm was exactly what i would want in a perfect night in front of the fire. I loooooved your carrot cake and your ingenious carrot peel decoration. I was so thrilled that you said that you cut the tops of them because I was immediately stressing about how i could get mine to look that way and I thought maybe all your carrot peels looked like carrots because you are the Fairy Tale Girl 🙂 I am going to try your cider doughnuts in a mini bundt cake tray that i have. I don’t know if I ever thanked you for sharing your trip to Vermont a few years ago? I decided to go ALL BY MYSELF and stayed in Stowe at a GORGEOUS country inn, Edson Hill (40 acres of wonderfulness) and went to some of the places you went and a whole lot more. It was the best trip and I loved it so much that I have been back 5 times and am going again in December. I have become friends with the owner and the staff is amazing. It has become like home away from home for me. Thought I would mention it as a little way to give back to you in case you wanted to return to Vermont. Thank you for everything you do for me and all the Girlfriends. PS I read that article and it was great. You are sooooooooo darling. Happy Birthday, RACHEL!!! Thank you for being such a good friend to Susan and making her feel so happy and loved and cherished for so many years Hope you have a wonderful day filled with love. Kindred Spirits! Sending hugs to you both. XOXOXO
😘😘😘
I wanna make donuts!
Oh my goodness gracious I love jumping into your oh so cozy blog!!! Your recipes seem so delish. Want to make your donuts💛 Isnt Fall and being a homebody the best! All the joys! PS love the Winter charm! May have to order it!
Love Apple cider and donuts made from cider would taste delicious.
Love the donut recipe. Time to get cozy !!!
Hi Susan! Thanks for another wonderful letter!
The donuts look amazing!
About cottage cheese—I am with you 100%! Don’t know if you can get the brand Michigan Cottage Cheese. I could get it when I lived in Ohio. Here in Kentucky I couldn’t find it until I stumbled on it recently at a small store—yay! It’s really good, small curd and not wet at all!
Have a wonderful fall, and God bless you!
I’m sitting here on my couch looking at these donuts and getting hungrier by the moment. I can only imagine having one of these donuts with a good cup of tea! Pure heaven. I must make these! Thanks for the recipe.
Love apple cider donuts! So good with a cup of tea. I just love this time of year! Warm sweaters, crisp air and all the lovely colors! So glad I live where the season’s change.
Autumnal greetings to you, from another reformed apple cider donut lover…what with my new eating habits eliminating sugar and processed foods, this blog was a temptation 🙁 , but eating one would be quite a good reason to fall 🙂 !
Glad your wrist is writing better, and continued artwork by Susan Branch is guaranteed. Be well!
Thanks for the opportunity to win a treasure from you.
Patti E. 🙂
Hi Susan
So happy to see your wrist is all healed. I loved this post and enjoyed reading all about the garden and your wonderful walks. Many thanks for the donut recipe.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Lucy
I love baked donuts most of all.
The changing seasons are gifts given to each of us through the cycling year. Even the familiar, like Casper and pumpkins and falling leaves can be enjoyed anew. How lucky are we?
Thank you again for your beautiful and inspiring blog! Your food pictures make me hungry. I’d love to meet you. You seem like a kindred spirit, as I read your books and blogs! I own many of your books.
Soup and leaves dancing off the trees, and watching season 2 of “The Crown” again, and candles and friends….and really nice recipes from Susan!
Happiest autumn….
love,
Regina
Susan so glad your wrist is on the mend. Love your website, makes everything good with the world, simple pleasures.
Hi, Susan…never, ever downsize and sell that beautiful home of yours! Sharing her on your blog is the closest I’ll ever get to owning one of my own 😀
I can’t wait to make the donuts, Susan! I had my first apple cider donuts two years ago at Atkins Farm near Amherst. They were delicious! They will be quite the treat as fall is finally rolling into the South! Thank you for the recipe.
I absolutely love Autumn! Thank you for sharing such a lovely and cozy post.