Grandma’s Spudnuts

Today, I’d like to introduce you to someone special.

This is my grandma, and she was one amazing lady. When it comes to food, she was one of my biggest inspriations. Everyone loved her food (so as it is with most grandmas) but she made everything look so easy. Her food was simple and comforting and she made many things from scratch. When people look back and remember her life, they always talk about the food that they miss.

When I was younger, my mom went back to work so grandma took on the task of watching my cousin and I for part of the day. The thing I looked forward to the most was getting to eat breakfast at her house. I can still remember the taste of her scrambled eggs and even to this day, I can’t replicate them. She had a talent of turning the most humble foods into something awesome.

My grandma was also a cook at the local elementary school for many years. She loved making rolls, cookies, and spudnuts for the school kids. My siblings would talk about how she’d slip them an extra treat in the lunch line. That was my grandma!

Thankfully, she passed down some of her recipes to us and they are some of our most cherished possessions. For years, I’d heard about Grandma’s spudnut recipe but I’d never tried it. Nor do I remember her making them for me. But since doughnuts are one of my favorite things to make, I knew I had to make them.

What in the world are spudnuts, you may ask? Well, they’re doughnuts, but they’re made with mashed potatoes. I know! Before you start dismissing these treats, know this. First, I am from Idaho and I’m pretty sure we’ll find a million uses for potatoes. I’m not sure if spudnuts originated in Idaho, but still. Secondly, adding potatoes to enriched doughs makes them fluffy and soft. In fact, some of my favorite baked goods have potatoes in them. So sneaky! But so inventive, and so resourceful. Take one bite and you’ll never go back to that doughnut chain that likes to advertise their coffee. Or even the one that flips on the “HOT NOW” sign. Never again, you guys!

Well, wait a minute. If you can get doughnuts from a drive through, why would you even bother making them? Maybe you’ll have to answer that question yourself. But I’ll tell you why I do. Doughnuts are so fun to make, and maybe you’ll just have to make them to experience their joy. Few things beat dipping a piping hot doughnut into sweet glaze and smothering that sucker. The best part is watching other people eat them, like who knew you could make doughnuts at home? Well, you can, of course!

If you’re wondering what the specks are in this gorgeous dough, it is nutmeg and cinnamon. They both add the perfect, subtle amount of spice that will make your taste testers wonder what’s in there. But at the same time, it’s not overly spicy like something you should be only eating in the fall when pumpkin spice mania hits.

Without further ado, here is my grandma’s treasured spudnut recipe, with a few of my modifications. If you try these tasty little critters, please let me know how you like them.